You can catch more Jazz this Thursday in Brandon.
Brandon Music on Country Club Road will present Michael Benedict & Bopitude
Thursday evening at 7:30. General Admission is $12. Brandon Music offers an
Early Bird dinner special, which includes a ticket for the jazz performance,
for $22 per person. Michael Benedict & Bopitude revisits the most memorable
tunes of the hard bop era while bringing back to life some more obscure
treasures from the past. Get
details right at Brandon Music's Website.
Attention members of the Addison County Chamber of
Commerce! It’s time to nominate a
Person or Business for Annual Chamber Awards! Nominations will be accepted until Monday, August 6th. Has a local business or colleague stood
out in the past year? Is there a business or person you know that has done
something for the community that deserves recognition? Here's your chance to
submit a nomination for the Chamber's Citizen and Business of the Year Awards
and for the Community Achievement Award.
There are so many people and businesses in Addison County deserving of
recognition which makes it a difficult task, but also makes it that much more
important that they hear from you, so watch your Email in-box for a link to the
nomination form.
The Counseling Service of Addison County is pleased
to announce its 2nd annual Bocce Tournament Friday September 14th, which will
benefit CSAC’s emergency team.
Middlebury’s Recreation Department will host the tournament on the athletic
fields next to Mary Hogan Elementary School. Players of all levels are invited
to sign up as a team. Basic instruction will be included. Each team can have 4
players, 16 teams will compete for the top prize trophy. Tournament sponsors
are also being sought. Click HERE for more information!
Christopher Bray of New Haven has been named to the
Vermont Supreme Court’s Professional Responsibility Program for a two-year
appointment. The Professional
Responsibility Board operates under the auspices of the Vermont Supreme Court,
and its Hearing Panel members rule on cases referred by the court’s
Disciplinary Counsel. Each Hearing Panel, under Vermont law, consists of two
lawyers and one member of the public. Bray will serve as the member from the
general public.
The former head of the Vermont State Police has
been chosen to be Rutland's new police chief. James Baker had been serving as interim chief in Rutland
when a committee charged with finding a permanent chief for the city
recommended him for the job. The
Rutland Herald says the 13-member committee was unanimous in choosing Baker.
The Rutland Police Commission must ratify the decision, but no opposition is
expected. Baker has served as
interim chief since January. He was initially uninterested in the permanent
job, but was persuaded to seek it by Rutland Mayor Christopher Louras and other
officials. Baker will replace
former chief Anthony Bossi, who retired at the start of the year. Baker retired from the state police in
2009.
The University of Vermont Plant Diagnostic Clinic
has identified its first case of late blight this year. The fungus-like
organism was discovered on Sunday on tomato foliage from a garden in
Huntington. Although the disease
can infect various members of the potato family, in Vermont it has only been
found on tomatoes and potatoes in recent years. Damage from late blight in
these crops was especially widespread in 2009. The disease did appear in Vermont last year, but not until
early August. Vigilance and quick action on the part of home gardeners and
growers this year will help control its spread and protect commercial farmers'
tomato crops. The disease will not affect people.
To mark the one-year anniversary of Tropical Storm
Irene, Vermont Public Television has scheduled broadcast programs and online
content throughout August. “Flood
Bound,” a film by Vermont independent filmmaker Marion Abrams will premiere
Thursday, August 16th at 8PM on VPT.
Photos and video of the destruction and recovery in Vermont are combined
with moving interviews of residents, as they tell their stories. “Flood Bound”
will also air August 20th at 7PM.
The Vermont State Police say a Clarendon man is the
state's first victim of bath salts.
An autopsy determined that the June 23 death of 28-year-old Christopher
Tsacoyeanes was caused by an overdose of a variety of drugs commonly known as
bath salts. The office of the
Chief Medical Examiner determined the death was accidental substance abuse. Police say troopers investigating the
death of Tsacoyeanes recovered a large amount of chemicals at his home. Last week 86 drugs, including bath
salts, were added to the state's Regulated Drug Rule. Many of the drugs had
been sold as harmless products and marketed under an array of brands. A number
of similar drugs are likely to be added to the regulated list in the future.
On Monday evening Vermont State Police troopers
responded to a report of a vehicle that crashed into a tree at Bartlett Falls
on River Road in Bristol. Troopers
found minimal damage to an unattended vehicle, owned by Victoria Tamas of
Shelburne. The vehicle was pulled
form the ditch and was driven home.
Neither operator nor passenger was injured in the incident. Tamas was
later cited by the VSP.
On Monday evening the Vermont State Police-Rutland
Barracks received information of an underage drinking party involving
approximately 20 juveniles occurring in a wooded area located behind the Chittenden
Reservoir in Chittenden. Troopers
observed approximately 20 juveniles partaking in the consumption of
alcohol. Of the 15 juveniles screened,
13 were found to have consumed alcohol and subsequently issued notices of
violation. Three juveniles who
received notices were under the age of 18 and they were released to the custody
of their respective parents or guardians.
A proposal by Green Mountain Power Corp. to ease
rate shock on commercial customers in town was met with general approval Monday
night at a Public Service Board workshop.
