Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Comcast announced that it is launching a new internet service that will deliver speeds up to 1 Gigabit-per-second (Gbps) to residential and business customers in Vermont, These speeds will be among the fastest and most widely available and include access to the nation’s largest Wi-Fi network of more than 19 million hotspots. Comcast plans to launch 1 Gig service to the majority of its service areas in Vermont throughout 2018.

The service is now available in Berlin, Bethel, Braintree, Brookfield, Calais, Duxbury, East Montpelier, Greensboro, Hardwick, Hyde Park, Johnson, Middlesex, Montpelier, Moretown, Morristown, Morrisville, Plainfield, Randolph, Rochester, Walden, Waterbury, Worcester and Woodbury, Vermont.

Vermont Business Magazine The Board of Directors of First Night Burlington, Inc has voted to disband the corporation. Burlington City Arts and other community organizations have begun to work collaboratively to re-imagine what a sustainable community-wide new year’s eve celebration could look like in the future. First Night Burlington started on New Year’s Eve 1983 and has been a signature presentation in downtown Burlington ever since. Thousands of people have enjoyed performances at a variety of venues ranging from local churches and schools to City Hall’s Contois Auditorium and the Flynn Center.

“First Night 2018 was particularly difficult for us,” David Mount, Chair of the Board said. “The arctic temperatures and high winds kept people away in droves, causing us to incur a substantial loss. Our reserves have been fully tapped.”

Vermont Business Magazine On Thursday, April 19th from 4pm to 6pm Vermont Secretary of State Jim Condos will be hosting a forum on election cybersecurity at the Pavilion Auditorium, located at 109 State Street in Montpelier. The presentation will cover background information on recent events impacting election cybersecurity and the safeguards in place protecting Vermont’s voter registration and election systems. There will be dedicated time for questions from attendees. The forum is open to all and no registration is required.

Vermont Business Magazine Union Bankshares, Inc (NASDAQ:UNB) today announced results for the three months ended March 31, 2018 and declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of 30 cents per share. Consolidated net income for the first quarter of 2018 was $2.7 million, or $0.62 per share, compared to $1.9 million, or $0.43 per share, for the same period in 2017.

Vermont Business Magazine The Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) – www.ibpa-online.org – announced over the weekend the winners in the prestigious IBPA Benjamin Franklin Award program, now in its 30th year. This year’s esteemed indie book award program recognized excellence in books published during calendar year 2017. The book "Lila & Theron" (Publisher: Charles Michael Publishing ISBN: 978-1-6826-1356-6) by Vermont author Bill Schubart was named a Silver Winner. It is a love story set in 19th century rural Vermont "in which the exigencies of survival define the character and lives of the principal characters."

Vermont Business Magazine Americans waste nearly a pound of food per person each day, but the exact amount of food we trash differs by how healthy your diet is, a new University of Vermont co-authored national study finds. While most people want to eat better by putting more fruit and vegetables on their plates, the study found that higher quality diets were associated with higher levels of food waste. Between 2007-2014, US consumers wasted nearly 150,000 tons of food per day – nearly a pound (422 grams) of food per person each day. Researchers estimate that food waste corresponded with the use of 30 million acres of land annually (7 percent of total US cropland) and 4.2 trillion gallons of irrigation water each year.

Vermont Business Magazine Today, the Vermont Foodbank announced the lineup of workshops for their annual Hunger Action Conference to be held on Friday, May 4th at Killington Grand Resort. The Hunger Action Conference is a full-day educational event that will provide more than 300 attendees from the mission-driven and charitable food sectors with training regarding poverty and hunger, food systems, health, and best practices to help them positively impact those most in need in their communities.

This year’s conference will focus on diversity and inclusion. “The work of ensuring that all Vermonters have access to high quality, nutritious food is an important step toward a more equitable society,” says Vermont Foodbank, CEO John Sayles. “And to truly live those values, it is important that we all embrace diversity and inclusion in this work –both through our interactions within our organizations and with those we serve.”

MEMIC is accepting applications for its Harvey Picker Horizon Scholarship Program for children and spouses of workers who have been seriously injured on the job. MEMIC has awarded $155,000 in scholarships since 2001.

As one of the fastest growing workers’ compensation insurers on the Eastern Seaboard, MEMIC recognizes that although workers’ compensation insurance covers medical treatment and replaces a percentage of lost wages, it cannot eliminate entirely the stress and strain that an injury can cause a family.

Vermont Business Magazine On Monday, 16 April 2018, the RuralEdge (RE) Board of Directors approved the decision to close Scenic View Community Housing, in Westfield, Vermont, because RE can no longer afford to keep the facility operating. RuralEdge announced the decision in a statement issued today.

Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott and the Agency of Commerce and Community Development announced Tuesday that four Bennington County businesses have been awarded a total of $631,182 in Vermont Training Program Grants from the Department of Economic Development this fiscal year to train more than 675 employees. The grants provide training that leads to improved skill sets and wage increases for upwards of 615 existing employees, and support training for up to 60 new hires.

Vermont Business Magazine The American Lung Association’s 2018 “State of the Air” report found that the Burlington-South Burlington metro area to be the only city in the Northeast to be ranked on all three Cleanest City lists for Ozone pollution, for year-round particle pollution and for short-term particle pollution, based on data from 2014-2016. Compared to the 2017 report, all three reporting counties in the state of Vermont, Bennington, Chittenden and Rutland maintained low levels of ozone and short-term particle pollution while slightly improving exposure to year-round particle pollution.

Vermont Business Magazine A brewing company in Essex Junction has been named the 2018 Vermont Veteran-Owned Business of the Year. Kevin Jarvis and Shawn Trout, owners of 1st Republic Brewing Company, are being recognized by the US Small Business Administration for rapid growth, financial success and community involvement.