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Burlington Mayor Bob Kiss has taken issue with several aspects of the audit of Burlington Telecom. The audit offered a scathing rebuke of the city's administration and the financials of the ailing municipal cable, voice, Internet company. The mayor said Friday the city was continuing to review the Larkin Report, anticipating a further response this week.
The report was initiated by the Vermont Public Service Department in the Fall of 2009 and released December 10, 2010 (STORY). So far, Kiss said the city has identified several gaps and omissions in the report, including but not limited to:
· Larkin staff never contacted or interviewed City officials or the City’s consultant Dorman & Fawcett;
· Larkin never interviewed the City’s independent auditors, Sullivan, Powers & Co. (’SPC’);
· Larkin’s analysis fails to include recent developments with CitiCapital; and

-Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc. (NASDAQ: GMCR), a leader in specialty coffee and coffeemakers, has announced that it has successfully completed its acquisition of LJVH Holdings Inc. (’Van Houtte’) for an aggregate cash purchase price of CAD$915 million, or USD$905 million, subject to adjustment for final exchange rate and future adjustment based on Van Houtte’s working capital, net indebtedness and pre-closing taxes as of immediately prior to the acquisition’s closing.
‘We are confident that Van Houtte, with its well known portfolio of brands and strong management team, will help drive GMCR’s future success in Canada and throughout North America.’

Kelly Brush Foundation year-end grants for spinal cord injury prevention and enriching the lives of those with spinal cord injuries totaled $80,000, Kelly Brush Foundation Executive Director Joyce Wallace announced.
The foundation granted $35,000 in Ski Racing Safety Grants to ski clubs and race teams across the country for race course safety equipment and $45,000 was awarded in Kelly Brush Inspiration Grants for adaptive athletic equipment.
"Ski clubs and race teams in Montana, Colorado, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Maine, New Hampshire, New York and Vermont will benefit from grants awarded by the Kelly Brush Foundation," Wallace said. "The grants enable the purchase of safety netting, lift tower padding and other safety equipment designed to enhance on-hill race course safety for ski racers of all ages and abilities."

Secretary of Administration Neale F Lunderville released the November 2010 General Fund Revenues today. November is the fifth month of fiscal year (FY) 2011. General Fund revenues totaled $73.59 million for November 2010, and were +$2.76 million or +3.90% above the $70.83 million consensus revenue forecast for the month. Year-to-date General Fund performance of $447.52 million was +$16.47 million, or +3.82% ahead of year to date target of $431.05 million.
The monthly targets reflect the revised Fiscal Year 2011 Consensus Revenue Forecast approved by the Emergency Board at their July 14, 2010 meeting. Statutorily, the State is required to revise the Consensus Revenue Forecast two times per year, in January and July; the Emergency Board may schedule interim revisions if deemed necessary. The next Emergency Board meeting will be scheduled for January 2011.

The Vermont Department of Labor announced today the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for November 2010 was 5.7 percent for the second consecutive month. Compared to a year ago, the November unemployment rate is lower by a full percentage point. Since the start of the calendar year, the Vermont seasonally adjusted unemployment rate has followed a downward trend. In January it was 6.7 percent, followed by February and March at 6.6 percent. Then the next three months each saw declines of two tenths of percent to put the state rate at 6.0 percent in June, where it stayed for three consecutive months until the September announcement of 5.8 percent. October continued the downward trend with a one tenth of a percent decline in the statewide unemployment rate which is where we remain according to this recent data.

The US Census Bureau today released the results of the 2009 American Community Survey (ACS), one of a series of data products the Census Bureau is releasing in the coming months that provides information on the nation's population. Today's release is based on survey responses collected over the course of the 2009 calendar year and provides data about the nation's socioeconomic, housing and demographic characteristics. The first set of 2010 Census data, including the nation's population and congressional apportionment figures for the states, will be released by the end of 2010, as required by law.