GMP offered to phase in commercial rates for existing Proctor customers
over three years starting in September with a 27.2 percent rate reduction from
current rates during the first year; 18.2 percent the second year; and 9
percent reduction during the final year before returning to current rates.
The Moriah Central School Board will hold a special
meeting at 6PM Tuesday, August 7th in the High School Library. Agenda items include a vote on
slate of candidates for Champlain Valley Educational Services Board and policy
revisions. Also, the community is invited to an open house set for 7PM on the 7th
to see capital-project improvements that have been made. Those taking part will meet in the
auditorium and be escorted on a tour of the building. The public is invited to the special meeting, as well.
The former Bay View Inn Pub is now McGraw’s
Restaurant and Bar, with Nia Nicola and Brian Spiegel as proprietors. No newcomers to the dining scene, the
pair has been in the restaurant business for a combined half century. The menu
is basic American fare, including fresh fish and lobster. The adjoining motel,
which added seven rooms in the early 1970s, is managed by a separate
entity.
A new report by an environmental group is pointing
to what it says is a clear sign of climate change: The frequency of storms in
the region with extremely high rain or snowfall is up 85% since 1948. In
Vermont, Environment America says the amount of precipitation being dropped by
the biggest annual rain and snowstorms is up an average of 30%.
Vermont engineers and scientists are going to be
explaining some of the ongoing needs to repair infrastructure damaged by
flooding from Tropical Storm Irene along the state's rivers. They are going to
discuss the work that remains to be done related to emergency repairs made
immediately following Irene. The storm damaged roads, bridges and farmers'
fields across the state.
The company that owns and operates a Vermont wind
power project in Sheffield is asking the state for permission in advance in
case spinning turbine blades kills endangered bats. FirstWind Vice President
Dave Cowan tells The Caledonian Record the Boston-based company has asked the
Vermont Agency of Natural Resources for the first-ever "Endangered and
Threatened Species Taking Permit."
The farm industry in Vermont is holding its
collective breath until a decision is made on whether to pass the 500-billion
dollar farm bill now stalled in Congress.
The bill passed out of the House Agriculture Committee with
Representative Peter Welch, but it hasn't gone any further as House Speaker
John Boehner won't let it come to the House floor, fearing it will divide his
party in an election year. Vermont
farmers say they need the bill, and advocates say taxes are actually reduced in
the new bill, but not in a one-year extension.
Questions are being raised about how Burlington
police responded to protesters Sunday demonstrating during an international
conference in the city. The
Vermont Community Law Center has members meeting with some of the demonstrators
to determine if the response was necessary or a case of excessive force. Protesters say they were threatened
with dogs, pepper spray and rubber bullets, while police say there were no
arrests and they used pepper balls but only after giving multiple
warnings. The Burlington Free
Press says the police department will hold a public forum and is reviewing its
response.
A recent $10 million state bond sale will allow
Vermont to get an additional $51 million in federal funding for transportation
projects. State Treasurer Beth Pearce says the money will go toward 18
different infrastructure projects, in several cases involving repair work
following Tropical Storm Irene.
The state of New York has acquired 156 acres on
Lake Champlain in the Washington County town of Dresden. The tract includes
more than 2,000 feet of undeveloped shoreline. Officials say the land serves as
part of a travel corridor for wildlife between the Adirondack and Green mountains.
Governor Andrew Cuomo has vetoed a bill that would
have allowed more special education funding to go to nonpublic schools even if
parents sought the expensive care in a religious school. Opponents called the
measure a kind of voucher program, which isn't allowed in New York.
From Fox 44 and ABC 22 News – Your Voice in Vermont
& New York:
The need for blood is at an all time high. In fact, it’s been 15 years since the
U.S. saw a blood shortage of this magnitude. The Red Cross is asking anyone who's over the age of 16 and
eligible to donate an hour of their time and a pint of their blood. Just one
pint can save three lives. From
car accidents and surgeries, to cancer and other illnesses, the need for blood
is constant. Fortunately the Red
Cross is meeting the needs of hospitals in the Burlington area, but donations
are definitely down. "We have
a population that is very concerned about others and with just a little
nudging, they'll come in and help us out, we've got donors on the beds
today," Dave Carmichael of the Red Cross said. Click HERE to see where you can donate.
So far in 2012 48 people have lost their lives on
Vermont roads. That's nearly
double from this time last year. "That's
not acceptable to us as a state. We can do better than that," said Vermont
Department of Public Safety Commissioner Keith Flynn. To get people to slow down Flynn implemented operation
"Summer Heat." "We
believe we're doing well. We're having contact with a number of
motorists," said Flynn. In
July, troopers dedicated to stopping speeders gave 114 warnings and handed out
177 tickets. The campaign isn't
just putting more police presence on the road. Signs are popping up all over
the state, warning motorists of the dangers of speeding. "I mean obviously it does catch
your attention. Some of what they're said, but other than that I don't think
it's really that effective," said Jennifer Waters. "It makes me pay more attention,
certainly," said Bill Robins.
Despite the signs and tickets, six people have died since the campaign
begun. State leaders say that
doesn't mean the operation has failed, and they hope by September to use data
to make our roads safer in the future.
"What worked, what didn't work, what we can do to be better,"
said Flynn. Operation "Summer
Heat" will continue through Labor Day.
