Current News

Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility (VBSR) announces the election of six new board members and an amendment to the bylaws to include at-large board members.
Three board members were elected for three-year terms. Russ Bennett is the owner and founder of Northland Design & Construction, Inc., a residential design-build company focusing on energy efficiency. Mark Curran is an owner and founder of Black River Produce, a wholesale produce distributer employing over 150 people. Mary Powell is president and CEO of Green Mountain Power (GMP), a utility which transmits, distributes and sells electricity to more than 200,000 people and businesses in Vermont. Due to prior commitments, Powell is joining the board in September.

The Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) and the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) announced that a recent public survey showed an overwhelming majority of people favor the Modified Network Tied Arch Bridge concept as a replacement to the existing Lake Champlain Bridge. Transportation officials are expected to make the final decision on a new bridge design in January.
More than 3,500 people cast their vote either by Internet or by attending a series of public meetings held on December 12 and hosted by the Bridge’s Public Advisory Committee or PAC. The results and pictures of all the concepts are below.
Additionally, the PAC issued a final recommendation for its preferred design for the replacement of the Lake Champlain Bridge. The PAC agreed with the public survey results, and also recommended replacing the existing structure with a Modified Network Tied Arch Bridge.

The Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) today announced that, for safety reasons, Route 125 in Addison has been selected as the Vermont public viewing area for the demolition of the Lake Champlain Bridge. The demolition is scheduled for Wednesday, December 23, 2009 and is tentatively set for 10 a.m. This time, however, could change if circumstances arise that necessitate rescheduling. Access to the public viewing site will be controlled by turning parts of Route 125 and Route 17 into one-way streets.
Heading west along Route 125, the road will become one way (heading west) in the area of Lake Street. One-way traffic will be maintained as Route 125 heads toward Lake Champlain and connects with Route 17 at the bridge. Route 17 will also be just one way (headed east) from the bridge until the area around the West Addison General Store, also known as WAGS.

A holiday season charitable initiative that drew accolades last year for distributing thousands of pairs of warm socks to needy Vermont youngsters will reach even more children this year, organizers announced today. Governor James Douglas joined representatives of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont and Cabot Hosiery Mills, Inc. at a Northfield sock factory today to announce that eleven thousand pairs of top quality merino wool socks will be distributed to needy children this year, a thousand more pairs than last year, thanks to the joint efforts of a charitable foundation affiliated with Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Cabot, and the state’s community action agencies and homeless shelters.

FairPoint Communications has named Vermont native Michael K Smith as Vermont State President. He will be responsible for regulatory matters, governmental relations, and economic development for Vermont.

After being closed all day Friday and Saturday, the Ticonderoga Ferry operated Sunday without incident. As a result, the ferry company plans to operate Monday on its regular schedule, 6 am to 8 pm. Of course, this is lake condition and weather dependent. For the latest information, people should check the ferry company's website for the latest information. The website is http://www.middlebury.net/tiferry/

The Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans), the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT), the United States Coast Guard (USCG) and the New York State Emergency Management Office (SEMO) are warning people that the ice surrounding the Lake Champlain Bridge and near Ticonderoga, NY will not be the same as in years’ past, and that recreational activities in the area should be conducted with extreme caution.

Related Company: Central Vermont Public Service CorpEntergy Vermont Yankee today sent a letter to the Vermont Public Service Board saying it will submit a new power purchase agreement in early January 2010. The new, 20-year contract offer will provide 115 megawatts of power from 628 megawatt plant at $61 per megawatt hour starting in 2012. The Vermont utilities are paying $42 per megawatt hour now. All parties were expecting the price to go up. The Vermont utilities have said that were also planning to diversify their portfolios going forward and buy less from Vermont Yankee, but not as little as Entergy is proposing, which is about half of what it is selling in Vermont currently.

Jay Peak Vermont officially opened the new Tram Haus Lodge today at 11 a.m, amidst a large crowd and bright sun reflecting off the freshly fallen snow. Jay Peak President Bill Stenger officiated a ribbon cutting ceremony and gave a short address at the Tower Bar inside the Tram Haus Lodge, followed by a Q&A session, light refreshments and tours of the new facilities. Also attending were state and local officials Kevin Dorn, Vermont Secretary of Commerce, and Chuck Ross, Senator Leahy’s Chief of Staff.

The Association of Vermont Recyclers and the Northeast Resource Recovery Association announce joint operations effective immediately, with the overwhelming support of both Governing Boards. NRRA will provide financial and administrative support for AVR programming in Vermont, and expand AVR’s public school recycling program offerings to NRRA communities throughout the Northeast.
“This partnership is the culmination of nearly a year of collaborative effort between both NRRA’s and AVR’s staff” says Staunton. “The benefits to both organizations and, more importantly, to the members and citizens we serve, are tremendous. This partnership is an important step towards a bright future for recycling in the Northeast.”

Transportation officials in New York and Vermont have announced that the Champlain Bridge, closed to all traffic since October 16, will be imploded on Wednesday, December 23, as long as conditions allow. The demolition is scheduled for 10 am. Public viewing areas will be set up. More information on the event will be released before Wednesday.
Dealing with the closed and irreparable Champlain Bridge has been something of a race to the crossing. The Ticonderoga ferry was shut down yesterday because of icy conditions and will run only as the weather allows. The Charlotte ferry will continue to operate.

The Vermont Department of Labor announced today that the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for November 2009 was 6.4 percent, down one-tenth of a point from the revised October rate and up 1.1 points from a year ago.
“Our unemployment rate continued to fall slightly in November, but unlike the last few months we also saw a sizable jump in the number of employed Vermonters” said Patricia Moulton Powden, Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Labor. “However, we're still seeing mixed signals in the labor market. Other indicators measuring the Vermont job market do not support such strong employment growth. We continue to be cautious whether or not these numbers are signals of recovery here in Vermont.”
Seasonal Job Growth