Current News
by tim
Vermont Business Magazine The United States Attorney’s Office announced that today former Jay Peak President William Stenger, 72, of Newport, Vermont, pleaded guilty before Chief Judge Geoffrey W Crawford in United States District Court in Burlington to a felony count of knowingly and willfully submitting false documents to the Vermont Regional Center in connection with his involvement in the Jay Peak Biomedical Research Park EB-5 investment project, also called the AnC Vermont project located in Newport. Stenger faces up to five years in prison.
by tim
Vermont Business Magazine SunCommon, the largest provider of solar energy systems in Vermont and a leader in New York’s Hudson Valley, announced Thursday that their 200 employees must be vaccinated against COVID-19 – to protect their colleagues and their families as well as customers. Unvaccinated workers will have until August 23 to get inoculated or be terminated.
by tim
Vermont Business Magazine Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont), Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced last week more than $21.5 million for Vermont projects in the annual Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Bill advanced by the Committee last Thursday. The funding would accelerate construction of a readiness center in Bennington and support a new family readiness center at Camp Johnson, on land formerly referred to as the Ethan Allen Air Force Base in Colchester.
by tim
Vermont Business Magazine The Board of Directors of the recently merged Members Advantage Community Credit Union approved the credit union’s new name: 802 Credit Union. The merger was announced April 29. The Credit Union will begin rolling out the new name in signage and digital materials throughout the remainder of the year.
by tim
Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott today announced a series of vaccination clinics currently open at schools for anyone age 12 or older. You can walk-in or visit healthvermont.gov/MyVaccine to make an appointment. The VDH reported 107 new COVID cases today with 23 people hospitalized. A total of 264 Vermonters have died from COVID-19. The case numbers today resemble those from the late winter of this year. Cases then plummeted from May to July before surging again with Delta at the end of July. As of today, 84.6 percent of Vermonters have received at least one dose of vaccine, which is the highest rate in the nation.
by tim
Vermont Business Magazine Burlington Electric Department (BED) issued a peak alert for today/Friday, August 13 as part of its Defeat the Peak program launched during summer 2017 encouraging members of the Burlington community to reduce their energy usage from 4-7 pm today.
by tim
Vermont Business Magazine Mike Smith, Secretary of the Vermont Agency of Human Services, announced Thursday that Deputy Commissioner of Health Tracy Dolan will become the new director of the State Refugee Office effective August 30. Dolan will assume the responsibilities for day-to-day operations, management, and expansion of services for Vermont’s refugee program.
by katie
Vermont Business Magazine The University of Vermont will host in-person commencement ceremonies to celebrate the academic achievements of members of the Class of 2020. The ceremonies will be held on Saturday, Aug. 14 in Patrick Gymnasium at the UVM Athletic Complex.
Health and safety restrictions imposed as part of the state and university’s coronavirus pandemic response had precluded in-person gatherings in spring of 2020 and 2021 for this class of graduates. A virtual celebration was held on May 17, 2020 for the class.
“We are delighted to welcome home our Class of 2020 graduates and their guests,” said UVM President Suresh Garimella. “We hope that these ceremonies provide a wonderful opportunity for our graduates to gather with classmates, family and friends to honor their well-earned academic achievements.”
by katie
Vermont Business Magazine Community Bank N.A. recently donated $15,000 to The DREAM Program to sponsor its “Coast 2 Camp” fundraising initiative. This is the eighth consecutive year Community Bank has supported DREAM, with donations over the years totaling more than $90,000.
Camp DREAM is a free residential summer camp for children in DREAM, a nonprofit organization that pairs college students with children living in low-income housing neighborhoods throughout Vermont for mentoring and adventure programming. Camp DREAM also serves youth from Boston and Philadelphia.
by katie
Vermont Business Magazine Extreme price increases continued in July for a wide range of goods and services used in construction, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America of government data released today. Association officials urged President Biden to immediately end tariffs and quotas on steel, aluminum, lumber and other essential construction items to help stave off inflationary pressure in the construction industry.
by katie
Vermont Business Magazine Vermont’s farmers continue to grow, innovate and feed us. This theme is on full display during Vermont Open Farm Week. Leaders from the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets, the Vermont Agency of Education, the Vermont Fresh Network and the University of Vermont visited several farms Tuesday to celebrate Vermont agriculture and working lands.
by katie
Vermont Business Magazine A research team including Saint Michael’s College Professor and Canadian politics expert Jeffrey Ayres recently made public “The 2021 Border Barometer.”
This collaborative report from a team of American and Canadian scholars, publically available online since early August, responded to a request from Canada’s government months ago for an assessment of the impact of the border closure due to COVID on businesses and communities from the Atlantic to the Pacific.