Current News
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by Alan Panebaker vtdigger.org March 24, 2012Representatives for Green Mountain Power say an attempt by the Vermont Legislature to require a cash payback as a result of a utility merger could sour the deal.
Earlier this week, four representatives proposed an amendment to House Bill 468 that would require Central Vermont Public Service to pay ratepayers $21 million in cash rebates as part of a windfall sharing mechanism.
House Speaker Shap Smith said the amendment was not relevant to the bill, which dealt with a renewable energy mandate, so the house never debated it.
Now they have their sights on House Bill 718, an act relating to miscellaneous matters involving the Public Service Board and Department of Public Service.
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Champlain College’s annual Spring Career and Internship Fair on Monday, March 26, will play host to more than 80 area businesses and organizations who strive to hire and develop local talent. The job fair will run from 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. in the Argosy Gymnasium at 262 South Willard St., Burlington. The event is free and open to the public seeking professional career opportunities.
By commingling students with the general public, Champlain’s Career Services office feels it provides a more realistic view of the job market and is also more attractive to area businesses. "It enables our students to be aware that the market is competitive, showing them how professional they have to be to get a job," explains Associate Director of Champlain College Career Services Patricia Boera.
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Contracts for future construction activity in Vermont show decline in December and for the entire year versus 2010. New Hampshire suffered similar results.
VERMONT Future Construction Activity
December 2011 2010 %Change
Nonresidential $12,593,000 $6,079,000 +++
Residential $7,690,000 $13,967,000 -45%
Nonbuilding $25,323,000 $67,535,000 -47%
Total Construction $15,668,000 $17,249,000 -33%
For the Year-to-date on a cumulative basis, the totals are:
Year to Date 2011 2010 %Change
Nonresidential $223,368,000 $308,277,000 -28%
Residential $210,198,000 $241,055,000 -13%
by tim
MSA (NYSE: MSA), ofPittsburgh,today announced it has signed a non-binding letter of intent to sell itsNorth Americaballistic helmet business.The company currently manufactures ballistic helmets at itsNewport, Vermontmanufacturing plant, which employs approximately 40 people.Terms of the deal and the potential purchaser's name are not being disclosed. MSA expects to complete the transaction within the next 45 days.
The potential sale of this business is something the company has been considering for some time, saidJoseph A Bigler,Presidentof MSA North America. "The decision to move in this direction came down to two factors: alignment with MSA's long-term business strategy, and pursuing a course of action that provides our associates who work on our North American ballistic helmet line the best opportunity for future success," Bigler said.
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Bolton Valley officials recently announced that the Vermont Land Trust has signed a contract to purchase the 1,161 acres of terrain that host the Bolton Valley Nordic and backcountry trails. For Bolton Valley free heeling enthusiasts, this means regaining some of the terrain that was off limits this season and will return the area’s Nordic and backcountry trail offering back to its original 100 km of terrain.
The land is in the center of the Chittenden County Uplands Conservation Project (CCUCP) area’an area that has been a focus for forestland and habitat protection for more than 10 years.
For Bolton Valley All-Access season pass holders, it means regaining access to terrain that wasn’t accessible to the public during the 2011-2012 due to a potential private sale.
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by Kevin Kelley, Vermont Business Magazine Target, the retail giant seen as an upper-scale alternative to Wal-Mart, may still be planning to build a 136,500-square-foot store in Williston, but Town Planning Director Ken Belliveau says the chain's chances of constructing such an outlet on the site of the former Williston Driving Range appear ‘slim.’
Vermontbiz.com incorrectly reported last week that Belliveau had said Target would not be coming to Williston. His actual comment in an interview earlier this month was, ‘Target had been wanting to build here, but it looks like it's not going to happen.’
Vermontbiz.com also reported erroneously that the driving range property is owned by JL Davis Realty. It is in fact owned by Al Senecal's Omega Realty.
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US Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced today that USDA is seeking applications for grants to help rural businesses create jobs and spur economic development.
