The Middlebury River Task Force will meet this
afternoon from 1 – 3 at the Middlebury Volunteer Ambulance Association. On this afternoon’s agenda is a review
of the Flood/Fluvial Erosion Hazard zoning bylaws and recommendations to Select
Board. They will also provide an
update on contacts with State and Federal Agencies. The meeting agenda and details can be found on the Town’sWebsite.
The special Westport Town Council meeting at 6 this
evening to discuss Town Hall repair options. The regular meeting will
immediately follow that. Both are
open to the public.
The Town Of Middlebury will hold its regular Select
Board meeting this evening at 7 in the Town Offices Conference Room. Items on tonight’s agenda include a
Public Works Committee Report on the South Street & Green Mountain Place
Project and Public Works Specifications for Water Mains, a brief update in the
work of the River Task Force, a Downtown Improvement District Report that
includes a request for proposals of a Parking Study and Bike Racks. The Select Board will also discuss Resolutions
& Certificates for Bonding for the Fire Facilities and a Reimbursement
Resolution for Fire Facilities Project.
Get more information and view the complete agenda on the Select BoardPage of Middlebury’s Website.
Vermont State Police troopers are investigating
the burglary of the Robert Koch residence located on Lafountain Lane in
Weybridge. Entry was gained into
the residence through a back first story window. Please contact the New Haven State Police Barracks at (802)
388-4919 if you have information regarding burglary.
Police have issued a warning to boaters on Lake
Bomoseen. Don't leave personal items behind. Police say at least 50 boats were broken into after dark
last week while docked at Woodard Marina. Two thieves stole thousands of
dollars in wet suits, wake boards and other sporting goods, as well as a pair
of binoculars and some boat radios. The boat bandits are young, white men. Police say to be on the lookout for the
stolen, second-hand merchandise. Anyone
with information should call Castleton Police. (802) 468-5012.
The state Agency of Transportation recently
authorized the town of Brandon to split the Route 7 road project into two
phases to allow a waterline relocation project before any road construction. A date for the waterline
relocation has not been determined, but the town hopes to complete it this year.
The roadway reconstruction project, known as Segment 6, would also include side
roads, sidewalks, parking areas, grading, drainage and utilities relocation. The
Segment 6 project construction will probably take two construction seasons. The
town does not expect any construction disruptions this year.
In what could be the start of a chain reaction,
officials in Castleton took a stand against the proposed wind project on
Grandpa’s Knob. The Select
Board voted last night to oppose the wind turbine development on the ridgeline
and not enter into a host town agreement with wind developer Reunion Power. Castleton is the first town in the
proposed project area to formally oppose the project. Approximately three to
five turbines could be expected on the Castleton portion of the ridgeline,
while nine to 11 could be in Pittsford, the largest number in a single town.
The Essex County Treasurer’s Office will be
changing the hours it will be open to the public, effective July 1st. During July and August, the Treasurer’s
Office will be open from 8AM to 4PM Monday through Friday. The office will be closed on Saturday,
Sunday and all legal holidays during July and August. Then Beginning September 1st, the office will return to its
regular hours of 9AM to 5PM Monday through Friday.
A panel of Vermont lawmakers meets this week to
take up some big issues in health care and mental health care. A daylong
Statehouse session on Wednesday begins at 9AM with a review of efforts to
implement the information technology systems that will be crucial if the state
continues toward Governor Peter Shumlin's goal of a single-payer health care
system.
Vermont's only U-S Congressman, Peter Welch will
not go unchallenged in this year's election. Republican Mark Donka, who is 55 and a career cop living in
Hartford, filed the necessary petitions Monday with the Secretary of State's
office. Donka works for the
Woodstock Police Department, and says his training as a police sergeant is
invaluable to him as a member of Congress, adding he's a social moderate. Many Vermont incumbents, including
Welch, Governor Peter Shumlin and Lieutenant Governor Phil Scott, have until
Thursday at 5PM to file their paperwork to be on the ballot.
Smart grid is a concept that has been gaining
traction and attention in the field of electric utilities. Now, the University
of Vermont is announcing a new multi-disciplinary program in smart grid. Jeff Marshall is a professor in UVM's
School of Engineering. He says the UVM will train PhD students to analyze
questions related to how smart grid is implemented. The multi-disciplinary
program is funded by a prestigious grant from the National Science Foundation.
As Vermonters get outdoors to fish, swim and
hike, the Health Department is warning them about some common summer hazards,
like Lyme disease. Officials say
the number of Lyme disease cases has steadily increased since 2005 to 512
reported cases of likely exposure last year. Officials say the increase is
probably due to more awareness about the disease and more infected ticks. The best way prevention is to avoid
tick bites. Officials say to do daily tick checks and remove ticks promptly. They are also advising to avoid
mosquito bites by using insect repellent to prevent West Nile virus and Eastern
equine encephalitis virus. Swimmers
and boaters should keep away from blue green algae, which can produce dangerous
toxins that can cause skin irritation or allergic reactions.
A group that advocates for state legislatures has
filed court papers saying a federal judge erred when he relied on excerpts from
Vermont's legislative record for a ruling that sharply limited the state's
authority over the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant. The National Conference of State Legislatures was among
several parties filing briefs supporting the state's appeal of a January ruling
by Judge J. Garvan Murtha of the U.S. District Court in Brattleboro. Murtha ruled lawmakers were improperly
motivated by nuclear safety - the sole jurisdiction of the federal Nuclear
Regulatory Commission - when they passed laws saying they had to give the OK
for Vermont Yankee to operate past this March. The N-C-S-L says Murtha improperly interfered with
legislative prerogatives, and failed to acknowledge lawmakers had other motivations.
