• Steve Farrington of Brattleboro was recognized with the Scottish Rite Freemason's Meritorious Service Award. This award is the second highest recognition for Masonic and community service. A member of Brattleboro Lodge No. 102, Farrington is a 32nd degree Mason.
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The United Way of Windham County announced last week that Entergy Corp. has committed up to $100,000 to help Vermont residents recover from the damage caused by Hurricane Irene. Carmen Derby, executive director of the United Way of Windham County, said Entergy is awarding an immediate $50,000 grant to...
The Brattleboro Museum & Arts Center will host a benefit in support of Windham County artists and arts organizations affected by Tropical Storm Irene on Sunday, Sept. 18, from 6-8 p.m., at the museum, 10 Vernon St. The evening will be a fun, art-infused, family-friendly, community dinner with live...
Entergy's lawsuit against the people of Vermont took place this week. The central premise of this legal action is that the state of Vermont is attempting to keep our state safe by closing the Vermont Yankee nuclear reactor, and that the state has no right to do so because only the federally designated Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is legally mandated to concern itself with the safety of the population living around the reactor. Unfortunately, the NRC once again has blatantly...
It's been raining for days now, and the gloom of these post-Irene days reminds me of the autumn following the fall of the Twin Towers, when anthrax was in the mail and the whole country seemed under attack and largely helpless, despite the saber-rattling and new, sweeping authority of airport security. Cement posts and no-parking zones blocked access to every post office in the country, including the one in my village at the postmistress's home. Terrorist alerts were the color...
The Vermont Telecommunications Authority (VTA) is seeking public input on issues affecting high-speed internet coverage in Vermont, and how the VTA can best support broadband expansion using state funds appropriated in its fiscal year 2012 capital appropriation. In addition to comments related to broadband generally, comments specifically on expansion of fiber optic facilities are also being solicited. The state has a goal of statewide cellular and broadband availability by the end of 2013, and the state authority that is charged...
One down, one to go. Now that Route 9 has been reopened from Brattleboro to Bennington, the Vermont Agency of Transportation is turning its attention to the other main east-west corridor in southern Vermont damaged by Tropical Storm Irene - Route 4 Gov. Peter Shumlin announced at a press conference last Thursday that Route 4, which has bridge outages and sections of roadway that crumbled away when floodwaters scoured the region, would be open by the end of the week.
Talk outlines 'Transition Town' planning DUMMERSTON - An introduction to Transition Towns, with presenter Paul LeVasseur from Transition Putney, will be held Friday, Sept. 16, at 7 p.m. at the Dummerston Congregational Church in Dummerston Center. Thousands of communities around the world are exploring the Transition Towns concept, and are using this positive, solutions-focused approach to concerns about peak oil, rising energy costs, climate disruption, and the changes that lie ahead. In Vermont, eight towns have started Transition Initiatives to...
The news over the past two weeks has been dominated by news of closed bridges. But there's one bridge in Windham County this week that bucks the trend. Without fanfare, the green iron bridge over the West River has reopened after years of repair work. Selectboard Chair Tom Bodett said last Wednesday that while state inspectors haven't officially signed off yet, the span is open for traffic. “Although not 'officially' opened, it is 'open open,' meaning you can drive across...
At the Write Action picnic on Aug. 21, the winners of the nonprofit organization's 2011 prose and poetry contests were announced and invited to read their entries. First prize in the poetry contest went to Bill Devlin for “The Time Machine,” second prize to Andy Burrows for “A Farm in Winter,” and third prize to Dianalee Velie for “How Did I Get Here?” First prize in the prose contest went to Marty Cain for “Wranglin' Max.” Cain also won first...
About 31 municipalities were reporting damage to town-owned property last week as a result of the floodwaters from Tropical Storm Irene that scoured low-lying areas in central and southern Vermont. Steve Jeffrey, executive director of the Vermont League of Cities and Towns, said his office, which provides insurance, legal and logistical support for the state's municipalities, is “still counting,” but as of Sept. 6, the rough estimate of the total damage is $12.26 million – so far. “We're still trying...
Gov. Peter Shumlin has asked former Douglas administration official Neale Lunderville to spearhead Vermont's recovery efforts in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Irene. Lunderville will be responsible for leading the immediate and short-term assistance efforts for families, businesses and communities. He will also be in charge of rebuilding state infrastructure and coordinating disaster response local, state and federal programs. Lunderville, an executive with Green Mountain Power and a former Douglas administration official, will take a four month leave of absence...
