Current News

The foliage change appeared to slow to a near standstill during the misty, atmospheric weather of this past weekend. But with a frosty night or two before the coming weekend and sunny weather forecast through Monday, near-peak to full color change is expected along the spine of the Green Mountains and will begin to emerge in the mountain valleys.
Ray Toolan, who reports from Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom, observes a variety of foliage in the area. ‘Not a great deal of change from last week, most likely due to the wet weather. Still, we have a lot of variation, with the best colors in the higher elevations and around swamps and wetlands. In many places mid-slope forests are still in early stages while other areas are at or just past peak. Pretty much any of the paved roads in Lamoille and Orleans counties are showing nice color,’ Toolan says.

McGraw-Hill Construction today reported on August contracts for future construction in the state of Vermont. Contracts showed an increase of 68 percent over August 2010, but down 14 percent for the year to date. Meanwhile, New Hampshrie was down 27 percent for the month and 33 percent for the year. In both cases, commercial construction continued to be a drag on the industry. Residential building also struggled in Vermont, while all sectors in New Hampshire were down. These numbers do not reflect any Tropical Storm Irene data.
VERMONT

NEW HAMPSHIRE

An authority on the construction market, the firm produces Dodge Reports and Sweets Catalog Files. According to the Research and Analytics unit of McGraw-Hill Construction.
New York, New York -- McGraw-Hill

With school back in session and farmers throughout the state struggling to get back on their feet after Tropical Storm Irene, Rep. Peter Welch today introduced legislation to allow Vermont to use federal funds to buy local produce for schools.
Vermont schools currently receive produce from a regional distribution center in Rhode Island under the Department of Defense (DOD) Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program. The program ‘ a joint partnership between the DOD and Department of Agriculture ‘ was created in 1994 and uses the DOD's existing food distribution network.
Welch's Fresh and Local School Foods Act would create a three-state pilot program that would allow participants to opt-out of the DOD program and spend those funds instead on local fruits and vegetables.

Commissioner Elizabeth Miller has announced that the newly revised Residential Building Energy Code is in effect as of October 1, 2011. Miller states, ‘As new building construction and renovations in existing buildings take place in Vermont, the new Residential Building Energy Codes will help ensure we are continuing to move to more efficient and sustainable homes. Building new homes to the 2011 Residential Energy Code will yield increased energy savings of 10-20% over the previous Energy Code. This means less energy consumption, fewer emissions, and lower energy bills for Vermonters.’ Commissioner Miller expects a similar, if not greater, impact with the new Commercial Energy Code which is on track to take effect in early January 2012.

Vermont's mortgage foreclosure and delinquency rates remained unchanged in August, but the state slipped one spot to 10 as Virginia's mortgage situation improved. The August Mortgage Monitor report released by Lender Processing Services, Inc. (NYSE: LPS) shows that foreclosure starts were up in August by nearly 20 percent compared to July 2011 results, with first-time foreclosure starts reaching 2011 highs.
Overall, foreclosure starts remained down more than 12 percent from this time last year. At the same time, of the approximately 4 million loans that are either 90 or more days delinquent or in foreclosure, the number in the 90 or more days category has shrunk to levels not seen since 2008. The August data also showed that, of loans that were current six months prior, 1.4 percent had become seriously delinquent, a rate of less than half of the peak of 2.9 percent in 2009.

US Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) Monday announced they now have 61 Senate cosponsors of their latest ‘Guard Empowerment’ effort, the National Guard Empowerment and State-National Defense Integration Act of 2011 (S.1025), which Leahy and Graham introduced in May.

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc., (NASDAQ: GMCR), a leader in specialty coffee and coffeemakers, today announced it has completed the sale of all outstanding shares of Van Houtte USA Holdings, Inc., also known as the Van Houtte U.S. Coffee Service business or "Filterfresh" business to ARAMARK Refreshment Services, LLC (ARAMARK) for an aggregate cash purchase price of approximately $145 million, subject to adjustment.
Initially announced on August 29, 2011, the transaction was completed after all of the closing conditions were satisfied, including the receipt of the required regulatory approval in the United States. The Purchase Agreement contains customary representations, warranties and covenants and, subject to certain limitations, each party has agreed to indemnify the other for breaches of said representations, warranties and covenants and other specified matters.

Lieutenant Governor Phil Scott accepted a $25,000 donation from Aubuchon Hardware Monday to support mobile home owners affected by Tropical Storm Irene.
Deputy Housing Commissioner Jennifer Hollar and Lt. Gov. Phil Scott accept the donation
from Aubuchon President and CEO Marcus Moran, Jr.
Marcus Moran, Jr., Aubuchon President and CEO, presented the donation. The funds will support a unique public-private partnership, organized by Lt. Governor Scott and Lawrence Miller, Secretary of Commerce and Community Development, which will drastically lower costs of mobile home removal and disposal for many Vermont homeowners.
Mobile homes are more easily damaged by water and can be more difficult to repair, so for many owners of mobile homes impacted by the flood, the best option is literally to dispose of their home and start over. But that can be a very expensive undertaking for low-income families.

As recovery efforts continue to move forward, the VT Irene Flood Relief Fund has reviewed nearly 200 grant applications from many small businesses showing more than $18 million in damages from Tropical Storm Irene. To date, the advisory committee has made first round grant awards to businesses from Wilmington to Waterbury; 54 applicants have received more than $107,000 out of the nearly $250,000 that has been generously pledged by individuals and organizations . Additional pledges continue to come in, but much more effort is required in order to meet the needs of the applicants seeking assistance.

The Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) today opened to public travel the 11-mile stretch of Route 100 that runs through Pittsfield. This segment of Route 100, which runs from the junction of Route 107 in Stockbridge to the intersection of Route 4 in Killington, received heavy damage from Tropical Storm Irene, and has been closed since the storm struck on August 28.
Reopening Route 100 through Pittsfield represents a major milestone because it allows the free flow of traffic without detours or major impediments for the entire 135-mile stretch of Route 100 between Ludlow and Newport just in time for the height of foliage season.
‘The Pittsfield area got hit very hard by the storm and received considerable damage,’ said VTrans Secretary Brian Searles. ‘While Route 100 in this area is now open and traffic is flowing well, we ask that everyone be careful as they drive through town and respect the local recovery effort that is still underway.’

US Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Maj. Gen. Michael Dubie, the Vermont National Guard commander, today marked the completion of one of the largest solar installations in Vermont and one of the largest solar projects on any National Guard base in the country.
The chairman of the Senate Green Jobs Subcommittee, Sanders helped secure $8.5 million to make the base here one of the greenest in the United States and a model for other guard installations around the country. ‘I am very appreciative and proud of what General Dubie and the Vermont National Guard have accomplished in constructing this solar project. The U.S. military is the largest consumer of energy in the world, and the Vermont National Guard is now playing a significant role in becoming a model for the Department of Defense as it moves toward energy efficiency and sustainable energy,’ Sanders said.

A Vermont ski resort has agreed to pay $80,000 for wetlands violations to settle claims by the US Environmental Protection Agency that it violated the federal Clean Water Act when it filled in just over two acres of wetlands and streams and failed to obtain proper permits from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
According to EPA, a construction company working for Jay Peak Resort, Inc. placed dirt, sand and rocks into numerous wetlands and streams, affecting just over two acres of wetlands and streams during construction of its golf course between 2004 and 2006 without a required permit.
This case was brought to the attention of EPA by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the spring of 2008. Since then, the Corps and EPA have worked together in pursuing this case.