Current News

The Vermont Agency of Transportation (VTrans) on Monday, June 21, will begin work to improve the Exit 15 northbound off ramp along Interstate 89 in Winooski. The construction is expected to last into the fall, and will affect traffic seeking to exit the Interstate as well as traffic along Route 15. Once construction begins, motorists are encouraged to leave additional time to reach their destination.
Currently, the northbound Exit 15 off ramp has two dedicated left turn lanes heading west toward downtown Winooski along Route 15, and one dedicated turn lane heading east along Route 15 towards St. Michaels College. At the completion of the project, there will be one left turn lane and two right turn lanes onto Route 15.

Aiming to use lawsuits to fight pollution and protect workers, Vermont Law School’s US-China Partnership for Environmental Law has received a $1.5 million federal grant to establish China's first public interest environmental law firm and expand a university-based legal clinic.
China’s rapid industrialization and urbanization have caused severe environmental degradation, including greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to global warming worldwide and hundreds of thousands of deaths a year in China due to exposure to pollution. The crisis has prompted China’s leaders to seek new ways to allow steady growth, while protecting the air, land, water and public health. That’s where VLS’s U.S.-China Partnership comes in, providing training, expertise and aid intended to help China enforce environmental laws and regulations that have been widely ignored.

Citizens Bank has announced it has made a $10,000 donation to the Paramount Theatre in Rutland to support its 2010 season.
“We are just delighted that Citizens Bank is generously supporting our upcoming 2010 season,” said Bruce Bouchard, executive director of the Paramount Theatre. “We appreciate Citizens Bank’s partnership and commitment, and we are grateful to the entire team at Citizens Bank, who have been fundamentally important in the building of a new era at the Paramount.”
Citizens Bank will help sponsor the remainder of the Paramount Theatre’s 2010 season featuring the following shows: Guys & Dolls, Electric Hot Tuna, Brandi Carlisle, Tower of Power, Garbo and Me, Menopause the Musical, Robert Randolph and the Family Band, Taylor Hicks, John Hiatt Solo, Death of a Salesman, Benjamin Moser Pianist, Rhythm of the Dance, Victor Wooten, Ron White, Ani DiFranco, Spencer’s Theatre of Illusion, and Garrison Keillor Christmas.

Vermont officials gave in after refusing to leave the $250 federal rebates for prescription drug costs to seniors. Much of the reason they changed their plan was because collecting $250 checks from people who receive them in the mail would have been complicated. Senator Patrick Leahy and Senator Bernie Sanders applauded the state's decision to make this change.
The rebate checks are intended to provide fiscal relief to seniors, not states, said Secretary Sebelius in a letter yesterday to Governor Douglas. Seniors who enter the donut hole have serious illnesses, take more medication, and need additional financial help. They have extremely high out-of-pocket costs; for example, they must personally spend at least $2,830 to qualify for rebate checks in 2010.

Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) today urged the Senate to repeal $35 billion in oil and gas industry tax breaks. In a letter to colleagues, Sanders made the case for his amendment to a tax bill now before the Senate. The same loopholes were targeted for elimination by President Obama in his proposed budget for next year.
“Over the last decade, the five largest oil companies (Exxon Mobil, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, BP and Shell) made more than $750 billion in profits. These profitable companies simply don't deserve tax relief,” Sanders said in a letter to other senators. “With a record-breaking $13 trillion national debt and an unsustainable federal deficit, the last thing we should be doing is giving tax breaks to oil and gas companies that have been making enormous profits.”

The Vermont Energy Investment Corporation (VEIC) and American Municipal Power, Inc. (AMP) have signed a contract for VEIC to provide a wide range of energy-efficiency and implementation services for the municipal electric utility members of the Columbus, Ohio-based nonprofit wholesale power supplier. AMP s 128 publicly-owned municipal electric system members serve more than 570,000 customers in six states Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Virginia, Kentucky and West Virginia.
The goal of the new venture, known as the Efficiency Smart Power Plant, is to encourage residential, business and industrial customers to adopt cost-effective energy efficiency services that provide reliable and verifiable cost savings. In addition to lowering customers energy bills through efficiency, the Efficiency Smart Power Plant will stimulate local economies, create green jobs, provide technical resources for AMP s member utilities and establish a platform for sustainable growth.

