WVTK Local & State News December 16, 2011

The Hannaford Supermarket chain says it is recalling ground beef with a sell-by date of Dec. 17 or earlier because it may be contaminated with salmonella. The Scarborough, Maine-based Company says in a statement Friday it has received information indicating 10 people have become ill. All have indicated they purchased ground beef between October 12th and November 20th. Hannaford says it is confident in the safety of its products and that all ground beef affected by the recall has been removed from stores. The company says customers should return or dispose of ground beef with the December 17 or earlier sell-by dates.

Writer and environmental activist Bill McKibben says he's disgusted with a push by Republicans in Washington to tie approval for an extension of a middle-class tax cut to a speedy OK for a pipeline to carry oil from western Canada to refineries on the Gulf Coast of Texas. McKibben, a scholar in residence at Vermont's Middlebury College, has been a leader of efforts to block construction of the pipeline. President Barack Obama is supporting a delay in a final decision on the pipeline. Republicans say work needs to get under way now to generate new jobs.

Ripley Bridge Rutland is scheduled to close from 1 to 3 this afternoon. Central Vermont Public Service Corp. will be performing “customer-requested work” at the one-lane bridge. The work should not result in any power outages in the area.

The Middlebury Fire Department and Bread Loaf Corp. architects have put the last major touches on the design of a renovated and expanded Seymour Street fire station. Middlebury voters will decide at Town Meeting Day in March as part of a $4.8 million bond issue. The biggest design change is the relocation of the new elevator shaft from the building’s exterior to its interior. Firefighters are planning additional public meetings about the project in late January or early February, along with a Middlebury Community Television documentary and a mass-mailed flyer to explain details.

The Better Middlebury Partnership is circulating a marketing survey to get a sense from local shoppers and merchants about how the town could improve its retail, parking, restaurant and housing amenities. The 17-question survey is based on a similar questionnaire that the University of Vermont administered in the town of Newport a few years ago. Respondents are asked to weigh in on a series of topics.

Middlebury select-board Chairman John Tenny said earlier this week he will not seek another three-year term on Town Meeting Day. His retirement from the select-board comes at the end of a more-than-16-year run. Tenny’s position on the select-board will be one of three up for grabs on Town Meeting Day next March. He is most proud of the professional culture that grew within the town staff and select-board that helped bring about results.

Crews in Rutland contained a fuel oil spill on Cleveland Avenue yesterday morning. According to Rutland City Police, about 100 gallons of fuel oil leaked from a delivery truck overnight due to a faulty valve. Police said there is no danger to the community and no evacuation had been ordered. The fuel did not reach East Creek based on preliminary tests despite getting into a nearby storm drain.

Administrators at Mount Abraham Union High School are working this week at a 2012-2013 budget proposal, hoping to have a zero-percent spending increase. This task comes after Gov. Peter Shumlin asked school districts statewide to level fund their budgets for the third straight year. But right now officials on the Mount Abe school board aren’t sure that’s possible.

Last Sunday ended the muzzleloader and bow deer season. It brought no more good news for local hunters than the end of November’s rifle season. The numbers of deer weighed at local reporting stations this month declined dramatically from recent years. The drop for the combined results for October’s bow season and December’s muzzleloader and bow season was even steeper.

After some ups and downs over the last couple of years, it looks like Middlebury College is out of the woods financially. That’s according to Patrick Norton, vice president and treasurer at the college. Norton said that although the school’s endowment has rebounded to $825 million from its low point in March 2009, the financial crisis has changed the way the school handles its money.

Christmas came early for Ticonderoga officials. Supervisor Deb Malaney learned earlier this month the community has been included in the state’s $785 million Regional Economic Development Council initiative. Ticonderoga will receive $598,575 for water and sewer improvements on John Street and $270,000 to install a fuel station at the town airport. The Regional Economic Development Council initiative also funded two other local projects. The Fort Ticonderoga Association received $20,320 for a historic preservation planning report and the town of Hague got $44,000 for a Hague Brook storm water reduction program.

Essex County lawmakers say talks have broken down on a pay freeze for union workers next year. County employees represented by the Civil Service Employees Association local unit are due for a 4 percent pay hike in 2012, the last year of a four-year contract. Numerous efforts by the County Board of Supervisors to get the union to agree to suspend the raises have been unsuccessful. The county passed a new budget this week with 10 layoffs and a 10.5 percent tax increase. Another 10 unfilled jobs will be eliminated.

