Current News

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Vermont Business Magazine The Tinkering Turtle will close its doors on December 31, 2024. After a fun year of partnership with Vermont Teddy and presence up the hill, ECHO will refocus its retail energy at ECHO's Museum Toy & Gift Store at 1 College Street. Over the past year, they have connected with the community to bring imaginative toys and joy to families. Thousands of people came through the doors to find a unique selection of toys and bears. Starting in January 2025, ECHO will have a presence at Vermont Flannel and Vermont Teddy Bear’s new store — located at 72 Church Street — with curated STEM toys. Proceeds will continue to support science education and ECHO, Vermont’s science and nature museum. The new store represents Vermont Flannel, Vermont Teddy Bear, & ECHO’s ongoing commitment to local engagement. 

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Vermont Business Magazine Cabot Hosiery Mills, a Northfield Electric Department customer and manufacturer of the renowned Darn Tough Socks, will host a ribbon cutting ceremony on October 23, 2024, celebrating the company's ongoing energy efficiency improvements. The event will take place from noon to 1:00 PM at Cabot Hosiery Mills, located at 364 Whetstone Drive, Northfield, VT. In 2022, Senator Bernie Sanders secured $1,000,000 in Congressionally Directed Funding to support the Vermont Public Power Supply Authority’s Business Energy Repayment Assistance Program (“BERAP”). BERAP provides on-bill repayment loans to VPPSA’s member utilities’ commercial and industrial customers to implement energy transformation projects.  Cabot Hosiery Mills has received he first loan through this new program to fund upgrades to its facility’s roof, a project fund upgrades to its facility’s roof, a project that will significantly reduce energy costs and contribute to lowering the company’s carbon footprint. Senator Sanders, or an appointed surrogate, will speak about the importance of such initiatives for the future of sustainable business practices and Vermont’s leadership in energy efficiency.

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Vermont Business Magazine Inc., the leading media brand and playbook for the entrepreneurs and business leaders shaping our future, today announced its third annual Power Partner Awards. The prestigious list honors B2B organizations across the country that have proven track records supporting entrepreneurs and helping startups grow. This year’s list recognizes the Vermont Center for Emerging Technologies, Inc. (VCET) among the top organizations that are proven in helping to make other companies great. Every company on the Inc. Power Partner award list received top marks from clients for being instrumental in helping leadership navigate the dynamic world of startups. These B2B partners support entrepreneurs across various facets of the business, including hiring, infrastructure development, cloud migration, fundraising, etc., allowing founders to focus on their core missions. Inc. has selected 359 companies and organizations across B2B categories as Power Partner awardees.

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Vermont Business Magazine Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP), today joined President Joe Biden in Concord, New Hampshire at the New Hampshire Technical Institute for an event on their work to lower prescription drug costs for the American people. Sanders: In America today we spend almost twice as much per person as any other major country on health care – over $13,000 for every man, woman and child. And one of the reasons for that is the outrageously high cost of prescription drugs in this country. The truth is that the American people, whether they are Democrats, Republicans or Independents, are sick and tired of paying, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs.

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Vermont State Police A Springfield, Massachusetts, man is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024, to answer a charge of being an accessory to a fatal shooting last week in Waterbury. Samuel Niyonsenga, 18, is due for arraignment at 12:30 p.m. Wednesday in the Criminal Division of Vermont Superior Court in Barre on a charge of accessory to second-degree murder. He is accused of participating in the incident at the Kneeland Flats Trailer Park during which Shawn Spiker, 34, of Croydon, New Hampshire, was fatally shot, and Michael S. Perry, 57, of Waterbury was wounded. Niyonsenga was ordered held without bail pending arraignment. He is currently incarcerated at the Northeast Correctional Complex in St. Johnsbury. 

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Vermont Business Magazine Champlain College is celebrating the 20th anniversary of its pioneering game development major. As the first college in New England to offer a dedicated game program, Champlain has evolved its offering into a comprehensive Game Studio Experience, maintaining its position at the forefront of game education. The Game Studio 20th Anniversary Celebration will recognize this important milestone during Champlain Weekend on Oct. 25-26, which includes a slate of playable student-created games from over the years, guest speakers, and studio memorabilia. To date, Champlain College’s Game Studio has graduated more than 1,100 students. Many have gone on to work for major game studios, including Apple, Bend Studios, Blizzard, Boeing, Bungie, Disney, EA, Insomniac, Microsoft, Nintendo, Riot, Sega, Sony, Ubisoft, Zenimax, and more.

