Current News

Vermont Business Magazine The New Hampshire / Vermont region of the American Red Cross has now closed both of the shelters we opened in Newport and St. Albans for people who found themselves displaced by power outages and flooding.

Vermont Business Magazine In advance of the 40^th anniversary of the Iran hostage crisis, U.S. Senators Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., introduced a bipartisan resolution recognizing today, Monday, Nov. 4, 2019, as a national day of remembrance.

“The victims of the Iran hostage crisis were treated brutally, and their suffering and sacrifice should be remembered,” said Isakson. “Similarly, this resolution and our continued efforts on behalf of the victims are an important statement that once an American serves our country, we will be there for you no matter how long it takes to secure justice. On the anniversary of their capture, we pay tribute to these brave Americans who were held hostage in Iran during service to the United States.”

Vermont Business Magazine The Two Rivers-Ottauquechee Regional Commission (TRORC) is a recipient of a 2019 National Association of Development Organizations (NADO) Impact Award for its work in supporting the economic prosperity and interdisciplinary connections for the creative sector in the east central Vermont region. The NADO Impact Awards program honors organizations for their creative approaches to advancing regional community and economic development and improved quality of life.  This project has made a significant impact on our region and demonstrates the diversity of services and program delivery provided by TRORC.

Vermont Business Magazine Skilled workforce shortages plague the construction industry, with October Bureau of Labor Statistics data showing 379,000 vacant jobs in the sector nationally. BLS released the full employment situation for October on Friday, Nov. 1.

Meanwhile, Middlebury-based Bread Loaf Corporation, Construction Manager of Bennington’s ambitious Putnam Block Redevelopment Project—intended to catalyze economic and community development in southern Vermont—has been staying ahead of the curve, leveraging the skilled labor shortage to its advantage.

Photo: Training workers at Putnam Block. Courtesy photo. 

Vermont Business Magazine A combination of world-class snowmaking and favorable temperatures have allowed both Stowe and Okemo to start making snow at higher elevations during the first weekend of November. Sister resort, Mount Sunapee, in New Hampshire, will begin snowmaking soon as well.

Opening day for the 2019/2020 season at all three resorts is approaching quickly. Stowe and Okemo are targeting November 22 as the start of winter operations, while Mount Sunapee is aiming for November 27. All three resorts will commemorate their opening days with “First Chair” celebrations.

Last year, Stowe and Okemo opened for the season in mid-November with top-to-bottom terrain. Efforts are being made to accomplish that again this year.

Vermont Business Magazine U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing $1.4 billion in projects in 21 states to build and improve rural electric infrastructure.

“Modern and reliable electric infrastructure has been a cornerstone to rural prosperity since the Rural Electrification Act of 1936,” Secretary Perdue said. “This funding we are providing is critical to rural communities and reflects President Trump’s commitment to increasing prosperity across all of rural America. When rural America thrives, all of America thrives.”

Vermont Business Magazine The Vermont Air National Guard will conduct night flight operations from Tuesday, Nov. 5 through Friday, Nov. 22, 2019.

Area residents may see and hear F-35A aircraft taking off and landing from Burlington International Airport during this time. All training operations are scheduled to be completed before 8:00 p.m.

“We fly at night to maintain night tactical proficiency,” said Lt. Col. Anthony Marek, 134th Fighter Squadron Commander. “This is especially important during this time of F-35 transition—we must learn how to employ the tactical advantages gained from the F-35 during both day and night operations.”

158th Fighter Wing pilots and maintenance personnel are required to conduct night operations for Air Force and Major Command proficiencies. The 158th Fighter Wing utilizes the fall and winter months for night operations training when hours of darkness are at their earliest.

Vermont Business Magazine Supported by outside line crews, VEC will have less than 150 members without power come Monday morning. The remaining outages were in the hardest hit areas, and crews will get that power back on as soon as safely possible.

Early Sunday morning, VEC was joined by crews from Corn Belt Energy in Bloomington, Indiana and Clay Electric Cooperative in Flora, Illinois. These line workers and crews from neighboring utilities joined VEC in responding to the significant damage from this wind and rain event. VEC has restored more than 17,000 members since outages started coming in on Halloween evening.

Vermont Business Magazine In an unprecedented show of unity this past weekend the Vermont Republican Party held its reorganizational meeting to elect new officers, and every single office was filled without the need to cast a single ballot - and the women are taking over.

"I don't think I've ever been to an organizational meeting that didn't have at least one contested race," said former State Rep. Paul Dame who was re-elected to his position as an At-large delegate to the Executive Committee.  "It just goes to show that after a tight race two years ago everyone has rallied together and we all realize we're all in the same boat trying to accomplish the same things.  I think the majority of our members are happy with the internal structural changes we are making to gear up for 2020."

Photo: Left to right: John Heartson, Brian Warwick and Tyler Valley in the NVU-Lyndon studio live room.

Vermont Business Magazine Northern Vermont University has tapped the expertise of Northeast Kingdom businesses to renovate the recording studio for the music business and industry (MBI) program on its Lyndon campus.   

The studio is a vital part of NVU’s innovative MBI program, which focuses on hands-on skill-building experience to help students excel in their careers. “It’s a well-loved facility, and since the studio has been open 24 hours a day, seven days a week for 10 years, it was time for an overhaul,” MBI assistant professor Brian Warwick says.

Vermont Business Magazine Hula, a state-of-the-art office, coworking, conference, and events campus on the shores of Lake Champlain, is partnering with Pale Morning Media for public relations and strategic communications to support its 2020 launch.

One part business accelerator, one part outdoor destination and one part eclectic cultural hub, Hula is creating a new standard for a unique, next-generation “work and play” environment in a signature location of the Northeast.

“Hula is a reflection and an extension of what’s already happening in the Burlington area – a combination of world-class innovation, quickly growing access to investment capital, and a healthy outdoor lifestyle that most cities can only dream of,” said Russ Scully, president and founder of Hula.

Vermont Business Magazine Vermont’s Killington Resort, the largest ski and snowboard destination in Eastern North America, and part of POWDR, will kick off the 2019-20 winter season at 11:00 a.m. on Sunday, November 3, 2019, becoming the first Eastern resort to open for skiing and snowboarding.

The first turns of the season, on Sunday, November 3, will be reserved exclusively for Season Pass, Express Card, Beast 365 and Ikon pass holders. The resort will open to the general public on Monday, November 4, 2019 at 9:00 a.m. Sunday, November 3, will also be the last day of operations for Downhill Mountain Biking serviced by the Snowshed Express Quad. Killington’s operating schedule for the remainder of the week will be updated in real time at www.killington.com/conditions.