Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Department of Health is reporting today that cases fell today with 224 (down 94). Cases spiked yesterday to their fourth highest number on record after four straight days in which cases fell. Cases in the southern Vermont continue to be relatively high, as have cases in Franklin and the Northeast Kingdom. But Washington County cases also have been climbing and only Addison, Lamoille, Grand Isle and Windsor have fewer than 500 cases per 10,000 residents now.

Public Assets Institute Vermont has recovered nearly 80 percent of the private sector jobs lost in the early days of the pandemic. The four industries with the most growth in 2021 were among the hardest hit over the last year and a half. Manufacturing, educational services, and entertainment are pretty much back to pre-pandemic levels, while the restaurant industry remains about 20 percent below where it was at the beginning of 2020.

Vermont State Police As the investigation continues into the fatal shooting in Greensboro that occurred Wednesday night, the Vermont State Police is releasing additional information about the case.

The series of events that led to the shooting began at about 6:50 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 20, at the Hardwick Convenience and Deli store located at 454 Vermont Route 15 in Hardwick. A store clerk called the Hardwick Police Department after a man, later determined to be Robert Chaplin, 27, of East Hardwick, was denied service to purchase alcohol because he was deemed too intoxicated. A second man, later identified as Daryl Johnson, 48, of Greensboro, intervened in a dispute between Chaplin and the store clerk. Chaplin had left the store before Hardwick police arrived.

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Community Broadband Board (VCBB), the new state board charged with overseeing broadband development in Vermont, recently approved DVFiber’s $4.1 million grant request. DVFiber (Deerfield Valley Communications Union District) can now move ahead with its partner Great Works Internet, Inc (GWI) of Biddeford, Maine, to secure high-speed broadband access for its 24 member towns. The funding enables DVFiber to proceed with the design and engineering of a high-speed fiber optic network that will reach all unserved and underserved homes and businesses within its 24 member towns.

Vermont Business Magazine As announced by Mayor Miro Weinberger on Monday, October 18, City staff and community partners (including the CVOEO Community Outreach and Resource Advocate team) met with campers to discuss resource connection, explain the City’s storage policy, and identify trash and abandoned items for removal. Today, as planned, City staff from the Departments of Public Works and Parks, Recreation, and Waterfront will be on site to manage the removal of only those items identified by campers as trash or abandoned. After the deadline for removal on Tuesday October 26, all personal belongings and structures left on site will be safely stored for 30 days in accordance with the Burlington City policy on sheltering on public land, and campers can return to collect those items within that 30-day period.

Vermont Business Magazine The state investigative team examining long wait times for health services in Vermont will hold two public listening sessions in the coming weeks. In partnership with the Office of the Health Care Advocate, the investigation has organized two opportunities for members of the public to speak directly with the state investigatory team and share their experiences of extended wait times. The first virtual session will take place Wednesday, October 27, from 5:30pm to 7:30pm. The second session will be from 12pm to 2pm on Thursday, November 4.

Vermont Business Magazine This week, through a collaboration with Burlington Health and Rehab and the Vermont Department of Disabilities, Aging and Independent Living (DAIL), The UVM Medical Center began moving patients to the skilled nursing facility. This will improve hospital inpatient and emergency capacity. The State of Vermont is funding the travelers. This will open up inpatient beds at UVM Medical Center for patients who truly need the acute level of care provided at the region’s Level 1 Trauma Center. Since July, UVM Medical Center also has worked closely with Birchwood Terrace Rehab & Healthcare. They have since accepted more than 90 patients from the hospital, with 46 of those patients currently at Birchwood continuing to receive care. Four more patients are expected to move there today.

Vermont Business Magazine Today, the Burlington International Airport announced the installation of a flight tracking and noise monitoring system, paid for by grant funding from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Through the use of permanent noise monitors located in affected areas, the Airport will be able to measure noise levels associated with aircraft operations and provide information to individuals and communities affected by Airport operations through an online portal.

Vermont Business Magazine Today, the Vermont Department of Labor reported that the unemployment rate fell to 2.9 percent for September 2021. This reflects a decrease of one-tenth of one percentage point from the prior month’s revised estimate. The rate is based on household data collected by the US Census. All three major metrics (labor force, number of employed, number of unemployed) improved modestly. However, the labor force is still missing about 25,000 workers. The comparable United States rate in September was 4.8 percent, which was a decrease of four-tenths of one percentage point from the revised August estimate. Vermont is tied for the third lowest unemployment rate in the nation (with New Hampshire, Idaho, South Dakota).

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott and the Department of Health today announced Thursday night that, effective Friday, the state is expanding its COVID-19 booster shot program to include the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines. In addition, starting Friday through pharmacies or your healthcare provider, or starting on November 1 through the state registration system, Vermonters ages 18 and older may choose a booster vaccine that is a different brand than the one they initially received. These actions follow the decision by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to authorize use of the three vaccines for booster doses. Pfizer boosters have been available since September 24.

Vermont Business Magazine Through in-person and virtual job fair events held this week, the Vermont Department of Labor and local partners came together to provide job-seeking Vermonters the opportunity to meet with employers hiring across Vermont. October Job Fest events were held in Bennington and Rutland as outdoor, in-person job fairs on Wednesday and Thursday respectively, while a virtual job fair focusing on the ski industry was held on Thursday.

Vermont Business Magazine iSun, Inc (NASDAQ: ISUN), a leading solar energy and clean mobility infrastructure company based in Williston, announced Wednesday that it has been awarded contracts for Solar Engineering, Procurement and Construction services across three separate projects in Maine. Once complete, the projects will yield over 20mw of solar production; Combined, the contract values exceed $6.7 million.