Even though they fell short of reaching the state finals, the Brattleboro Colonels boys' soccer team had their most successful season in school history in 2010. If their first game on Saturday at Tenney Field is an early indicator, the Colonels appear to have what it takes to go deep into the playoffs this fall. Brattleboro beat the Mill River Minutemen, 2-0, in dominating fashion. They controlled the ball for most of the game and gave Mill River very few...
Brattleboro Memorial Hospital recently submitted a Certificate Of Need application to renovate and expand the emergency department and to move an upgraded MRI to the Richards Building to the Vermont Department of Banking, Insurance, Securities and Health Care Administration (BISHCA). The $7.7 million dollar project will modernize and expand the 30-year old emergency department. BMH has approximately 13,000 emergency room visits annually, the expansion will reduce wait times, improve patient privacy and meet current code and regulatory requirements. The new...
Within days after Vermonters became eligible for federal assistance for damage and losses from Tropical Storm Irene, more than $7.6 million in federal assistance grants has been approved. This is only the beginning of aid from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help Vermont recover from the widespread destruction this historic storm inflicted. “We have almost 500 FEMA specialists in the state working with Vermont Emergency Management and many public and private organizations here focused on recovery for Vermont. We...
Why is Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin using the catastrophic flood as one more very public opportunity to condemn our southern Vermont community? Now more than ever, we should appreciate the forethought that went into designing, building and maintaining the Vermont Yankee nuclear power station in Vernon. It was no accident that VY remained safe and operational during this disaster of historic proportions. Those who have in the past been worried about the way fuel is stored at the plant and...
AARP Vermont recently announced the selection of two Vermont communities to receive $15,000 each in support of community design initiatives aimed at creating a more livable community for all ages. Brattleboro and Jericho/Underhill were each awarded grants to conduct Active Living Workshops in their towns featuring a nationally renowned expert on community redesign and improvement. Selection was based in part on the proposal's focus on transportation and pedestrian needs, impact on older residents and on the demonstrated support of community...
The majority of students who attend Leland & Gray Union High School live in towns hard hit by flooding by Tropical Storm Irene. But last week, students from Brookline, Dover, Jamaica, Marlboro, Newfane, Stratton, and Wardsboro found their way to Townshend as the 2011-12 school began. And all but one of the Windham Central Supervisory Union's elementary schools opened Sept. 6. The exception was Wardsboro Elementary, which didn't open until Sept. 12. “Everyone expected is here,” said Windham Elementary School...
It's hard to believe that on Tuesday, Aug. 30, during Vermont's recovery from a 100-year flood, 10 anti-nuclear protesters would break the law and trespass at Vermont Yankee. But they did. It's difficult to understand why the protesters used locked chains so that first responders had to be diverted from helping Vermont's citizens. But they did. It's incomprehensible that the protesters would ignore Vermont's local law enforcement when they explained the extent of the natural disaster and asked them to...
We're 10 years removed from that tragic September morning of death and destruction in New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania. The images of New York City on Sept. 11, 2001, and the days afterward, are burned into my brain. I have no intention of seeing any of the 10-year anniversary programs. As a newspaper editor who was working that day and struggled to assemble something that made sense of unspeakable horror, I saw, heard, and read enough accounts of the death...
Two regional artists especially hit by Tropical Storm Irene are fine art photographer Chris Triebert and her partner, designer Carol Ross, who lost their studios. “All of our storage places got ruined by the flood,” Ross said. “Our studio will be uninhabitable for many months. Miraculously, Chris's framed work and prints were spared, but we have no place to put anything.” Triebert and Ross will hold a flood sale for two consecutive weekends at the Catherine Dianich Gallery, down the...
I found Lori Holder-Webb's article [“Why does this never seem to get easier?,” Voices, Sept. 7] very informative and insightful, especially about the hidden dangers that floods possess. We were victimized by this tropical storm by losing our bridge and driveway, but we certainly did not have it as bad as other folks. Holder-Webb touched on the “unfairness” of this storm in a northern landlocked state like Vermont. I had the same thought processes going, but I'd like to think...
