Current News

Vermont Business Magazine Bar Harbor Bankshares concluded their annual “Food for Good” community food drive on November 17, 2017.This year the event took place in Maine at 14 Bar Harbor Bank & Trust branches as well as in New Hampshire and Vermont at 35 branches of Lake Sunapee Bank, a division of Bar Harbor Bank & Trust. More than 6,400 food items and over $5,900 were collected and delivered to local food pantries prior to the Thanksgiving holiday. “On behalf of the Bank, I would like to thank everyone who gave a gift of healthy food to our neighbors in need by donating to the food drive,” said Margie Gray at Bar Harbor Bank & Trust. “These gifts helped fill Thanksgiving food baskets and stock the shelves of local food pantries for the winter months ahead.”

by John McClaughry On December 18 Governor Phil Scott will convene an Education Summit, to address “the crisis of affordability and how it impacts the opportunities we are able to provide our children.” In his letter announcing the Summit to “education leaders” – apparently referring to the public school establishment – the governor wants long-term cost containment in the public school system.

So did Governor Dean, who urged a statewide teachers’ salary contract and threatened to micromanage high spending school districts (but didn’t). So did Gov. Douglas, who in his final state of the state message in 2010 proposed that the State mandate acceptable teacher-to-pupil ratios (the legislature declined).

Vermont Business Magazine US Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) visited Peoples Academy in Morrisville Monday morning to have an open conversation with students about their aspirations and goals after graduating high school. “It’s important that we understand how students see their options as they prepare to graduate high school,” said Sanders, who serves on the Senate education committee.

“Do they have adequate information to determine the best college for them and how they can finance a higher education? If they are not going to college, do they know how to get training to secure the best jobs that are out there?” Sanders said.

Sanders was joined by Vermont Agency of Education Secretary Rebecca Holcombe, Vermont Department of Labor Commissioner Lindsay Kurrle, local business owners, and other state and regional education and workforce development leaders.

Vermont Business Magazine Mayor Miro Weinberger released the following statement today in response to the announcements of Carina Driscoll and Infinite Culcleasure: "I welcome Carina Driscoll and Infinite Culcleasure to the mayor's race. Burlingtonians deserve healthy democratic debate and real choice at the ballot box..."

Vermont Business MagazineVermont Electric Cooperative (VEC) will not seek a rate increase for January 2018, marking the fourth consecutive year that VEC has kept rates flat. Earlier in the year, VEC anticipated that a rate increase would be necessary, but VEC staff worked hard to identify savings in power supply and transmission as well as in other areas.

Vermont Business MagazineThe Vermont Affordable Housing Coalition (VAHC), a state leader in housing policy, research and advocacy, today issued the following statement on the tax bill recently passed by the USHouse of Representatives and under consideration in the Senate:At a time when Vermont already has ashortage of 10,866 affordable homesfor extremely low income renters and the5thhighest affordability gap for rentersin the country, the pending tax proposals would eliminate tax credits and financing tools that have helped create thousands of affordable apartments in our state and made homeownership more affordable for thousands of Vermonters.

Vermont Business Magazine Davis & Hodgdon Associates CPAs and Generator BTV have announced a multi-year sustainable partnership. The relationship, labeled by Davis & Hodgdon as a “Signature Partnership”, begins with the firm’s sponsorship of an administrative/marketing intern and support for Generator’s upcoming Jump/Start program. Davis & Hodgdon introduced the “Signature Partnership” concept in 2014 to leverage the firm’s financial resources and the skills and expertise of their staff. Through this alliance, the firm will support Generator through all aspects of giving: sponsorship, pro-bono work, volunteer opportunities and beyond.

Vermont Business Magazine AIV's annual meeting is the premier forum for addressing critical manufacturing and economic issues facing Vermont, bringing together leaders from across business and public sectors, and it is holding its 97th Annual MeetingDecember 14at the Capitol Plaza in Montpelier. This year AIV is focusing on one of the greatest challenges for manufacturing and many other sectors in Vermont -- addressing the education and training necessary to keep Vermont's workforce productive and competitive.

Vermont Business MagazineMettowee Mill Nursery, Garden Center and Landscaping Inchasbeen sold to David Lawrence. This business is a full-service nursery, gardencenter and landscaping service and has been owned by Steve and Lee Jonessince 1973. David Lawrence owns Rising Sun Landscaping also of Dorset. Heplans to continue both businesses.

Vermont Business Magazine The Small Business Administration Vermont District Office is accepting nominations for its 2018 small business awards.Previous Vermont winners include Ben and Jerry’s, Switchback Brewing Company and Maple Landmark, 2017 Small Business Person of the Year winner. Since 1963, the SBA has recognized the outstanding achievements of America’s small businesses for their contributions to their local communities, and to the nation’s economy.

The award categories are:

by Mike Smith When we think of Washington, DC, we often conjure up images of a city filled with political and social elites focused on self-preservation and personal enhancement. Where responsibility for others is supplanted by self-aggrandizement and concern for one’s own comfort. A city disconnected from the struggles and interests of those outside its boundaries.

Columnist Peggy Noonan depicted these elites this way: “They’re barricaded behind the things the influential have, from good neighborhoods to security alarms, doormen and gates. They’re not dark in their imagining of the future because history has never been dark for them; it’s been sunshine, which they expect to continue. They sail on, oblivious to the legitimate anxieties of their countrymen who live near the edge.”

Vermont Business MagazineThe Vermont State Colleges System (VSCS) Board of Trustees announcedFridayat the conclusion of their meeting that Castleton University’s Spartan Stadium will be renamed Dave Wolk Stadium in honor of his 16 years of visionary service as University President.Governor Phil Scott was on hand to read the official VSCS resolution, which lauded Wolk’s vision, values, passion, and dedication. The resolution highlighted the nearly $100 million in infrastructure improvements as well as the additions to athletics, the arts, and academic offerings during Wolk’s tenure.

Designed to pay tribute to the region’s rich railroad history, the stadium’s architecture mimics that of the historic railroad depots in the area and is the crown jewel of the Castleton Student Initiative, a $25.7 million project designed to enhance all aspects of the student experience.