National Grid's electricity customers in upstate New York will see cuts in their bills next year after regulators approved a reduction in what the utility charges to deliver power. The state Public Service Commission said that residential customers will see an average 6 percent drop and some business customers will see cuts as much as 23 percent. The savings will be driven by an 11 percent cut in residential delivery charges and 44 percent for some businesses. The decrease follows expiration of charges dating to before National Grid's acquisition of Niagara Mohawk.

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray Lahood announced updated fatality and injury data showing that highway safety deaths fell to the lowest level since 1949. When presented with this notable achievement, Vermont Department of Public Safety Commissioner Keith Flynn pointed out that 2010 Vermont traffic fatalities fell 4.1 percent from 2009, exceeding the national reduction by 1.2 percent. Flynn attributed, in part, the reason for the decline to collaborative efforts between traffic safety educators, law enforcement, traffic engineers and emergency medical responders.

It's that time of year again, when the Christmas lights go up, candles become more prominent and home fires skyrocket. That's why area firefighters are reminding everyone to be aware of holiday hazards. According to the U.S. Fire Administration, fires occurring throughout the holiday season claim 400 lives nationally, injure more than 1,600 people and cause more than $990 million in fire damage each year.

There is a new international flight in and out of Burlington that could be a boost to Vermont's ski industry. Tourism leaders hope Canadians might be tempted to ski in Vermont now that there is a direct link between Burlington and Toronto. Yesterday afternoon Porter Airlines' inaugural flight from Toronto landed at Burlington International Airport. There will be two roundtrip flights a week through ski season. Though the hope is the hour long trip becomes year round.

Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin is defending his administration, saying it should not be the target for criticism for the state's treatment of vulnerable adults. Yesterday's comment was in response to a lawsuit filed Thursday by Vermont Legal Aid and Disability Rights Vermont. The groups say the state has too many backlogged cases and is not investigating reports of abuse quick enough. Shumlin says it's not his fault. He says his administration inherited this problem from past governors. The groups, which filed the lawsuit, have asked the judge to schedule a status conference for as soon as possible.

Vermont is already known as the Green Mountain State, but by 2050 it also wants to be known as a green energy state. Officials released their final comprehensive energy plan yesterday. Officials say they want to use 90% renewable energy in all sources by then, focusing on transportation and home heating. Currently, one fourth of Vermont's energy is green, and the Department of Public Service Commissioner Elizabeth Miller says that's proof the state can meet the new goal. Vermont has not had a long-term energy plan since 1991.

If you are looking for a little free financial advice after suffering damage from Tropical Storm Irene you might just qualify for a program recently announced by the New England chapter of the Financial Planning Association. They are offering free, no-strings-attached financial advice to those affected by the August 28th storm. You can call them toll free at (888) 562-8784.

A passenger rail study, jointly supported by Vermont and New York, is closing in on a recommended proposal for bringing passenger trains into Bennington County from Albany and north to Rutland. Details of the proposal were discussed at a public meeting Tuesday. In the first phase of the study, alternatives were ranked based on factors like projected ridership, operational and maintenance costs, implementation costs and environmental impact. All of the alternatives were based only on existing rail lines.

Our Toys For Kids toy drive is heading into its final weekend and we need your help. The program helps brighten a child’s Christmas right here in and around Addison County and all donations remain local. The Department Of Vermont Marine Corps League sponsors Toys For Kids. You can drop off a new unwrapped toy at locations in Brandon, Bristol, Middlebury, Orwell, Shoreham and Vergennes. Get the details right now by clicking HERE. Your generous support is much appreciated!

Union members representing service and maintenance workers at the University of Vermont have ratified a new contract. The union says the deal provides 4.5% to 5.5% pay raises over three years and doesn't increase health insurance amounts paid by active employees.

A homeless dog in Wisconsin named L.L. Bean has found a new home in Maine, thanks to the company he's named after. The Dunn County Humane Society in Wisconsin received a call from an employee at L.L. Bean's Freeport headquarters after a local TV station ran a story about the Coonhound that had been in the shelter for more than a year. The story of L.L. Bean the dog was shared on L.L. Bean's company Intranet site, and a customer service representative was chosen to be the dog's new owner. L.L. Bean is expected to arrive in Maine in early January.