Archive - Feb 11, 2010

MIDDLEBURY — Middlebury selectmen took a big step toward retaining a major, growing local business on Monday at a regular selectboard meeting when they offered to waive sewer and water tap-on fees for an expansion project being considered by Green Mountain Beverage (GMB) on Pond Lane.

full story

BRISTOL — Addison County lawmakers on Monday joined a growing chorus of critics of Vermont Yankee and served notice that the Vernon-based nuclear power plant’s chances of receiving a license renewal in 2012 have taken a substantial hit.

full story

MIDDLEBURY — Middlebury Union High School may temporarily expand its district boundaries by several thousand miles to help educate as many as six Haitian students whose own schools were reduced to rubble by the devastating Jan. 12 earthquake.

full story

BRISTOL — The Mount Abraham Union High School board of directors is faced with a quandary these days: Continuing to subsidize the high school’s in-house lunch program is an expensive prospect, but making changes to the food service program could come at the cost of local control and current employees’ benefits.

full story

VERGENNES — After almost a year of discussion, on Tuesday the Vergennes city council voted unanimously to accept a total of about 8.6 acres from the Vergennes ID school board, land that consists of two parcels near Vergennes Union Elementary School and is home to the city’s recreation facilities, including its swimming pool.

The transfer will become effective on June 30, when the ID board is set to dissolve per a March 2009 vote by Vergennes residents. 

full story

MIDDLEBURY — United Way of Addison County (UWAC) officials are organizing an impassioned donation pitch to reinvigorate a 2009-2010 fund-raising campaign that has been sorely tested by the sluggish economy.

UWAC officials knew at the outset of the campaign that raising funds during the current economic climate would pose an extra challenge. And while organizers didn’t set a specific goal at the outset, they hoped the drive would net as much as last year: $775,000, funds distributed among many human service agencies throughout the county.

full story

BOSTON — The Addison Independent staff was honored with four New England Newspaper and Press Association awards at the organization’s annual banquet on Saturday, including recognition for reporter Kathryn Flagg as the NENPA Weekly Rookie of the Year and first place for Jessie Raymond in the Weekly Class 2 Humor Columnist competition.

The Independent staff as a whole also earned second place for General Excellence in Weekly Class C, while Flagg also earned second place in Weekly Class 2 Business/Economic Reporting.

full story

MIDDLEBURY — Officials in the UD-3 school district on Tuesday gave an update on how they are responding to a petition seeking to boost academic excellence at Middlebury Union High School, and pledged to consider additional changes as curriculum is developed for the 2010-2011 school year.

At issue is a citizens’ petition submitted to the UD-3 school board last year by a group of parents and community members. The petition, signed by more than 400 people, raised concerns about the extent to which students are academically challenged at MUHS.

full story