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by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine Today, the Vermont Department of Labor released data on the Vermont economy for the time period covering September 2024. According to household data, the seasonally adjusted statewide unemployment rate for September was 2.2 percent. This reflects no change from the prior month’s revised estimate. The comparable United States rate in September was 4.1 percent, a decrease of one-tenth of one percentage point from the revised August estimate. The seasonally adjusted Vermont data for September show the Vermont civilian labor force decreased by 18 from the prior month’s revised estimate. The number of employed persons decreased by 210 and the number of unemployed persons increased by 192. None of the changes were statistically significant in the seasonally adjusted series. Vermont continues to have the second lowest unemployment rate in the US, with South Dakota at 2.0 percent and Nevada highest at 5.6 percent. Weekly unemployment claims remain low.

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by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine On Monday, University of Vermont Medical Center filed a motion with the Green Mountain Care Board (GMCB) to delay a board order that penalizes the hospital for delivering necessary care to patients in fiscal year 2023. Unless the GMCB’s enforcement action is overturned, it will force UVM Medical Center, the academic medical center that anchors University of Vermont Health Network, to cut patient care and support services. Because the board penalized UVM Medical Center without first providing the hospital an enforcement hearing or taking any testimony regarding the consequences of the ordered cuts, UVM Medical Center will appeal the enforcement action as an illegal exercise of the board’s authority. The motion UVM Medical Center filed yesterday, if granted by the board, would allow the hospital to postpone some of the service cuts while its appeal is pending. The GMCB, in turn, disputed the assertions made by the hospital.

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by Timothy McQuiston, Vermont Business Magazine For the week ending October 12, 2024, the Vermont Department of Health reported that the number of COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations, deaths and outbreaks all fell after a worrying late summer rise in cases and fatalities. Vermont cases are now under 200 and lower than they were a year ago. Hospitalizations also saw a drop in admissions. Hospitalizations and general "syndromic" cases decreased to just over 10 cases. The VDH reported 1 COVID-related fatality, even as COVID deaths are higher this fall than last so far. The number of COVID cases fell last week to 153. Cases had been falling in April and May and were as low as 31 at the beginning of May. Along with the case numbers, wastewater monitoring also has shown a decrease in levels of virus. The pandemic death total stands at 1,215 as of October 12, 2024

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Vermont Business Magazine State Auditor Doug Hoffer released a follow up report today of the audit his office completed in 2023 which examined the Department of Disabilities, Aging and Independent Living’s performance inspecting long-term care homes housing vulnerable older Vermonters. That audit found that across seven years DAIL, as the department is called, was not performing annual facility inspections as required by law, did not have effective systems in place to ensure safety violations would be fixed, and rarely used enforcement tools to address the problems they found. “Put simply,” Hoffer said, “our audit found that DAIL’s efforts to ensure Vermonters living in assisted living and residential care facilities are safe were not good enough. As someone who has had family members in long term care facilities, I know Vermonters count on the State to make sure our peace of mind about their safety is well-placed.”

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Vermont Business Magazine The City of Rutland Board of Aldermen has approved the Tax Increment Financing (TIF) District Letter of Intent (LOI) to apply to the State for a TIF District, marking a significant milestone in the City's strategic efforts to boost economic development, create housing, and address long-standing infrastructure needs. This initiative aims to remove key building barriers to private development while improving the quality of life for residents. Presenting the TIF District Plan and LOI before the Board of Aldermen were Ed Bove, Executive Director of the Rutland Redevelopment Authority (RRA), which serves as Rutland City’s economic development entity, as well as Stephanie Clarke, Vice President of White + Burke Real Estate Advisors, who is guiding the RRA through the TIF Districting Process. The City anticipates submitting its full TIF District application for VEPC approval by early 2025, with public infrastructure projects beginning as soon as 2026. 

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Vermont Business Magazine Governor Phil Scott and members of his cabinet will be in Chittenden County on Thursday, October 24 for its Capital for a Day 14-county tour. Governor Scott first launched this initiative in June 2018, and he and his cabinet visited all 14 counties over the following 10 months. Capital for a Day gives local constituents, municipal government leaders and other partners the opportunity to connect directly with state leadership and staff. In addition to the public schedule listed below, Governor Scott and members of his cabinet will participate in meetings to discuss municipal flood response and recovery, public safety, and other events which are not open to the general public.