Cavendish Update 11/22/24: Sky/SB Mtg/Education
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CTES Turkey Bingo tonight 6-8 pm at the school. Slingo on Sunday at United Church of Ludlow 6:30-8 proceeds will purchase disaster kits. Ski Swap today-Sunday at Okemo’s Jackson Gore Roundhouse
11/22/24
1. Cavendish Connects now on Blue Sky
2. Cavendish Select Board Meeting
3. Restructuring the GMUSD
4. Cavendish Related News
5. Events Calendar
1. CAVENDISH CONNECTS NOW ON BLUE SKY: As we continue to explore the various ways to support our community, Cavendish Connects is now available at cavendishconnects.bsky.social
2.CAVENDISH SELECT BOARD MEETING 11/18/24: The video of Monday’s select board (SB) meeting is posted at the Okemo Valley website. Unapproved Minutes are available at the town’s website.
Approved:
• VAST Trails through Cavendish for the winter season-trails open Dec. 16, conditions permitting
• Greven Field use as a flood plain. The town filed a pre application earlier this year as part of the Vermont Emergency Management’s (VEM) $90 million grants initiative to harden infrastructure against future flood losses. One of the projects included in Cavendish’s pre application was to maximize Greven Field’s flood plain capability. In order for VEM to move forward with this project, the SB needed to approve that Greven Field could be used for such purposes. The field will have recreational purposes but if and when a baseball could be returned to the area remains to be seen.
Discussed
• Summary of Act 181 with MARC: Jason Rasmussen of Mt. Ascutney Regional Planning discussed the impact of Act 181, which is the overhaul of Act 250, VT’s land use and development law. Much of this will not impact Cavendish because we do not have zoning or sub division regs. There will be a few changes required in the town plan and MARC will need assistance in mapping some of the areas of town, particularly the village centers of Cavendish and Proctorsville. Areas that are currently exempt from the Act 250 land use review process — and thus open for housing development — are now documented on a statewide interactive map
• Flood Resilience Study Update: MARC issued a request for proposal (RFP) to study flooding and methods to deal with it for the towns of Cavendish, Ludlow and Plymouth. The two applications received are from reputable firms with estimates around $75,000. While MARC has some funds they can put towards the study, the towns will most likely need to also contribute.
• MERP Grant: The town has received a Municipal Energy Resilience Program grant http://bgs.vermont.gov/municipal-energy-resilience-program to make upgrades at the Town Office and other municipal properties. The award is for $308,564.
• Managers Report: Looking into lining Twenty Mile Stream. Still working on replacing guard rails damaged or destroyed by 2023 floods.
3. RESTRUCTING THE GMUSD: School restructuring has been discussed for several years by the Green Mountain Unified School District (GMUSD). While Chester Andover Elementary is overcrowded Cavendish Town Elementary School (CTES) currently has a student population of 62 in a building designed for 140. Given the issues such as aging infrastructure, PCBs, and low enrollment, some community members are calling for the closure of Green Mountain Union High School (GMUHS) and replacing it with school choice, which is available in the other Twin Rivers Supervisory Union (TRSU) district, Ludlow/Mt Holly.
Between the open forum at CTES on Nov. 12 and his presentation at the Ludlow Rotary, TRSU superintendent Layne Millington has spoken extensively about closing the schools, and replacing them with a super school centrally located. Millington said he’d provide his restructuring plan at the Nov. 21 GMUSD board meeting, forwarding it to the board 12 hours before, but waiting until the meeting to share it with the community. However, late Wednesday evening he sent an e-mail to the GMUSD community outlining his plan as follows:
• The foremost recommendation is to expand classroom and office space at Chester Andover Elementary with 75% of the costs being reimbursed by FEMA as they lost a building due to the July 2023 floods.
• Create a GMUSD Pre School Program at CTES with full day learning for 4 year- olds and a partial day preschool for 3 year-olds
• Beginning with the 2024-2025 school year, all new students residing in Baltimore will attend CTES. Students already attending CAES or another elementary school will be grandfathered in, along with any future siblings.
Last Friday, Nov. 15, VT’s Agency of Education (AOE) issued the report, Vermont’s Education System: Explained and Compared to Other States. The AOE Interim Secretary, Zoie Saunders states that the intent of the report is “to set the stage for discussions around system improvements that will support educational quality, equity, and sustainability.” The tax payers as well as the VT legislature are demanding an over haul of how education is funded and this report is laying the foundation for change.
