Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The U.S. Postal Service today expanded USPS Connect Local and USPS Connect Regional to Vermont. They are part of a set of four delivery solutions that leverage ongoing network improvements, new equipment, new pricing, and enhanced operational precision to meet evolving business needs. USPS Connect Local is a new way for local businesses to affordably and quickly reach local customers. It is rolling out in select locations starting today. USPS Connect Local offers affordable next-day service in all locations, with same-day delivery, Sunday delivery and pickup options in select locations.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont Breakfast on the Farm returned today after two years of limited activity, welcoming the public to Gosliga Farm in Addison, Vermont. Saturday’s event was the first physical gathering for the annual event since 2019, with nearly 2,000 visitors enjoying a local Vermont breakfast and then a self-guided tour of the dairy farm located in the Champlain Valley. Since 2014, Vermont Breakfast on the Farm has worked to connect the public with hard-working dairy farming families like the Gosligas – who produce wholesome dairy, care deeply for their cows, and work to protect, maintain and improve the working-landscapes of Vermont.

Vermont Business Magazine Bank of Burlington announced Friday, they have received conditional approval from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) for its application to open a new bank focused on commercial banking to businesses in Vermont. Bank of Burlington previously received an Order Granting Permission to Organize from the State of Vermont Department of Financial Regulation on March 16, 2022. Upon final approval, Bank of Burlington will be the first State of Vermont Banking Charter issued since 1989.

by Joyce Marcel, Vermont Business Magazine It is 1972 in Burlington, and a man named Howard Aiken has just created a new service for collecting and processing billing data. Based on that, the company he starts, Vermont Information Processing, soon has six employees. In 2001, Aiken sells the company — now 45 workers strong — to the employees. Since then, VIP has grown into a stealth behemoth, so secretive that its CEO won't sit for an interview and its top-level employee-owners squirm when asked to quantify the company's revenue.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Council on Rural Development (VCRD) is inviting Vermonters of all backgrounds who are working with a goal of improving life in their community to attend the 2022 Community Leadership Summit on Wednesday, August 10, at Vermont Technical College. The agenda is based in part on feedback over the past two years from thousands of Vermonters about the future of our state and the need to strengthen civic engagement and tackle shared challenges together. It will also offer opportunities to build leadership skills, share success stories, and connect to and learn from community leaders of all backgrounds working to advance projects in towns across Vermont. The Summit will be an opportunity for renewal and rejuvenation as we reengage with fellow Vermonters, make new connections, celebrate community successes, talk through shared challenges, and think proactively about the future.

Vermont Business Magazine Norwich University has opened submissions for the 2023 Colby Award, beginning July 1. Norwich University in Northfield, Vermont, presents the award annually to a first solo work of fiction, nonfiction or poetry that has made a major contribution to the understanding of military history, intelligence operations or international affairs. Colby Award recipients receive a $5,000 author honorarium provided through the generosity of the Chicago-based Pritzker Military Foundation, on behalf of the Pritzker Military Museum & Library. The Colby Award is presented annually at Norwich University during the Norwich University Military Writers’ Symposium in Northfield, Vermont. The window for submissions ends Nov. 30, 2022.

Northeastern Vermont Development Association The Vermont Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation, in partnership with VEIC, announces the availability of free assessments for Vermont small businesses interested in switching from fossil fuels for their heating needs to Advanced Wood Heat (AWH). Also, Efficiency Vermont is seeking proposals from professionals or organizations for programs that increase the number of people working in or supporting the weatherization field in Vermont. Responses to this Request for Proposals (RFP) must be delivered by 5 pm EDT on Monday, July 18.

Vermont Business Magazine Middlesex-based Kingsbury Companies has been awarded two projects in northern New Hampshire, continuing the expansion of our relationships with neighboring communities in need of a team to help them solve their unique challenges. The Bretton Woods Wastewater Treatment Facility project consists of the removal, dewatering and disposal of sewage sludge from two (2) existing aerated lagoons, the installation of two new 60 mil HDPE liners and the replacement of the aeration system. The facility treats wastewater from several residential and commercial members in the White Mountain Range including Bretton Woods Ski Area. Work began in early May and is expected to be completed in the Fall of 2022.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont, tied with South Dakota, has the lowest foreclosure rate in the nation. Only 0.01 percent (one-hundredth of 1 percent) of homes in Vermont and South Dakota have undergone a foreclosure filing during the first half of 2022. This represents a total of 44 homes in Vermont and 43 in South Dakota. Next lowest is North Dakota at 0.02 percent (83 homes). The highest is Illinois (0.26 percent, or 14,086). The US rate is 0.12 percent (164,581 homes). Foreclosure filings include default notices, scheduled auctions or bank repossessions. The US figure is up 153 percent from the same time period a year ago but down just 1 percent from the same time period two years ago.

Vermont Business Magazine Bristol Village Cohousing (BVCH) in Bristol, VT is five years old and has much to celebrate. Founded in 2017 by Jim Mendell and Meg Kamens, the community grew very quickly and now is an established part of Bristol and Addison County. On Saturday Oct 1 from 1 - 5 pm BVCH will host an Open House to celebrate. BVCH is one of nine cohousing communities in Vermont and over 150 established communities in the US according to the Cohousing Association of the US. Cohousing is defined as “community intentionally designed with ample common spaces surrounded by private homes.”

Vermont Business Magazine Do Good Fest, a benefit music concert hosted by National Life Group on its Montpelier campus, is returning after a hiatus during the pandemic. The largest concert held in central Vermont is expected to bring almost 10,000 people to the company’s natural amphitheater. This year, Do Good Fest is featuring X Ambassadors as its headliner as well as American Authors, Forest Blakk, and Vermont’s own Moxie. A new highlight for the event is Beats for Good, a high school music competition. Kingdom All Stars, a group of teen musicians from the Northeast Kingdom, won after close to 6,000 online votes were tallied. They will perform as a lead in to Moxie. The Laker Ladies, a trio from Colchester High School, will sing the song that made them a close second and will open Do Good Fest.

Vermont Business Magazine The Connecticut River Conservancy’s first-ever Riverfest Weekend kicks off Aug. 6 & 7 in Brattleboro and Hinsdale, highlighted by the 44^th Annual New England Paddlesports Championship on Sunday. Riverfest promises family-friendly near-river and on-river activities bridging southwest New Hampshire with southeast Vermont.