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Winter sports and ski resort guidance announced by state

Submitted by tim on

The Women’s World Cup race at Killington scheduled for this November has been canceled because of the pandemic. But the ski resorts in Vermont are developing plans with state guidance to open this winter. Above, Mikaela Shiffrin, a Vermont high school grad, has won a race at the Killington event every year. They expect to return in 2021. Killington photo.

Ski resort, winter sports operations guidance announced

Agency of Commerce & Community Development ACCD released the Vermont Ski Resort COVID-19 Winter Operations Guidance for the 20/21 season Tuesday. This guidance aims to provide skiers and riders a safe skiing and riding experience, ensure the health and safety of the thousands of Vermonters who work in the industry, and protect the health and safety of the communities that host these resorts.

Additionally, the deadline to submit applications for the Vermont Ski Area Recreation Safety Grants has been extended to Friday, November 6th. Ski areas who have already applied may re-submit an updated application package as necessary. Please read the full Notice of Funds Available (NOFA)for eligibility and application requirements, and refer to Addendum 2 of the NOFA for details about this extension.

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Winter Sports Guidance for Schools Announced

The Agency of Education today released the state guidance for winter sports programs during the 20/21 school year. The guidance lays out which winter sports are allowed, how practices and games will work, and details regarding spectators at these events. The full guidance is available on the Agency of Education website.

ANR Secretary Julie Moore on today laid out new rules for winter high school sports.

The most notable of these is that there will be no wrestling and no indoor track. Nor will any spectators be allowed, not even parents. For competitive cheer teams, they will be allowed to compete but not cheer.

Further, the practice season cannot start until November 30 and competition cannot begin until January 11. Masks must be worn during competition by players, coaches and officials.

Last school year, the end of the winter sports season was cut off, including girls basketball, and all of the spring sports were canceled.

Moore also noted that where COVID-19 cases have arisen related to sports, it has not come during competition but during socializing and gathering off-site. Those activities must be curtailed, she said, even while acknowledging that the social aspect of being on a team has always been an important part of the experience.

The guidance is similar for middle school sports. Recreational sports for younger children have slightly different rules, specifically one parent may attend with their child(ren).

BIPOC Business Survey

The Vermont Partnership for Fairness and Diversity has launched a survey to gauge interest in the creation of an entity to serve the needs of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) business owners in Vermont. The entity would provide technical assistance to BIPOC business owners and assist in securing state and federal grants to support businesses in times of crisis. The survey is open until November 15th.

Everyone Eats Program Webinar

Vermont Everyone Eats is a program created through federal CRF funds that works with local restaurants to help feed Vermonters who are struggling due to COVID-19. The program pays restaurants $10/meal to help feed their neighbors and there are already over 140 distribution sites around Vermont. On Wednesday, November 4th at 2:00pm, Vermont Everyone Eats will host a webinar to go over the program, eligibility, and testimonials from participating restaurants.

Expanded Economic Recovery Grant Application

The application window for businesses applying through ACCD will remain open until Monday, November 9th. Visit the ACCD COVID-19 Recovery Resource Center for full details, eligibility requirements, how to apply, FAQs for businesses, webinar recordings, and translated fact sheets. The application window for those businesses applying through the Department of Taxes has now closed.

Business Impact

ACCD wants to hear from all Vermont businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Please use the ACCD Business Impact Form to help us continue to assess the full impact as we work toward additional solutions.