Current News

Vermont Business Magazine During the spring fish spawning season, the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) wants to remind Vermonters that permitted lake encroachment construction projects and non-chemical aquatic plant control projects on public lakes and ponds are typically not allowed from March 15 to July 1. Examples of projects that are typically not allowed during this period include adding rock or other material to the water for shoreline stabilization (such as riprap or seawalls), boathouse reconstruction, dredging, bottom barriers, diver assisted suction harvesting, or other projects that disturb the lakebed.

by Denise Smith, VCRD Ask anyone how many towns there are in Vermont and you’ll hear a range: 251, 252, maybe 256 depending on whether you count unincorporated towns and gores. What doesn’t change is this crucial fact: nearly all of them rely on the labor of love of volunteers. Neighbors serve on selectboards, planning commissions, development review boards, nonprofit boards, and fire departments and emergency services. At the same time, municipal revenues have remained constrained with competing priorities from increasing healthcare and infrastructure costs, natural disasters, and the impacts of declining grand lists. There is little room in municipal budgets, if any, to hire additional staff to manage the increasingly complex world of grants, compliance requirements, infrastructure financing, housing development, and economic revitalization.

Vermont Business Magazine The restoration of wild turkeys in Vermont is one of the Fish and Wildlife Department’s most notable wildlife restoration efforts.  It began on February 28, 1969, when wild turkeys were live-trapped by the department’s former turkey biologist William Drake in southwestern New York and stocked in Pawlet, Vermont. Loss of habitat through extensive forest clearing and unregulated subsistence harvest of wild turkeys led to their demise by the late 1800’s.  For decades, Vermonters did not see wild turkeys or hear the gobble of a tom on early spring mornings.

Vermont Business Magazine NutriHarvest, a USDA Rural Development BioPreferred Program Champion, is highlighting field results demonstrating strong crop performance while helping reduce excess nutrients left in the soil late in the growing season, supporting water protection goals, with fertilizers produced through resource recovery technology. Excess nitrogen and phosphorus losses from farmland can fuel harmful algal blooms and low oxygen waters, and state and federal agencies have set nutrient reduction targets in sensitive watersheds nationwide, such as Lake Champlain, the Chesapeake Bay, the Great Lakes, and Clear Lake. NOAA reports the Northern Gulf hypoxic zone averages about 4,755 square miles over five years.

Vermont Business Magazine The Working Lands Enterprise Board (WLEB) announces 34 awards totaling $1,047,320 to Vermont businesses and organizations in 2026. A key element to the Working Lands impact is the programs' ability to flexibly respond to businesses most pressing needs. In fiscal year 2026, demand for grants far exceeded the available $1 million in funds. Across these three grants, 169 applications were received totaling $6,098,779 in requests. This significant demand meant that many worthy projects were not funded.

Vermont Business Magazine Montpelier Performing Arts Hub (The Hub) today announced a transformative $50,000 investment from Union Mutual Insurance Company that unlocks an additional $50,000 from the Ellison Foundation of Seattle, Washington—bringing the organization within $100,000 of owning 35 College Street, the historic Gary Library, outright. This milestone marks a critical turning point in The Hub’s campaign to secure and renovate the former library into a state-of-the-art performing arts center serving Central Vermont in Vermont’s Capitol City. Union Mutual’s leadership gift not only accelerates the organization’s path to ownership but also signals strong local business confidence in a project poised to become a major economic and cultural driver for downtown Montpelier.

Vermont Business Magazine The 31st Annual Penguin Plunge, presented by Community Bank, was held on Saturday, March 14th at the Burlington Waterfront. Over 1,100 people fundraised and plunged into the frigid waters of Lake Champlain to show their support for Special Olympics athletes in Vermont. The Penguin Plunge is the largest fundraising event for Special Olympics Vermont, and this year, over $585,000 was raised to support sports training and competition opportunities across local and school programs, free health screenings, and leadership opportunities for children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Vermont.

Vermont Business Magazine The Attorney General’s Office today announced that Richard Memoli, 69, of Vergennes, Vermont, was arraigned on two counts of felony human trafficking, three counts of felony aggravated sexual assault, one count of felony first degree aggravated domestic assault, one count of felony cocaine possession, three counts of misdemeanor voyeurism, two counts of misdemeanor prostitution, and one count of misdemeanor simple assault. The charges brought against Memoli are the result of a criminal investigation conducted by the Vergennes Police Department.

Vermont Business Magazine Burlington Electric Department (BED) announced a five-year renewal of a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with Vermont Wind’s Sheffield Wind Farm. The PPA represents both continued support of Burlington’s energy needs with clean, renewable generation and BED’s commitment to in-state and New England renewable resources. The Vermont Wind Sheffield facility is a 40-megawatt, 16-turbine wind farm in northeastern Vermont. BED’s renewal of this wind power PPA will continue to ensure delivery of 16 megawatts of Vermont-produced electricity to BED. BED’s current contract with Vermont Wind for electricity from the Sheffield Wind Farm expires on October 18, 2026, with the new renewal beginning immediately thereafter. The renewal was authorized by the Burlington Electric Commission on July 23, 2025.

Vermont Business Magazine The Central Vermont Economic Development Corporation (CVEDC) has announced that Fred Kenney, who has 30 years of economic development experience, has been brought on to lead the organization as Interim Executive Director during a transition period. Fred recently retired after serving as Executive Director of the Addison County Economic Development Corporation for eight years. Previously, he served as Executive Director of the Vermont Economic Progress Council for 15 years, and before that on Senator Patrick Leahy’s staff for 13 years. 

Vermont Business Magazine Associated General Contractors of Vermont (AGC/VT) Executive Vice President Richard Wobby was presented with the Central Vermont Chamber of Commerce’s 2026 Citizen of the Year during the Chamber’s annual St. Patrick’s Day celebration on Tuesday. The award was presented by Jeannette Kingsbury, president of the Central Vermont Chamber of Commerce, at the Elks lODGE in Barre. Wobby was recognized not only for his decades of leadership in Vermont’s construction industry, but for his extensive record of community service, and the energy and heart he brings to it.

Vermont Business Magazine Saba Marine, Lake Champlain’s leading full-service powerboat dealership, will host its third annual Saba Marine Boat Show at its Colchester showroom. The three-day event marks the unofficial start of boating season for Lake Champlain and lakes across Vermont. The show will feature Vermont’s largest selection of new, pre-owned, and brokerage boats, giving attendees the opportunity to compare layouts side by side and speak with the sales team about inventory, financing options, and preparing for the upcoming boating season.