The property of a Middlesex woman forced from her
home by flooding from Tropical Storm Irene is getting cleaned up thanks to the
efforts of 13 Vermont college students and recent graduates. The interns were
at the home of Victoria Hallihan on the banks of the Winooski River yesterday. Monday
was the first day on the job for the interns.
Otter Creek Child Center will hold its second
annual O-C-C-C Wine, Swine, Brew and Bid fundraising event this Saturday at the
Lincoln Peak Vineyard in New Haven.
The event will begin at 6PM and will end around 10. Proceeds will support Otter Creek Child
Center, which is a year round, full day, non-profit early care and education
center, in Middlebury. For
tickets, call Otter Creek at 388-9688 or email occc-linda@myfairpoint.net,
tickets will also be available at the door the evening of the event. Tickets are $25 per person and $40 per couple.
On Friday, August 3rd the Ticonderoga
Revitalization Alliance, in partnership with the Ticonderoga Festival, will be
hosting a concert by the Lake Placid Sinfonietta at 7PM at St. Mary's Church.
The Sinfonietta is the longest standing orchestra in the Adirondacks,
approaching 100 years. After costs of the event are covered, all proceeds will
benefit cultural arts programs offered by the Ti-Alliance and Festival Guild,
with a portion also being donated to St. Mary's Parish. Interested sponsors can contact Justin
Woods, Betsy Lowe or Jim Major at (518) 565-0054 to learn more.
The annual Crown Point Congregational Church
Strawberry Festival is growing. The
eighth annual event will take place on Sunday, June 24th from 11AM
to 4:30PM. This year organizers
are adding amusement rides to go along with its traditional fare. The festival
is held in the park adjacent to the church. This year’s Strawberry Festival
will include the church’s “famous” strawberry shortcakes made with local
berries, strawberry ice cream sundaes, hamburgers, hot dogs and more. There
will be raffles throughout the day with items donated by local businesses,
including a barbecue from Crown Point Barbecue.
A preview of a long-standing bluegrass tradition
went off without a hitch for the second year in a row. A bluegrass party hosted by Annie and
Rick Lees on their Shrewsbury homestead Sunday drew hundreds to the
festivities. It was somewhat of a
preview of the 18th Annual Basin Bluegrass Festival to be held in Brandon July
12th - 15th. Stage
performances are Friday and Saturday from 10AM to 9:30PM and Sunday from 10AM
to 2PM. The price of the three-day
festival in advance is $45 per person by June 25th or $50 at the
gate. Camping is free with a weekend ticket. For more information, call 247-3275 or go to www.basinbluegrassfestival.com.
From
Fox 44 and ABC 22 News – Your Voice in Vermont & New York:
A former St. Albans teacher accused of stealing
hundreds of pounds of copper from his school, may have his cased dismissed. Former physics teacher, Ian Smith,
appeared in Franklin County Court, Monday. He received some legal council and
potentially, a second chance. "A
chance to maintain a clean criminal record by participating in the Diversion
Program," Franklin County State's Attorney James Hughes said. That is because the 39-year-old is a
first time defendant for what the State considers a minor crime. The Diversion
Program allows defendants such as Smith to face a low penalty, like community
service. If they complete the penalty, their criminal record is wiped clean. Police say, Smith stole 125 pounds of
copper wire from Bellows Free Academy back in February. Smith was teaching
there at the time. Then, police say Smith sold the copper to a scrap yard for
under $200. Since then, Smith has been fired. And, some
students wondered what happened to their beloved teacher. "I mean, I know I don't know all
the facts. But I just feel like the positives here outweigh the
negatives," One student said at the announcement of Smith's firing in May. Diversion may ensure Smith's privacy.
But, it may also continue to keep his former students in the dark. That is
because once a case is referred to diversion, it is no longer public
information. Smith would not tell
us any details of his case but he did tell us this: "Just want to get this behind me and move forward and,
ya know, I don't have a lot going on at the moment," Smith said.
Just off Mill Hill Road in Highgate, Vermont sits a
dam and lake, a spot that state police say is popular for swimming and fishing.
While it looks peaceful and safe on the lake, the other side of the bridge is
much different, with a 30-foot drop.
A sight Ron Martin and his wife came out to see Monday. "I think that it's a trap and a
hazard waiting to happen," said Martin. Tragedy did strike Sunday. State police say 44-year-old
Rocky Duckworth fell to his death.
Duckworth's friends came out to the bridge Monday too. They provided us
with photos and in an off-camera interview they say he loved to fish and that's
what he was doing there. If you
look at the bridge there's really a difference between both sides. On one part there's a fence that goes
along the edge with barbed wire on the top and there's even signs that warn
people about the dangers. Walk to
the other side and that high fence with the barbed wire is gone and there's no
signage warning you of the dangers below. Even though the bridge is in
Highgate, town records show the land belongs to Swanton. We went and spoke with Swanton Manager
Reggie Beliveau who says he's not sure if the village owns the land. But
because of our questioning, Beliveau says he's meeting with Highgate leaders to
determine who owns it. Beliveau
says he's not considering adding a fence to the other side, but some people
think he should. "Why not
have the fence wrap around," said Martin? Especially now Martin says after somebody lost their life.
State police say they haven't had many issues with that area. But they say accidents like this happen
in many places across the state and people need to be careful and pay close
attention to their surroundings.