Among the many take home points of this report is that VT’s needs to revise its funding formula to be in line with the rest of the country. Other changes include reducing the number of supervisory unions (VT has 52) and school boards, increasing class sizes, and reducing the number of teachers and paraeducators to align with educational best practices.
Given the changes in the recent election, at both the state and federal levels, controlling and cutting taxes are a high priority. As almost 70% of property taxes are for education, the report from the AOE is laying the ground work for the 2025 VT Legislative session that begins in January.
Additional Educational Reports this Week
• The future of Vermont Education as it relates to the GMUSD/TRSU
• Update on the Future: No silver bullets to cutting costs: Chester Telegraph
• Best Vermont High Schools According to US News & World Reports: GMUHS ranks 9th in VT with a graduation rate of 79%, 34.9% college readiness with an enrollment for 9-12 grades of 229 students.
• Best Vermont Elementary Schools: CTES ranks #2; Ludlow Elementary #49; Chester Andover Elementary #92; and Mount Holly ranked #104.
• How would Trump plans to cut ed programs hit Vermont? WCAX
4. CAVENDISH RELATED NEWS
• Cavendish Fire Department Receives a Municipal Resilience Program Grant: Cavendish Fire District 2 was informed by Commissioner Wanda Minoli of the Vermont Department of Building and General services that our application for a Municipal Energy Resilience Program grant had been accepted. The district is being awarded $434,667. These funds will be used to make the Cavendish Fire Station building ADA compliant, energy efficient, and able to provide a community gathering space that everyone can access. A detailed description of what the Municipal Energy Resilience Program entails can be found at their website.
• Man who stole Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center van receives prison sentence: A Cavendish man who stole a Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center shuttle van from outside the emergency room and led police on a high-speed chase down Interstate 91 pleaded guilty to a raft of charges stemming from a 2022 crime spree. VT Digger
• 25 Years on Main Street: Mark Huntley is a Cavendish resident and owner of Huntley Financial Services in Ludlow. VT Journal
• Cavendish Parcel Maps Now on-line: The Town of Cavendish parcel maps have been updated and are now available online at this link.For assistance in using the online parcel viewer please download the Users Guide here
5. EVENTS
NOVEMBER 22-24 (FRIDAY-SUNDAY): Ski Swap at Jackson Gore. Hours Friday 4-7 pm; Saturday 9-5; and Sunday 9-1
NOVEMBER 25 (MONDAY)-DECEMBER 4 (WEDNESDAY): Scholastic Book Fair at the Cavendish Library. Public Hours Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday 9-5.
NOVEMBER 28 (THURSDAY): HAPPY THANKSGIVING Town Office Closed
NOVEMBER 29 (FRIDAY): Town office closed for Thanksgiving break.
DECEMBER 7 (SATURDAY): Stuff a Fire Truck. The food drive will take place in two locations; PFD will be at Singleton’s and Ludlow will be at Shaw’s. Donations will be accepted from 9-5, with all proceeds benefitting the Black River Good Neighbors Service’s Food Shelf. BRGNS needs the following: Mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard, soup, coffee, sugar, pasta, pasta sauce, cereal, shampoo (regular bottles over sample size), soap (bars), dish detergent, and toothpaste.
DECEMBER 8 (SUNDAY): Children’s Christmas Party at the American Legion Post 36, 133 Main St., Ludlow from 10:30-Noon. Please call/text Tammi to sign up by December 1st 802-376-9165.
DECEMBER 14 (SATURDAY): The Cavendish Historical Society will be hosting a Holiday Fiesta at the Cavendish Library, made possible by a grant from the Cavendish Community Fund. From 10-noon come and make a variety of decorations using paper from old hymnals, magnets and more. FMI: 802-226-7807 or margocaulfield@icloud.com
- Ludlow Farmer’s Market 10-4 at the Ludlow Community Center
DECEMBER 15 (SUNDAY): Christmas Party at Fox Run, 12-4. Free Buffet, gifts for kids sponsored by Four Square Hospitality. FMI: ray@foursquarehospitalityvt.com
DECEMBER 25 (WEDNESDAY): MERRY CHRISTMAS
DECEMBER 25-JANUARY 2 (WEDNESDAY-THURSDAY) : HAPPY HANUKKAH
DECEMBER 26-JANUARY 1 (THURSDAY-WEDNESDAY): HAPPY KWANZAA
DECEMBER 31 (TUESDAY): New Years Eve.