The Middlebury Energy Committee is meeting this
morning at 8 in the Town Offices Small Conference Room. Items on their agenda include the
Municipal Plans and Projects, Education and Outreach, updates on local Energy
Developments including Hydro and Vermont Gas. The overall committee direction and future initiatives will
also be discussed. Visit the Town Of Middlebury’s Website for more information.
The Addison County Chamber of Commerce is pleased
to announce the opening of Robert Frost Mountain Cabins—also its newest member.
Located on 112 acres in Ripton, the property currently features two timber
frame cabins in addition to a meeting room designed for larger gatherings.
Eventually the owners plan to build eight more cabins for a total of ten. An
open house and ribbon cutting ceremony was held on Saturday, August 25th to
celebrate and allow friends and neighbors to tour the new cabins. For more
information, refer to their website, www.robertfrostmountaincabins.com
or call 802-388-9090.
Middlebury American Legion Post 27 will be holding
their annual clambake fundraiser this Sunday at the post. If you enjoy seafood – you’ll want to
check this out! Everything gets
started at 11 AM with a buffet and clam chowder, then they bring out the
steamers and a raw bar and everything culminates later in the day with lobster,
chicken and corn. If the food
sounds good – it is – but it’s also for a great cause – the post gives out over
$21,000 annually in college scholarships – and this fundraiser helps them do
it. Tickets are not being sold at the door – so for more info – please call
388-9311.
Town Councilman Tim Garrison is asking if the
Moriah Police Department is a good investment and has initiated a discussion on
the future of the agency. Garrison
believes Moriah’s two-man police force does a good job, but wonders if it’s
limitations make the taxpayer investment worthwhile. Garrison hopes Moriah residents will discuss the merits of
the local police department and make their feelings known to the town board. Officials say the future of the Moriah
Police Department should not and will not be determined by the town board. If
the community expresses interest in eliminating the department it will go to a
public referendum.
A second independent motion picture is scheduled to
begin shooting in Essex County early next year. And local people could get some jobs because of that. Producers Lori Kelly-Bailey and Joel
Plue, who made “Mineville”, say their next feature film project will be
“Antarctica,” about an explorer lost in a terrific storm at the pole. The new
picture will be made in February and March 2013 with exteriors actually shot in
the heart of the Antarctic region by documentary filmmaker Anthony Powell of
the Discovery Channel’s “Frozen Planet” series and feature-film director Kirk
Watson, who did “South of Sanity.” Kelly-Bailey said all additional casting
would be done in Essex County. She said a casting call will be issued in
November, and people can try out. Many of the supporting actors in “Mineville”
were local residents.
Top honors were given Tuesday for first responders
who saved a truck driver's life in Ticonderoga. The Essex County Board of Supervisors recognized the
rescuers with certificates for their heroism in the middle of the night. Last
month, the big rig was going too fast and skidded off of Chilson Hill into
Eagle Lake, landing upside down in 15 feet of water. The cab of the truck was
crushed. Steve Stubing heard the crash and boated out to the truck. Only the
driver's nose and chin were above water and he had a broken leg and collarbone.
It took crews more than half an hour to rescue him.
The “Best Fourth in the North” was a rousing
success, according to organizers, thanks to the support of community sponsors. The four-day July 4th celebration
attracted hundreds of people to downtown Ticonderoga for a carnival, parade,
concerts, bed race, road race, fireworks and more. The “Best Fourth in the
North” committee, a subcommittee of the Ticonderoga Montcalm Street
Partnership, planned the event. The 2013 “Best Fourth In The North” celebration
will take place July 1st – 4th. Fundraising events being planned now
include Buckets Bog, a TV raffle, Fourth of July in December barbecue and
basket raffle, the annual Ti High Alumni Basketball Tournament and Italian
Dinner, an iPad raffle, coin drops and a softball tournament. For more information visit www.best4thinthenorth.com.
People can also contact the
Ticonderoga Area Chamber of Commerce at 585-6619 or email chamberinfo@ticonderogany.com.
Students and staff at the College of St. Joseph will place more than 1,100 flags around campus on September 10th as part of the college’s World Suicide Prevention Week observances. The flags represent the 1,100 college students who commit suicide every year in the United States. Mark Gagnon, director of counseling services at CSJ, said suicide is an issue that all colleges are addressing as a major concern. He said the flags will go up starting at 8 AM and will be left on the campus for several days. An informational gathering is scheduled for September 12th to teach students how to identify if they are at risk. It will also help them identify a friend or family member in crisis and prepare them for the steps they should take if they see warning signs. He wants students to understand that suicide can be prevented and that there is effective treatment available.
