Current News

The Vermont Chamber of Commerce announced Tuesday that it has teamed up with the Vermont Tourism Network (VTN) to provide additional tourism resources and expand marketing efforts. This partnership will enable the Vermont Chamber of Commerce to offer additional marketing opportunities to its members who rely on the tourism industry.
VTN s primary purpose is to promote packaged group tour travel to the Green Mountain State, mainly through motorcoach tours to its member businesses.
Despite recent reports of declining state revenues, dollars generated by the tourism industry have remained steady in Vermont, suggesting marketing efforts drawing tourists to the Green Mountain State are working. The Vermont Chamber of Commerce and VTN have powered up their efforts to meet current marketing challenges to continue to support a successful tourism industry in Vermont.

With the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding an additional $50 million for loans and $24 million for technical assistance, the U.S. Small Business Administration is expanding its Microloan program and increasing access to capital for small businesses across the country. The approved new microlenders are: Vermont Community Loan Fund, Inc. of Montpelier, Vt.; Neighborhood Development Center of Saint Paul, Minn.; Cen-Tex Certified Development Corp. of Austin, Texas; The Emperor Organization of Tallahassee, Fla.; Staunton Creative Community Fund, Inc. of Staunton, Va.; Lane MicroBusiness (d.b.a. Dev) of Eugene, Ohio; FINANTA (American Street Financial Ser.) of Philadelphia, Pa; and Accion USA, Inc. of New York, N.Y.
The program is shifting to funding provided under the Recovery Act now that it has exhausted the regular FY 2009 appropriations for $20 million in loans and $20 million in technical assistance.

For the Week of 08/015/2009. There were 854 new regular benefit claims for Unemployment Insurance last week, an increase of 18 from the week before. Altogether 12,180 new and continuing claims were filed, 624 fewer than a week ago and 5,338 more than a year earlier. The Department also processed 4,206 First Tier claims for benefits under Emergency Unemployment Compensation, 2008 (EUC08), 206 more than a week ago. In addition, there were 804 Second Tier claims for benefits processed under the EUC08 program, which is a decrease of 9 from the week before. The Unemployment Weekly Report can be found at: http://www.vtlmi.info/. Previously released Unemployment Weekly Reports and other UI reports can be found at: http://www.vtlmi.info/lmipub.htm#uc

The New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) today announced that, as part of a large-scale project to address the condition of the Lake Champlain Bridge (also known as the Crown Point Bridge), an origin and destination survey will be conducted. The bridge spans Lake Champlain between Crown Point, New York and Chimney Point, Vermont.
The survey is being performed to obtain a better understanding of users of the bridge and where they travel. It will be completed by consultants assigned to the project. Motorists waiting at the red light to cross the bridge will be surveyed.
Surveyors will ask questions related to the origin and destination of the motorist’s trip and the purpose and frequency of their trip. The information obtained during the survey will assist the agencies involved in the project in developing project alternatives and potential alternate routes during construction.

The Vermont Arts Council is pleased to announce the recipients of three competitive grant programs. Seventy-seven awards totaling $245,165 have been awarded for Arts Learning, Community Arts and Creation projects. This announcement comes on the heels of news earlier this month that 42 Vermont arts organizations were awarded funding totaling $606,000 from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. While the stimulus money was designated for job retention in the non-profit arts sector, these grants will fund individual artists, schools and community arts projects.

A former executive with the U.S. Department of Defense’s contracting office will be taking over the state program that assists Vermont businesses with obtaining government contracts. The Agency of Commerce and Community Development announced that William Masterson of South Burlington is the new Director of the Vermont Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC).
“We are very pleased to welcome Bill to our team,” said Commerce and Community Development Secretary Kevin Dorn, whose agency includes the Department of Economic Housing and Community Development, where the PTAC is located.
“His experience as the contract manager for the DOD’s Defense Logistics Agency in Burlington makes him an ideal candidate to lead the PTAC, and continue its award-winning work helping Vermont firms get access to government contracts,” Dorn said.

