Current News

The FEMA registration deadline for disaster assistance for individuals and families, called Individual Assistance, is October 31, 2011. This may include housing repair grants or temporary rental assistance as well as reimbursement for personal property losses. The designated counties eligible for Individual Assistance are: Addison, Bennington, Caledonia, Chittenden, Orange, Rutland, Washington, Windham, Lamoille, Franklin, Orleans and Windsor.
Register online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov, by web enabled mobile device at m.fema.gov, or by calling 1-800-621-FEMA (3362). Disaster assistance applicants, who have a speech disability or hearing loss and use TTY, should call 1-800-462-7585 directly; for those who use 711 or Video Relay Service (VRS), call 1-800-621-3362. The only way to be eligible for FEMA assistance is to register with FEMA.

Vtrim Healthy Weight Management is now positioned to take it's science-based weight management program to the broader commercial market. Since raising $650,000 in capital, Vtrim CEO and Managing Director Krista M.C. Conley and her team have positioned Vtrim to be the leading online weight-loss treatment choice for individuals, families, and businesses seeking improved health and easier access to proven expert support.
Based on over 30 years of research within the field of obesity treatment, Vtrim began as a University of Vermont study measuring the effectiveness of online weight loss programs. In January 2011, University of Vermont leadership and Conley signed an exclusive license agreement, opening the door for their academic, college-accredited program to reach the broader public. The new firm has created six management positions in Middlebury and will hire additional personnel in 2012.

The Vermont Community Foundation has announced that its Special and Urgent Needs-Irene Recovery Fund has awarded $35,000 in its first month of grantmaking to seven Vermont nonprofit organizations impacted by Tropical Storm Irene. The grants come two weeks after application guidelines were posted and four weeks after the fund was established to address the short-term needs of nonprofits directly impacted by Irene.
Total contributions received or pledged to the fund exceed $228,000 and include a generous $100,000 donation from TransCanada, the fund’s lead contributor.
The grants, which fund up to $5,000, are available to nonprofits, public agencies, and municipalities that sustained damage from Irene or face significant resource challenges in providing services for those affected by Irene. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis and grant decisions are made within 14 days of application submissions.

The Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) at 10 am on Thursday, October 6, 2011, will close a small section of Route 14 in East Montpelier that was damaged by spring flooding and exacerbated by Tropical Storm Irene. The road is expected to remain closed into November.
Route 14 between its intersection with Route 2 and Northstar Fireworks was restricted to one lane on September 26 due to the roadway beginning to slide into the Winooski River. Engineers originally believed the road could be repaired while maintaining one lane of traffic, but the roadway continues to undermine.
Electronic message boards beginning Wednesday will warn motorists of the coming closure.

Stephen Leffler M.D. has been appointed Chief Medical Officer (CMO) at Fletcher Allen Health Care. He is currently medical director of the Emergency Department and president of the medical staff.

This month, acclaimed musicians Michael Franti and Grace Potter have joined with Green Mountain Coffee to spread the word about fair trade. Fair trade provides a fair price to coffee farmers for their beans, resulting in high-quality coffee and a higher quality of life in coffee-growing communities. Through exclusive live performances on Green Mountain Coffee's Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/GreenMountainCoffee) on October 8, Franti and Potter will share how small choices ‘ like the coffee we drink ‘ can help drive big change.

Vermont’s congressional delegation ‘ Senators Patrick Leahy and Bernie Sanders and Representative Peter Welch ‘ and Governor Peter Shumlin today announced that over $200,000 in Northern Border Regional Commission (NBRC) funds will go to support two economic development projects in Lyndon and Brighton.
Lyndon State College and the Northeastern Vermont Development Association will receive $128,500 to boost manufacturing in the area. The funds will help develop professional resources, create collaboration among Northeast Kingdom manufacturing employers, expand training programs and further collaborative programs between area high schools, career and technical centers and Lyndon State College.
The town of Brighton will receive $78,190 to construct a new 2,100 foot walking path along a section of Island Pond Lake, connecting it to the downtown area. This project resulted from a year-long study aimed at enhancing tourism and recreation in the community.

NBT Bank Regional President Matt Durkee announced the bank’s new Essex Office located at 2 Commonwealth Avenue opened Wednesday, October 5, 2011.
‘We are excited to announce the opening of our newest office in Essex. This is NBT Bank’s third office in Vermont and compliments our other offices in Burlington and Williston,’ Durkee said. ‘Our Essex Office provides us with yet another opportunity to offer residents and businesses in northwestern Vermont access to our unique brand of community banking.’
NBT Bank of Essex features full branch-banking capabilities, including drive-up teller service, coin counting machine, 24-hour ATM and night depository.
NBT Bank provides personal banking, asset management and business services. The independent community bank, based in Norwich, N.Y., has 89 offices in upstate New York and Vermont. NBT Bank’s parent company, NBT Bancorp Inc., had assets of $5.3 billion as of June 30, 2011.
NBT. 10.5.2011

BioTek Instruments, Inc., will highlight their newest microplate instrumentation technologies at BIOTECHNICA 2011, Hall 9, Stand D69 from October 11-13, 2011 at the Hannover Exhibition Grounds, Hannover, Germany.
The exhibition marks the European debut of BioTek's high performance, high value Eonâ ¢ Microplate Spectrophotometer. This monochromator-based absorbance reader provides shaking, temperature control to 65°C, flexible, filter-free 200-999 nm wavelength selection in 1 nm increments, and spectral scanning in 6- to 384-well microplates. An optional cuvette port expands functionality and aids in assay miniaturization to microplates or the 2 µL volumes used with BioTek's Take3â ¢ and new Take3 Trio Micro-Volume Plates.

The Vermont Agency of Transportation (Vtrans) announced the reopening of two (2) major east west routes for two lane traffic today. Bridge # 9 on Route 9 had been restricted to one lane after a second round of inspections found damage that had been hidden by debris. Route 11 in Chester was also reopened to two (2) lane traffic today after being reduced to one lane in late September.
While both Routes are open and traffic is flowing well, Vtrans is asking drivers to be very careful as they drive through towns where the local recovery effort is still underway.
VTrans 10.4.2011

The Vermont Chamber of Commerce announces the highly anticipated 2012 Top Ten Summer and Fall Events. Each year, a panel of independent judges chooses Vermont’s best activities, selected for their diversity, wide appeal, and consistency with Vermont's brand.
Vicky Tebbetts, Vermont Chamber Senior VP, noted, ‘Vermont is known for being a destination in which to relax, reconnect with friends and family, get outdoors, and get back to basics. This year's Vermont Chamber Top Ten Summer and Fall Events feature time-honored traditions as well as contemporary experiences from all regions of the state.’
The Vermont Chamber Top Ten Summer Events take place from April through August 2012, and the Fall Events take place September through October 2012.
The winners in chronological order include:
Top 10 Summer Events:
46th Annual Vermont Maple Festival
St. Albans, April 27 ‘ 29, 9 am ‘ 5 pm with some evening events.

Vermont Secretary of State Jim Condos announces he will conduct a 12 stop tour to discuss Vermont’s public records and open meeting laws with municipal and state employees and citizens who serve on local government boards. The public is invited and encouraged to attend these events.
After a presentation there will be time for Q&A and a general discussion with the audience. This is a great opportunity to address specific issues that you may have questions about, and to discuss the nuances of these laws.
Secretary Condos stated, ‘Open and transparent government is good government! Vermont’s citizens deserve accountability in their government.’