‘This funding is part of the Obama administration’s commitment to using existing federal resources to foster regional innovation, create sustainable jobs and help ensure long-term prosperity,’ Vilsack said. ‘The funding will speed up job creation and new business start-ups and expansions by building regional economic systems in rural areas.
USDA Rural Development plans to award up to $8.6 million through the Rural Community Development Initiative program. Applications are sought for projects that:
· Provide technical assistance to improve the capacity of local organizations to complete successful housing, economic development and community facilities projects;
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by Anne Galloway vtdigger.orgAn amendment that would require CVPS to pay back ratepayers in cash for a 2001 bailout may get a second chance.
Representative Cynthia Browning, D-Arlington, will be proposing the measure when the Department of Public Service omnibus ‘housekeeping bill’ comes out of House Commerce and Economic Development next week. The amendment now has 72 sponsors in the House, according to RepresentativePaul Poirier one of the bill’s lead supporters.
On Wednesday House Speaker Shap Smith determined the provision was ‘not germane’ to the renewable portfolio standard bill, effectively preventing the amendment from coming to a vote on the House floor.
Read the VTDigger.org story.
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by Alan Panebaker vtdigger.org March 23, 2012The show goes on at Vermont Yankee, and not just the power plant.
More than 1,000 people turned up in Brattleboro Thursday to march the 3.5 miles from the town commons to Entergy’s offices. Dozens trespassed on the the company’s property and were arrested.
It was a monumental day for residents of the tri-state area near the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant.
Forty years after the plant opened, its license expired Wednesday, but the plant continued to operate pursuant to a federal court order.
Long-time opponents of nuclear power, like Scott Nielsen from Quaker City, N.H., converged on Brattleboro’s town green to create a hoopla of music, colors and civil disobedience.
Nielsen, 82, donned a sign reading ‘THE 1% OWN ENTERGY CONGRESS FEDERAL COURTS NRC.’ Next to him, Jenny Wright wore a sign reading ‘BUT THEY DON’T OWN US FIGHT LIKE HELL.’
by tim
Champlain College will confer three honorary degrees during its 134th Commencement on Saturday, May 5, celebrating the accomplishments of a Dublin scholar, a Burlington physician, and a Burlington performing arts center founder and director. Some 450 seniors are expected to receive their bachelor and associate degree diplomas during the ceremony at Memorial Auditorium.
Champlain’s Commencement speaker will be Patrick Masterson of Dublin, Ireland, the former president of University College of Dublin and the European University Institute. He will receive an honorary degree of humane letters.
Dr. John ‘Jack’ Heisse, Jr., of Shelburne, is a Champlain College Trustee Emeritus and retired Burlington physician who specialized in otolaryngology and taught at the University of Vermont School of Medicine. He served on the Champlain Board of Trustees from 1970-1980. He will receive an honorary degree of public service.
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by Anne Galloway vtdigger.org March 22, 2012Lawmakers faced a much smaller gap between tax revenues and expenditures on government operations ‘ about $50 million this year, or a half to a third of the amount they’ve had to find in previous years through budget cuts, efficiencies and one-time spending since the advent of the Great Recession.
The reprieve from axe-wielding mode, however, didn’t lighten the workload of the House Appropriations Committee. Two issues have dominated lawmakers’ attention this session: The financial impact of repairing the damage from Tropical Storm Irene to critical state infrastructure, including highways, bridges, the state office complex and the Vermont State Hospital; and finding a way to reserve funds to cover anticipated federal cuts of $12 million to state programs that will begin to take effect in fiscal year 2014.
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From vtdigger.org The Vermont Public Service Board held its first technical hearings Wednesday on a proposed merger of the state’s two largest utilities.
The PSB, the Department of Public Service and intervenors questioned the heads of Green Mountain Power and Central Vermont Public Service on the gritty details of the monumental merger the utilities propose. The two utilities, which make up the lion’s share of the state utility market, would be owned by Canadian utility Gaz Metro, which already owns Green Mountain Power and Vermont Gas Systems.
GMP CEO Mary Powell testifies at a technical hearing on the merger of Green Mountain Power and Central Vermont Public Service. VTD/Alan Panebaker