Vermont personal income tax withholding continues to under perform, leading to general caution as the end of the fiscal year nears on June 30. However, Secretary of Administration Neale F Lunderville said it appears that state tax revenues will be on target for the first time in two years. Lunderville released the May 2010 General Fund Revenues today. May is the 11th month of fiscal year (FY) 2010. General Fund revenues totaled $51.70 million for May 2010. They were -$5.54 million or -9.67 percent below the $57.24 million consensus revenue forecast for the month. These May results reduced the year to date General Fund performance of $934.98 million to +$1.97 million, or +0.21 percent ahead of target.

The Brattleboro Retreat took home seven Lamplighter Awards from the New England Society for Healthcare Communications’ (NESHCO) 2010 Annual Conference held in Stowe, VT, May 24-26.
The Retreat was honored with the Gold Award in the category of “Marketing/Total Effort: Under $50,000 Total Budget,” for its campaign promoting mental health and addiction services for children and adolescents. The Retreat also received an Award of Excellence in the same category for its overall marketing campaign to promote the hospital’s innovative new treatment program for Uniformed Service Professionals (police, fire, military, etc.).
In the category of “Direct Mail Publications” the Retreat received a Silver Award for its series of direct mail postcards targeting clinicians and referral sources in southern New England.

Pine State Trading Co, and the Specialty Coffee Business Unit of Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc (NASDAQ: GMCR), announced today that the companies have entered into an asset purchase agreement through which GMCR will transition direct customer support in its northeast region, including responsibility for sales representation, order management, delivery and equipment service, to Pine State Trading. The transaction is expected to close as of September 13, 2010. Terms of the agreement, which are not material to GMCR, were not disclosed.
Since we first began our wholesale business, GMCR has maintained a direct store distribution model in the northeast region of the United States

Governor Jim Douglas today kicked off a new program to provide local businesses and organizations with the opportunity to become Information Ambassadors through the Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing (VDTM). The Governor was joined by Tourism officials and businesses at the Okemo Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce to inaugurate this new public-private partnership.
This program is a win-win for both businesses and travelers in Vermont, said Governor Douglas. Through the Information Ambassador program, travelers can easily find information, maps and facilities by locating the new blue INFO signs. Businesses and organizations that participate in the program will benefit from more visitors stopping by.

The City of Burlington announced today the release of Jobs and People IV, a comprehensive analysis of the Burlington area economy and strategic plan for maintaining and enhancing the city s economic vitality.
Jobs and People IV is a timely analysis for Burlington to maintain and enhance its economic vitality, said Mayor Kiss. Following Burlington s recognition by Kiplinger s as one of the nation s top ten cities for the next decade, we should look to build on our success and address our challenges. Jobs and People IV provides a roadmap for promoting sustainable economic growth now and into the future.
Jobs and People IV updates the economic and demographic data on Burlington s local and regional economy presented in Jobs and People III (published in July 1994).
Jobs & People IV:

Citing safety concerns caused by the reconstruction of the adjacent Champlain Bridge, Vermont state officials have announced the immediate closure of the Chimney Point State Historic Site in Addison.
Commissioner of Economic, Housing and Community Development Tayt Brooks said the combination of construction activity and limited road access to the area led to the decision to close the site for the season.
The Chimney Point site and the construction area share a single road, and are literally right next to each other, Brooks said. We had hoped to keep the site open, but in practical terms we can t place the public at risk by having them in such close proximity to a working construction area.
The Champlain Bridge, which was built to span Lake Champlain and connect Vermont and New York in 1929, was closed due to safety concerns in October 2009 and was demolished using explosives on December 28, 2009.