12/8/17: News/Events
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12/8/17 /Cavendish Update
1. Cavendish Related News
2. Events
1. CAVENDISH RELATED NEWS
Congratulations to Amy Perry: The Fire Officers at Proctorsville Fire Dept (PFD) are pleased to announce that Firefighter Amy Perry has received a promotion to 2nd Lieutenant effective January 1, 2018. Amy has been a firefighter for almost five years, in which time she has responded to many emergency calls and attained a VT State Firefighter 1 certification, Ice Water Rescue Technician certification, Fire Apparatus Operator, and is almost finished with the State Firefighter 2 course. Immediately following the completion of the FF2 course, Amy will begin the VT State Instructor course. Amy plans to teach and expand the skills of our firefighters as well as others in VT. With this promotion Amy makes PFD, as she will be the first female to hold an officers position at PFD since it was founded in 1833. Currently there are four female firefighters and three female Jr Firefighters, one of whom is Amy’s daughter).
Ignat Solzhenitsyn Interviewed on NPR: If you didn’t hear Ignat Solzhenitsyn’s interview on NPR Thursday-he’s playing a concert to honor his piano teacher in Brattleboro- you can listen to it on-line.
1938 Hurricane in Cavendish: On Sept. 25, 1938 Philip Tieman, whose Memoirs of Coming into Vermont have been serialized at the Cavendish Historical Society blog, wrote a letter to his mother relating the damage done to their property Windy Hill (Brook Rd) . The letter appears in the VT Journal
GMUSD Minutes/Agenda Now on-line: The Dish contains the unapproved minutes from the Nov. 12 meeting of the Green Mountain Unified Supervisory District as well as the agenda for their next meeting on Dec. 12 at GMUHS, 6 pm.
System Glitch Downs VTel Internet for 90 Minutes: Computer cards that control large internet routers for Vermont Telephone Co. failed Dec. 1, Friday, shutting down internet access for customers in large portions of the company’s coverage area for up to 90 minutes. Chester Telegraph
Work Underway to Reopen BJ Bricker’s: An iconic Claremont eatery expects to reopen for business. Work is moving forward at BJ Bricker’s, the steak and seafood restaurant on Washington Street, in preparation for its anticipated reopening. Owner Sandra Holl, who will operate the business alongside her sister, Debra Holl, said that she expects doors to open sometime around the New Year. Eagle Times
Winter Bird Feeding: VT Fish & Wildlife recommends that people only feed birds during the winter months to avoid attracting bears. Bears are very fond of suet and bird seed, especially black oil sunflower seed. Bringing feeders in at night doesn’t work, because bears will still feed on seed that is spilled on the ground, and bears can also be active during the daylight hours. Bears that are lured by birdfeeders can become unafraid of people, which can result in the bear needing to be put down. While the Department suggests a general feeding window of Dec. 1-March 31, bears will continue to be present when the ground is snowless and abundant fall foods are available. Buck recommends waiting to put feeders out until 4-6 inches of snow cover occurs to be reasonably assured bears have denned for the winter.
VT Child Insurance Funds to Run Out: Vermont health officials say the state will exhaust its federal funding through the Children’s Health Insurance Program early next year. CHIP serves about 9 million children nationwide and the U.S. Congress allowed funding for the program to expire in September. The Burlington Free Press reports CHIP in Vermont is a funding source for the Dr. Dynasaur program, which provides coverage for pregnant women and children. Vermont Health Access Commissioner Cory Gustafson said no Vermont families would lose coverage from CHIP funds running out, but state legislators would have to account for a $21 million budget gap. Gustafson said he hopes the situation doesn’t become that dire, and hopes that Washington will recognize the situation soon.
Efficiency VT Rates Rise for Residents, Down for Businesses: The energy efficiency charge Vermonters pay on their electrical bills will rise 1 percent for residential customers in 2018, Efficiency Vermont announced Thursday. Meanwhile, the charge will decrease 8 percent for commercial customers and 11 percent for industrial customers. The 1 percent increase for residential customers will amount to an additional eight cents each month for the average customer, according to the organization’s calculations. The efficiency charges are the source of the group’s roughly $50 million annual budget. Efficiency Vermont is a program created by the Legislature that acts as a utility, and is regulated by the Public Utility Commission. Efficiency Vermont’s purpose is to reduce the amount of electricity that residents and businesses require. Recent studies have shown the program saves between $2 and $4 for every dollar Vermonters spend on it. The residential efficiency charge rose because Efficiency Vermont under collected in 2017, executives at the organization said. State officials estimated Vermont residences would use more electricity in 2017 than they actually did when they calculated the 2017 efficiency charge. VT Digger
VT Lowers Sales Tax Estimates for Online and Out of State Purchases: This year, the Tax Department sent letters to 20,000 people to collect lost online sales tax revenue. About 15,000 people responded and the state collected about $900,000 with the effort. One common complaint is that the Tax Department’s table significantly overestimates what is owed by a taxpayer who does not keep receipts and pay based on actual purchases. The estimate is called a “safe harbor” amount; the state agrees not to assess additional tax unless a purchase of more than $1,000 is unreported. Now the estimate is being cut in half — to 0.1 percent of adjusted gross income. The same family with $100,000 in income would be assumed to have made about $1,667 worth of untaxed purchases. The thought is that people will see that as more realistic and be more likely to pay, officials said. In addition, the safe harbor table will be capped, with a maximum payment of $500, or 0.1 percent of $500,000 in income. Vt Digger
Gov Will Sign Legislation Allowing Marijuana Possession: Gov. Phil Scott says he will stand by his commitment to support legislation that would legalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana in Vermont. However, he said that before supporting a measure to set up a regulatory and tax system for retail sales of marijuana, the issue of driver impairment would need to be addressed. VT Digger
DHMC Instituting New Opiate Guidelines: Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center is introducing new guidelines, based on research conducted at the hospital, in order to reduce or eliminate opiate prescriptions for patients being discharged. WCAX
2. EVENTS
DECEMBER 9-10 (SATURDAY-SUNDAY): Christmas Tree and Wreath Sale at the Proctorsville Fire Dept. Trees are VT grown and range in size from 5ft to 10ft and start at $30. Santa will be arriving on the fire engine at 10 am to see children of all ages. Free coffee and donuts that day. The Christmas Tree sale continues at the Cavendish Fire Dept. as well.
DECEMBER 11 (MONDAY): Cavendish Select Board meeting, 6:30 pm at the Cavendish Town Office.
DECEMBER 12 (TUESDAY): GMUSD meeting, 6 pm at GMUHS.
For information on upcoming events, go to the Cavendish Connects Calendar. For area events, check the Okemo Valley Chamber of Commerce calendar.