The "aging of America" extends far beyond urban boundaries; 25 percent of all U.S. "elders" live in rural communities, a panel recently told the Vermont Farm Health Task Force at its quarterly meeting. Those who actively continue to farm exhibit the effects of an exceptionally vigorous life combined with a lack of relevant health care opportunities and access.
Seventy percent of Vermont farmers are older than age 45. Often there is no next generation waiting to take over the tractor seat. Many older farmers suffer from osteoarthritis; they tend to have a higher percentage of work-related disabilities than the general population, caused by repetitive motion and the dangers inherent to farming. Fifty percent of older farmers lack power take off protection shields, roll over protection systems (ROPS) on their tractors, stated Karen Burke, M.D., Fletcher Allen Medical Center (FAMC), Family Medicine Physician/Geriatrics.

An innovative new maple spout developed by the University of Vermont’s Proctor Maple Research Center with funding secured by Senator Patrick Leahy will have a dramatic impact on maple syrup production and boost job creation and economic development in the state, the senator announced at a press conference today. The new spout, which already has a million advance orders, will increase sap yields by 50 to 90 percent per tree, Senator Leahy said.
The announcement was made at Progressive Plastics in Williamstown, which began commercial production of the device, called a check valve spout, the day of the press conference. Progressive Plastics is manufacturing the spout for Leader Evaporating Company of Swanton, which licensed the technology from UVM and will market and sell it.

delSECUR CORPORATION, a Nevada corporation, (Pink Sheets: DLSC) announced today that its Board of Directors has accepted the majority Consent vote of over 60% of its shareholders in favour of the agreement to purchase the Intellectual Property Assets of delSECUR CORPORATION which was announced on August 4(th). The consideration for such purchase is in the form of a 49% interest in the shares of common stock of Q Tech Systems, Inc., an Ontario, Canada, corporation.

Secretary of Administration Neale F. Lunderville has released General Fund revenue results for the month of July, the first month of Fiscal Year 2010. General Fund revenues totaled $83.54 million for July 2009, +$0.62 million or +0.75% above the $82.91 million consensus revenue forecast for the month and year-to-date.
“While the General Fund finished above target for the first month of the new fiscal year (FY 2010), this was achieved only after the FY 2010 target was reduced on July 16th,” said Secretary Lunderville. “The pattern of quarterly reductions that we saw throughout FY 2009 has continued into the new fiscal year,” said Lunderville.

A foreclosed apartment building will be refurbished and two blighted downtown buildings razed for redevelopment after the City of Barre was awarded a nearly $1.8 million grant by the Douglas Administration. In a ceremony at City Hall Park, Deputy Commerce and Community Development Secretary Jim Saudade announced the $1,769,400 Neighborhood Stabilization Program grant, funded by the federal government in response to the mortgage foreclosure crisis that gripped the country last year.
“This money will help Barre revitalize its downtown, as well as preserve much-needed affordable housing,” Saudade said. “And it will help the economy in the short-term as well by creating jobs for local contractors and others.”
The Neighborhood Stabilization Program grant will be used for three projects:
1) $994,400 will be sub-granted to Central Vermont Community Land Trust who will buy the foreclosed apartment building at 8-10 Laurel St. and completely rehabilitate it;

Sam Palmisano of Pulcinella’s in South Burlington took home the title of the Top Chef of the Champlain Valley for the second year in a row. Palmisano competed against Chef Robert Barral of Café Provence and JJ Vezina of the Windjammer Restaurant and Upper Deck Pub in an Iron Chef competition using all fresh Vermont produce, cheese and proteins donated by area farmers. The secret ingredient was announced to the chefs and the audience at the start of the competition and each chef had 50 minutes to create an appetizer and entrée highlighting this year’s secret ingredient, honey. Chef Palmisano’s winning dish was a honeyed lamb tartare on mesclun greens in a ring of lightly roasted green pepper and for his entrée offered up a sweet and savory crusted lamb on wilted greens and gnocchi with honey sauce.