A popular specialty grocery store chain could be coming to Vermont, but apparently not anytime soon. A project to put a Trader Joe's store on Dorset Street in South Burlington was put before the city's Development Review Board Tuesday night, but no decision for preliminary approval was made. City planning and zoning laws require a second building with additional uses to go up as well, and the board is concerned about what could occupy the space while the owner finds a tenant for the additional building. The Trader Joe's proposal will be in front of the city again later this fall.
Waitsfield based Apple reseller Small Dog
Electronics will open its fourth location in the former Aubuchon Hardware
building on West Street in Rutland. Marketing
director Dawn D’Angelillo would not discuss the planned store any further,
saying details would be announced at a news conference today. Representatives
of Green Mountain Power, the city of Rutland and property management company
Pistols & Roses are also slated to appear at the news conference.
Gov. Peter Shumlin says more money is going to help
Vermont meet the goal of ensuring everyone in the state has access to high
speed Internet service by the end of next year. Shumlin and Karen Marshall of the group "Connect
Vermont" say $3.1 million in funding commitments by the Vermont
Telecommunications Authority will help bring broadband to 2,850 hard-to-serve
locations across the state. $6.6
million in additional spending by FairPoint Communications, the state’s
predominant landline telephone company, will also help the broadband expansion. In June of 2011 there were more than
21,200 homes and businesses in the state that couldn't get broadband services.
By the end of last year that number was down to about 16,000.
Firefighters in Stowe say the wildfire on Mount
Mansfield is now out. A campfire
got out of control due to wind gusts Monday morning and the fire burned
overnight into Tuesday. More than 2 acres have burned. The remote location
meant that for several hours Monday, crews had to backpack water to the site.
Tuesday, fire crews began pumping water from a beaver pond, and off and on
showers also helped. Fourteen fire
departments and 100 firefighters worked to put the fire out.
Even the contender for the highest office in the
land sometimes has to wait. A tractor briefly waylaid mitt Romney’s motorcade,
en route to the home of former Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey
in West Windsor yesterday morning. The tractor slowed to a stop before the
tractor got out of the way.
Governor Peter Shumlin is planning to launch his
first re-election campaign next week and he says he's looking forward to
"five or six" debates with his Republican challenger. But he says he
can't participate in all the debates he might be invited to. Shumlin made the
comments Tuesday at a news conference before he headed off to the Democratic
National Convention in North Carolina.
The winner of last week's Progressive primary for
governor of Vermont says she won't be a candidate in the general election,
while the loser in the primary is calling for a recount. The official count
released Tuesday by the secretary of state's office shows Martha Abbott with
371 votes, to 354 write-in votes for Annette Smith. Abbott says she wants the
party's support to go toward the re-election of Democratic incumbent Governor
Peter Shumlin.
The New York State Fair had its lowest total
attendance in more than 20 years, but officials say that's because they cut
back on the number of free tickets they give out. More than 70,000 people were
at the fairgrounds in suburban Syracuse Monday, pushing total attendance to more
than 845,000 for the fair's 12-day run. That's down by nearly 72,000 from last
year and it's the lowest total attendance since 1991.
Brandon Music on Country Club Road in Brandon will
present the Michael-Louis Smith’s Left Ear Trio 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. NYC guitarist Michael-Louis Smith plays
with a sound that is warm and broad, echoing influences of Wes Montgomery,
Grant Green and John Scofield. While an in-demand musician in New York City's
vibrant jazz scene, Smith frequently tours the northeast circuit. He will perform
at Brandon Music with Vermont bassist Rob Morse and NYC drummer Russell Carter. For more information, click HERE!
Music has been called the language of the soul. It
for those at the end of life, music can provide peace and rest for the soul. Wellspring is an Addison County group associated with Hospice Volunteer
Services and sings for terminally ill patients, wherever the live. Now Wellspring Hospice Singers is
interested in recruiting singers living in Addison County and beyond. This unique group is looking for new
singers interested in “touching the heart and souls of individuals and families
around the area.” Rehearsals are held twice monthly in Middlebury on Tuesdays
in the late afternoon. Interested singers should contact Priscilla Baker of
Hospice Volunteer Services at 388-4111, pbaker@hospicevs.org
or Music Director Heidi Willis at 352-4327 or redsprings@nbnworks.net.
From Fox 44 and ABC 22 News – Your Voice in Vermont
& New York:
Two people in Vermont (one from Addison County and one from Rutland County) were infected with the
Mosquito-borne virus Eastern Equine Encephalitis also known as "EEE"
and we've learned one of them has died.
