MONTPELIER – I need to take a moment to update you all on some very important legislation that was passed out of the Vermont House and is now headed toward the Senate. H. 955, a bill detailing the next steps in Act 73, sets Vermont on the path towards school[Read More…]
Montpelier
Education reform front-and-center
MONTPELIER – Education reform is once again front and center at the statehouse. Behind closed doors, as well as in public hearings, there is significant debate about what path Vermont should take. I voted against the House reform bill. Why? The bill, H 955, would not reduce property taxes until[Read More…]
Chance encounter on State Street
MONTPELIER – As I walked across the street in Montpelier, I noticed a little old lady standing on the corner, staring at me. As I got closer, I could see she was fixated on me. “Are you a senator?” she asked. “No,” I replied, “I’m a representative. Can I help[Read More…]
Paddling floodplain forests for hidden highlights of mud season
MONTPELIER – By early April I start to get impatient for full-blown spring. I’m ready for the treetops to be full of warblers and the understory to be crowded with blooming flowers. But when mud season lingers, I pick up my paddle. Kayaking and canoeing in floodplain forests is a[Read More…]
No Kings Protest
Act 181 debate pokes at the heart of Vermont’s rural-urban dynamics
MONTPELIER – The Vermont Senate passed a bill Thursday, March 26, that will delay the implementation of Act 181, a contentious 2024 law that overhauled the state’s land use permitting system. But that vote followed several rounds of heated debate over rolling back or further postponing land conservation measures, fueled[Read More…]
Statehouse has been active
MONTPELIER – The past couple of weeks have been quite active in the House. Many bills have passed out of the House and have gone to the Senate for consideration. Some of the bills do not do much other than correct language in current laws which was identified as needing[Read More…]
Good land use policy requires balance
MONTPELIER – A long time ago, when I was just a 22-year-old untested college student, the select board in Morristown appointed me chair of the town planning commission. It was the mid-1970s, and land use planning and zoning were still in their infancy. I quickly realized I had been thrown[Read More…]
Krowinski says she hears Vermonters
MONTPELIER – Speaker Jill Krowinski made the following statement on Act 181 and pending legislation in the House on April 3. “In 2024, we passed Act 181 which seeks to reform our decades old Act 250 land use policy and make it easier to develop housing while also making our[Read More…]
Concert series presents dance company, April 8
MONTPELIER – The Farmers Night concert series concludes its season on April 8, 7:30 p.m., with Tunbridge-based Mountain House Dance Company, directed by Emily Howe. The program brings together community-based dancers of all ages throughout the region to present many styles of dance from around the globe. The Farmers Night Concert[Read More…]
WGDR approved for antenna upgrade
PLAINFIELD – WGDR received approval from the FCC in early March to move its antenna to a Plainfield tower on a ridgeline 1,000 feet higher than the 30-year old antenna now located on the former Goddard College Campus. “The FCC just did something right!” said Central Vermont Community Radio Executive[Read More…]
Grants awarded to local farm, forest and food businesses
MONTPELIER – Earthbound Forest Services of Cabot and Stannard Farm Vermont Pure Maple Syrup of Craftsbury, have received grants through the Working Lands Enterprise Board (WKEB). Earthbound Forest Services, a logging business, received $28,000 for a forwarding wagon to expand low-impact timber extraction. Stannard Farm Vermont Pure Maple Syrup received a $7,321[Read More…]