As the waters of tropical storm Irene receded last week, much was revealed: the mud and destruction brought about by the rushing waters, and the amazing spirit of people in this community. At Brattleboro Area Hospice, we had been planning a Sept. 1 volunteer appreciation party for months. The question on Monday morning was whether to cancel Thursday's gathering, as both staff and volunteers would be needed to clean up Experienced Goods. We decided to go ahead with the party...
It was a glorious evening, Saturday, Aug. 20. Everything about the night was magical. The Guilford Meeting House stood as a beautiful and historic setting graced with a majestic elm, an August chorus of crickets, and mist rolling down through the fields. The Guilford Ensemble played spectacularly for a special Guilford 250 event supporting the Guilford Free Library. The grand finale, the familiar Brandenburg Concerto, was played with such verve and conviction that audience members were on the edge of...
Vermonters who wish to ensure Vermont Yankee retires on schedule in March 2012 are mobilizing a citizen effort, kicked off by the “Positively Charged Music Festival,” an outdoor concert. The event, on Saturday, Sept. 17 at Amazing Planet Farm and Justice Center, a solar-powered vegetable farm on 218 Williamsville Rd., will feature seven top bands from the three states - Vermont, New Hampshire and Massachusetts - that are in the Vermont Yankee evacuation zone. According to concert organizers BeyondVY.org and...
RE: “Flood scene,” by Elayne Clift [The Commons, Sept. 7]. Beautiful story. It's still important, though, that some Hurricane Katrina myths be laid to rest, as people still perpetuate these ideas after six years. Here are some facts: • While we in the Superdome believed the rumors of murders and rapes, in reality these could not be verified. There was a suicide, a couple of drug overdoses, and about five deaths of medical patients. • The Airport, Amtrak, and Greyhound...
Martin Cohn I was on my way to a business meeting in Cambridge, Mass. While listening to the news, I inadvertently took a wrong turn and found myself underneath the Prudential Tower in Boston. People were storming out of the building, and I inched my way through them. When I finally made it to Cambridge, the security guard stopped to check my ID because he didn't know what else to do. 9/11 heightened my awareness to the impact of world...
Suicides. Fire. Murders. Floods.... A succession of waves carrying tragedy crashed over the shores of Windham County this year, rubbing many residents raw and leaving hearts, minds, and bodies - and in the case of Irene, whole towns - waterlogged. “What next?” has morphed from a simple question into a joke, a pleading, a superstition, a plan. In the wake of the events of the past few months, people might experience a spectrum of reactions, said Dr. Jilisa Snyder, clinical...
The state rested its case after two days of testimony in the Entergy v. Vermont trial in U.S. District Court on Tuesday, a case that could decide the fate of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vernon. The state's primary witness, Peter Bradford, stood his ground on states' roles in regulating nuclear plants in areas other than radiological safety under heavy cross examination late in the day. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) extended VY's operating license for another 20...
Gov. Peter Shumlin flew back over the Brockway Mills hydroelectric plant on the Williams River last Friday, following a brief visit to Bellows Falls to hear residents' concerns in the wake of widespread devastation and flood damage caused by Tropical Storm Irene. “He didn't have time to come by personally,” Eileen Kruger, who co-owns the plant with her husband, Chris, said. “My husband got 90 seconds with him [at the Town Hall] and the governor gave him the number of...
Volunteers welcome in Wilmington Wilmington can still use help cleaning up from Irene; all volunteer assignments and passes, along with masks and gloves, are being distributed from the Chamber of Commerce office at 14 East Main St. (the Split Ends building). Stop by the office, or e-mail for more information (clnsweep@sover.net). If you need volunteers for clean-up, let them know what kind of work you need volunteers to do and how many people you would like to have assigned to...
Calling Vermonters “tough and gritty,” Governor Peter Shumlin told residents who are pulling the pieces of their lives together after Tropical Storm Irene last week that “We'll get through this together.” There's enough tears and heartbreak to go around for 100 years,” Shumlin emphasized in his remarks at the Bellows Falls Opera House on Sept. 9. “It is our spirit and sense of community, and reaching out to one another that will put Vermont back together again,” he said. The...
It is day 18, and no one knows where 17-year-old Marble Arvidson has gone. Marble's mother, Sigrid Arvidson, just wants her son back. “I've already forgiven anyone for anything that might have happened to Marble; just please tell us what is going on and help us to get him home,” she said. Last seen the day before Hurricane Irene struck, Marble greeted a male of unknown origin at his home that afternoon, left a note on the kitchen table saying...