Tuesday, state health officials met in the town of Brandon to let the
public know they will be Ariel spraying in parts where they believe the
infected mosquitoes are and at the meeting, there was a mix of emotion and
questions about how effective that spray will be. The town hall in Brandon was packed full of people wanting
to know the severity of "EEE" found near their area. But no one expected to hear this,
"Just before I left the office today, I was notified that one of the two
patients that had Eastern Equine Encephalitis passed away," said Vermont
Health Department Commissioner, Harry Chen. According to health officials, ‘EEE' kills one in three
people infected. Alan Graham is an
entomologist with the Agency of Agriculture and said, "It was here in
Vermont and we we're very concerned." Nearly 20 thousand acres of land near the Whiting and
Brandon areas will be sprayed. Alan graham studies Mosquitoes and knows these
areas are in danger, "Something changed in the environment there. I don't
know what it is but were going to try and figure it out. " The state will spray the pesticide,
Anvil, and it's unlikely people will be affected. However, those living near
the areas should follow these precautions. Stay inside during spraying, close
windows, doors and turn off window A/C units. And If possible cover produce meant for human consumption. The state of Vermont is paying for the
aerial spraying, which costs around 60 thousand dollars. The aerial spraying is planned to
happen Thursday night from 8- 11 at night. For more information on the aerial
spreading and ‘EEE' head to the Vermont Department of Health at www.healthvermont.gov Vermont health
officials say a person has died from an EEE infection, otherwise known as
Eastern equine encephalitis virus.
That was confirmed by Dr. Harry Chen, Commissioner of the Vermont Department
of Health, at a meeting about EEE in Brandon Tuesday. The department had previously reported two people who were
hospitalized with EEE. Both adults
were from the Addison and Rutland County area. That's the same area where mosquito pools recently tested
positive for EEE and West Nile.
Like West Nile, EEE is spread by mosquito bites. The health department says aerial
spraying in areas of those counties will take place around dusk Thursday.
A Westford, Vermont man says a moose charged at him
several times and it was captured on camera. Brent Olsen says he had never seen a moose at his Westford
home where he has lived for 15-years.
That all changed Sunday morning.
A home video captured the huge Bull Moose charge right at Olsen. "I was scared then. I was scared
but it was still something I had never seen before," says Olsen. Olsen says he had first noticed the
moose at it scratched his car. "I
ran from my house out here, yelling at the moose, saying get the hell away from
my car because I didn't want to get it damaged," says Olsen. The moose backed away and that's when
Olsen picked up his video camera and hit record. "You can kind of tell, when he first charged me, I'm
still freeze framed on him and after he's almost stopped is when I started
reacting. I said whoa get me out of here. So I back to the door, set the camera
down, zoomed out, and went inside," says Olsen. As Olsen peered out the door, the moose charged again. "I closed the door and tried to
hold the door, in case he was going to hit it," says Olsen. Olsen says the moose ended up charging
four-times. Then Olsen says he saw
the moose walk in circles and even hit the flagpole. "The more I watched it the more I could see this thing
was in serious trouble," says Olsen.
Olsen called police and a game warden was sent. When the warden arrived, she says she
was concerned that the moose had been aggressive and it also appeared to be
sick. That's when the decision was
made to kill the moose, which was suspected of suffering from a brain disease. For Olsen, it was a sad ending for the
first moose that he's seen in his front yard. "I thought finally a moose. It's such a beautiful
moose. You know, I thought I'm going to get video of a really pretty thing
that's happening in my yard, never did I realize I was going to be
attacked," says Olsen. Biologists
will test the moose because the warden believes it had a disease called brain
worm, which symptoms include walking in circles. There were no people hurt and there was little damage to property.
Nine weeks until Election Day and the two men vying
for Vermont's top job differ on many issues. Not just policies, but Governor
Peter Shumlin and State Senator Randy Brock can't agree on how many times they
should square off. "How many
debates would you like to take part in," said Fox44? "Oh least a dozen," said
Brock. "I want to have at
least 5 or 6 debates," said Shumlin.
For Governor Shumlin that's less than half the number of debates against
Brain Dubie in 2010. The democrat
says it's different this time around because he is the incumbent. "I have to find the balance
between wanting to have lots of debates, as inclusive as possible and also
doing my job as governor," said Shumlin. Shumlin wants televised debates
to reach all Vermonters. But State
Senator Brock says staying in Chittenden County isn't right. "Vermonters like to see their
candidates close up and personal. They like to be able to question them
directly and you can't do that on TV and radio," said Brock. It's not just how many or where that's
causing issues, Brock wants to debate in front of AARP members. Governor Shumlin says it doesn't make sense
to focus on a small group. But
Brock says Shumlin is scared to face the 14,000 AARP members who petitioned for
money, not efficiency programs, in the recent GMP/CVPS power company merger. "I think he fears to go into a
hostile environment," said Brock.
"I think that I won't dignify that comment with a response. I'm not
afraid to go anywhere," said Shumlin. The first of six debates will take place a week from
Wednesday on Vermont Public Radio.
Governor Shumlin also plans to make his candidacy official next week
before the debates begin.