Keurig, Incorporated, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc., has introduced an enhanced corporate identity through its new packaging and renewed emphasis on its "Choose. Brew. Enjoy." tagline. It said in a statement that the refreshed brand messaging allows Keurig to better communicate its brand personality while remaining true to its brand loyalists.
Based on comprehensive market and consumer research, Keurig’s new visual identity was created to strengthen brand messaging and positioning, enhance shelf prominence, and establish consistency across various distribution channels. The updated branding includes engaging language, color scheme and design elements to communicate to consumers that Keurig has redefined brewing by combining state-of-the-art brewing technology with their patented K-Cup portion pack.

Vermont Electric Cooperative is required to take an emergency outage on Friday, December 17th between the early morning hours of 2 a.m. ‘ 5 a.m. The outage is necessary to repair damaged equipment on Central Vermont Public Service’s transmission line which feeds two of VEC’s substations. The damaged equipment is a result of the December 1st wind storm. Co-op members in the towns of Bolton, Cambridge, Essex, Jericho, Richmond, Underhill and Westford will be affected by this outage. As always, unforeseen circumstances could occur that may extend the duration of the outage beyond the 3 hour window. Anyone with questions or concerns can call VEC’s outage number at 1-800-832-2667 or check our website for updates at www.vermontelectric.coop/outage.
Source: VEC. 12.16.2010

Yesterday, the Vermont Superior Court, Washington Unit found Donald Bevins, a Williston-based home improvement contractor, in ‘willful contempt’ of Court orders containing ‘specific provisions intended to protect the public from home improvement fraud and provide for restitution to victims.’ Under the terms of the Order, Bevins is prohibited from entering into any new contracts for home repair, from setting foot on any work site where roofing work is underway, and is completely barred from working as a roofing contractor. The ban applies to Bevins individually as well as Twin City Roofing, Inc. and any other corporations Bevins represents. The Court Order notes, ‘at the hearing today, the court advised Mr. Bevins that failure to comply with this order is likely to result in sanctions from the court, including incarceration (jail).’

Senators Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) today said Vermont would be in line for $10.8 million of a $5 billion appropriation for home heating assistance included in a spending bill that Senate Republicans are trying to block.
One of the last must-do measures on the agenda before Congress adjourns for the year, the appropriations bill would prevent a 40 percent cut in the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). Vermont’s $10.8 million share would help keep senior citizens on fixed incomes, families with children and the disabled warm this winter.
The critical funding for Vermont is in danger, however, because some Republicans have mounted a filibuster in the Senate and even threatened to require the entire 1,924-page bill to be read aloud on the Senate floor.

Business ownership specialist arrives; helps aspiring entrepreneurs in local area

Manchester, VT (Grassroots Newswire) ‘ Those who want to start a business now have a local contact. FranNet, who matches aspiring entrepreneurs to franchise businesses, has arrived in Vermont to help prospective business owners in the local area find the key to success.

According to Keld Alstrup, owner of the new FranNet location, there are many benefits to owning a business, but it needs to be the right fit for that particular individual.

"There are many people out there with an entrepreneurial spirit who are unsure what to do with it ‘ that's where FranNet can help. There is a match-making process of sorts involved in finding the right business. The business needs to fall in line with the person's overall goals, personality and professional skill set," Alstrup stated.

Local business owners open third Irving location since October

North Springfield, VT’ Irving Oil continues to grow in Vermont with the announcement of a new location at 16 Route 106 in North Springfield. The North Springfield Smart Shop is the third Irving location opened by Midway Oil in the past three months.

‘As a family-owned company it was important for us to partner with someone with a strong reputation and a commitment to the community,’ said Frank Trombetta of Midway Oil. ‘Irving Oil is exactly that type of company. We are excited to help grow the Irving brand in the state of Vermont.’

The North Springfield Smart Shop offers complete convenience store service, competitive prices, Green Mountain Coffee and ample parking. The location will participate in Irving's gas savings program with Shaw's Supermarkets.