Current News

Dave and Perk Perkins of The Orvis Company were recognized for their achievements by the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership (TRCP) at its third annual Capitol Conservation Dinner, held in Washington, DC.
Orvis Chief Executive Officer Perk Perkins and Orvis Vice Chairman Dave Perkins receiving their Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership's Lifetime Conservation Achievement Awards in Washington, DC.
"Through the TRCP's Capitol Conservation Dinner, the sportsmen's community celebrates the incalculable contributions of our nation's most dedicated conservationists," said Whit Fosburgh, TRCP president and CEO. "Following a trail blazed by President Theodore Roosevelt, the sportsmen honored at this year's event exemplify the uniquely American drive to responsibly manage and enjoy our irreplaceable fish and wildlife resources."

Rising out of the ashes of a barn which was destroyed in a fire on January 12 at Pete’s Greens is an initiative to ensure that funding is available for other Vermont farmers in the future. Recent donations through a variety of fundraisers will provide Pete’s Greens with an opportunity to rebuild the barn as a more efficient building that will better suit the farms needs. However, Pete Johnson, owner of Pete’s Greens, anticipates that within two to three years, the farm will be able to pay the money forward and has plans to create a fund that will support Vermont agricultural businesses.

The Governor of Vermont and the Vermont Department of Labor have annually recognized Vermont based companies that have made outstanding achievements in Workplace Safety and Health starting in 2005. The Governor’s Award on workplace safety is the highest honor given by the State of Vermont to recognize an employer’s commitment to excellence in workplace safety and health. The Governor’s award now has three categories for small, medium and large companies, as well as a special recognition category. The Governor is scheduled to announce recipients of this award during the 7th Annual Workplace Safety Award Ceremony, which will take place on Thursday, May 12, launching the Annual Vermont Workplace Safety Conference in Burlington. Information including official State press releases, nomination forms and other data are now posted on the Vermont Department of Labor’s web page at:

TruexCullins Architecture and Interior Design is pleased to announce that the Heritage Aviation facility at the Burlington International Airport has achieved LEED® Gold Certification from the United States Green Building Council (USGBC).
This major renovation and building addition project for Heritage Aviation started with the complete reconstruction of a vacated 1954 hangar. The original structure was formerly occupied by the Vermont National Guard and has since been repurposed and transformed into a state-of-the-art aviation services facility totaling 75,800 sq.ft.
Aviation is an energy-intensive industry, accounting for 3% of global carbon emissions. The Heritage Aviation facility has taken extraordinary measures to counteract this impact and promote a sustainable model for the industry. Some of the most notable environmental accomplishments of the building include these features:

IBM has renamed its campus located in Essex Junction and Williston, Vermont to the Champlain Valley Technology and Innovation Park.
The new campus name reflects the expanded role of the IBM-owned 725 acre site as a location for both IBM and other technology companies.
The name change corresponds with the completion of the relocation of General Dynamics’ Technology Center from Lakeside Avenue in Burlington, VT to approximately 112,000 square feet of space leased from IBM in Williston. The Technology Center, with approximately 450 employees, is part of the General Dynamics Armament and Technical Products business unit.
IBM also welcomed ASK IntTag, a manufacturer of secure identification cards, to the campus last year. ASK occupies approximately 15,000 square feet of space leased from IBM in Essex and has approximately 40 employees.

The Connecticut River Watershed Council has filed a petition asking the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources to either grant or deny Entergy’s application for a renewed Clean Water Act permit for the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant. The petition seeks to ensure adequate protection for the fish populations of the Connecticut River. The Environmental and Natural Resources Law Clinic at Vermont Law School filed the petition on behalf of the Watershed Council.
Vermont Yankee is operating under an expired, administratively-extended permit that allows it to discharge heated water into the Connecticut River and to draw river water into its cooling water intake structure to cool the plant. Both activities can harm many life stages of fish, particularly American shad and Atlantic salmon.

Champlain College has consolidated eight of its administrative departments under one roof at a new building located at 175 Lakeside Ave. Departments began moving into the new open office space in early February.
The new three-story facility, built by REM Development of Williston, offers 36,000 square-feet of office, meeting and classroom space bringing together employees from the College's Continuing Professional Studies, Human Resources, Campus Planning, Finance, Marketing, CRM and Graduate Admissions, Information Systems and a new Digital Forensics student lab. The Emergent Media Center, currently located at the Champlain Mill in Winooski, is slated to move to Lakeside later this year.

by Anne Galloway vtdigger.org
Fresh from a two-day jaunt to Montreal, Governor Peter Shumlin announced to the press on Wednesday that he hopes to see the construction of a high speed passenger rail line that links Montreal to New York in the near future. In addition, he is looking to solve the state’s long-term energy needs through an enhanced power agreement with Hydro-Quebec and the extension of a natural gas line from Chittenden County to Rutland.

Forest biomass could replace as much as one quarter of the liquid fossil fuel now being used for industrial and commercial heating in the Northeastern United States. That's according to a new report released today by the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies.
But the report also has sharp caveats: The potential for forest biomass varies widely within the region, and forest resources must be carefully managed to protect the other important services and goods they provide. Under the right circumstances, however, the report found that forest biomass can provide a domestic energy resource, create local jobs, and provide incentives to forest owners.

The Vermont Family Business Initiative (VFBI) and the Coaching Center of Vermont have announced a partnership this week to assist Vermont family and privately owned businesses with transition, succession, and financial planning issues. The Coaching Center of Vermont joins Gallagher, Flynn and Company, and hmc2 Agency as current partners of the VFBI. The VFBI works with business owners and their successors to identify challenging transitional issues and develop strategies for successful business transition and strategic growth.

Attorney General William H. Sorrell announced today that his office has charged Williston-based home improvement contractor Donald Bevins with three counts of failing to maintain workers’ compensation insurance and two counts of violating a Vermont Department of Labor Stop Work Order.
According to documents on file with the Court, Bevins failed to secure workers’ compensation for two of his employees performing roof repairs in Richmond, Vermont and another employee performing roof repairs in Essex, Vermont. In addition, Bevins continued to perform home repairs in Essex and Essex Junction Vermont after the Department of Labor ordered him to stop working immediately.
Bevins pled not guilty to all counts and was released pending trial on the condition that he, any company he has an ownership interest in, or anyone working at his direction or request, not perform any home repair.

In a December 20, 2010, article titled ‘America’s Best And Worst Banks,’ Forbes.com ranked NBT Bancorp as the eleventh-best bank in the nation. NBT Bancorp was one of only three institutions from the Northeast to make the top 12.
Forbes ranked the 100 largest banks, thrifts and holding companies on data provided by Charlottesville, Va.-based SNL Financial. Eight measures of financial health were used to gauge asset quality, capital adequacy and profitability. Those measures included: return on average equity; net interest margin; nonperforming loans (NPLs) as a percentage of loans; nonperforming assets as percentage of assets; reserves as a percentage of NPLs; two capital ratios (Tier 1 and risk-based); and leverage ratio. Forbes ranked the financial institutions on each measure and averaged the individual rankings to make its determination.