Friday, September 06, 2013
News to Know September 6
Sent by Corinne Stridsberg and also posted at: http://socialenergy.blogspot.com
(if you're new to the send list, this is where to find previous postings)
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Please share this with you
*
Check out the
NOTE:
What A LOT of news included below. I apologize for the length, a few articles I
even just included a paragraph with a link to find the complete article. This option seemed better than sending out
several emails. There are several recent
postings from the Berlin Front Porch Forum as I know lots of you on this email
list don't subscribe to FPF - info being shared there includes the announcement
of the new Town Treasurer and a job posting for an Assistant Town Clerk.
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Included below please find:Letter to the Editor - GET YOUR FACTS STRAIGHT (re
TURNOVER CONTINUES IN
WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT STONEWORKS? FIND OUT MORE
SING FOR PEACE 9/22 , FREE ADMISSION, DONATIONS TO PLANTING HOPE
STATE COMMITTED TO 25 BEDS AT NEW
COST-SHARING AMONG
TWO YEARS AFTER TROPICAL STORM IRENE
TROPICAL STORM IRENE:
FROM
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It's been "Reba" round white potatoes they usually have for picking. To get there, drive to Williamstown and head south of town where you'll find easy to follow signs pointing you to the field they'll be using. Their address is
If you want more details, please ask - our family (the Stridsberg's) have been going to the Chappelles for potatoes for over 20 years! If you can't make it on the pick-your-own day and you want some of these fresh potatoes we can bring back extra... it will just cost you more than the pick-your-own price - send us an email and we can work out the details.
The pre picked 50 lb bags of potatoes are available not only on the pick-your-own day but also at the Chappelle warehouse throughout the season.
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Pub 8/26/13 Times Argus By Art
Edelstein, Correspondent
BERLIN — The Edward F. Knapp State Airport located in Barre remains an
integral part of the Capitol Region’s economy even with diminished used by
corporate travelers due to the economic downturn in the past few years.
“Knapp State Airport Vermont
In addition to businesses, charter operators and multiple based and transient aircraft utilize the airport.
An indication of the use ofKnapp Airport
George Malek with the Central Vermont Chamber of Commerce sees the airport as an important contributor to the local economy because it provides easy access to the Barre-Montpelier area for corporate executives visiting their branches.
“I go by Knapp and there are always different planes parked and landing at the airport,” he said. Malek has observed “expensive jets,” although he could not identify the owners.
The airport, says Malek, is not necessarily in the public’s eye at all times, but that does not mean it is without importance to the health of the local community. “If you didn’t have the airport we would miss it greatly,” he offered. “We might not know it affected the economy but it would.”
While local economic powerhouses like National Life Insurance of Vermont would not relocate without a local airport, Malek said “there would be branch offices getting less attention from their corporate home, and fewer bigwigs would visit than there are now because they can land here.”
An important asset to the local community, provided by Wiggins Air, which operates here, is the delivery of both FedEx and UPS parcels. “I know there are two fleets of trucks that would not exist if not for Knapp,” said Malek.
Airport manager John Roberti, who owns the Vermont Flying Service, paints a picture of an airport that has been affected by the poor economy of the past five years.
“There hasn’t been a lot of traffic,” he noted. He has seen a decline in corporate jets. As businesses try to save money in difficult financial times they are now purchasing a share in the use of a corporate jet. Knapp, like other airports of its type without commercial air service. is seeing these leased planes arrive. As a result, he said, “most of the traffic in corporate jets is with arrivals we cannot identify.”
Among those arrivals that are identifiable, Roberti has seen corporate business persons from Family Dollar, Cracker Barrel, which does business with Cabot Cheese, Home Depot, and Fisher Auto Parts.
Roberti said he tries to identify the company arriving by asking the pilot, but some are wary of identifying their passengers due to competition. He said in today’s business climate flying executives “don’t want their competition to know they are in the area.”
Roberti, whose family has operated the flying service since 1985, saidKnapp Airport
According to Roberti, a local airport like Knapp is essential to corporate customers because these busy executives can avoid commercial flights that eat up time on crammed schedules.
Recent statistics compiled by the airport and reported for 2012 show that Knapp averages 66 aircraft operations per day. Of that number 60 percent are classified as local general aviation, a third are transient general aviation and four percent are military. There are 53 aircraft based at the field, 50 are single-engine planes, two are multi-engine and one is a helicopter.
Flights in and out of the airport have slackened in recent years, Roberti said. “Back in the 1980s and 1990s we had twice as much traffic or more,” he contends. He blamed the overall economy for diminished traffic here and at other local airports.
The traffic count at Knapp is mostly small, privately owned aircraft. Day trips and pleasure flights account for the majority of traffic. Few of the planes based at the airport are used for business travel, according to Roberti.
Military flights are for the Army Guard, which, according to Roberti, “uses it once or twice a week for training.” Some flights are generated byNorwich University
The Vermont Flying Service school “is very slow,” reports Roberti. Lessons have declined steeply in recent years due to the economy. The cost of gas has doubled in the past few years, raising the cost of the lessons. Flying lessons currently are $160 an hour. “People have less money to play with,” said Roberti who now has just two airplanes and one part-time instructor. In the 1970s the company operated six airplanes and employed several full- and part-time instructors.
During the depth of the recent recession the federal government through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 allocated funds for local airport improvements.Knapp Airport
“You need the facilities for the air traffic,” said Roberti. “The traffic, especially jet traffic, on business travel has to be doing a lot for the local economy.” He deems the airport “a necessary and integral part of the local economy.” With the federal money the airport, in his estimation, ‘‘is well maintained and people comment how nice it is.”
Roberti said airport traffic would increase when the local and national economy rebounds to pre-2008 levels. At that point, he predicted, “the current airport could handle a big increase in traffic with no problems.”
Rouelle said the goal of his department “is to grow the use of theKnapp Airport Sep
3, 2013
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“
In addition to businesses, charter operators and multiple based and transient aircraft utilize the airport.
An indication of the use of
George Malek with the Central Vermont Chamber of Commerce sees the airport as an important contributor to the local economy because it provides easy access to the Barre-Montpelier area for corporate executives visiting their branches.
“I go by Knapp and there are always different planes parked and landing at the airport,” he said. Malek has observed “expensive jets,” although he could not identify the owners.
The airport, says Malek, is not necessarily in the public’s eye at all times, but that does not mean it is without importance to the health of the local community. “If you didn’t have the airport we would miss it greatly,” he offered. “We might not know it affected the economy but it would.”
While local economic powerhouses like National Life Insurance of Vermont would not relocate without a local airport, Malek said “there would be branch offices getting less attention from their corporate home, and fewer bigwigs would visit than there are now because they can land here.”
An important asset to the local community, provided by Wiggins Air, which operates here, is the delivery of both FedEx and UPS parcels. “I know there are two fleets of trucks that would not exist if not for Knapp,” said Malek.
Airport manager John Roberti, who owns the Vermont Flying Service, paints a picture of an airport that has been affected by the poor economy of the past five years.
“There hasn’t been a lot of traffic,” he noted. He has seen a decline in corporate jets. As businesses try to save money in difficult financial times they are now purchasing a share in the use of a corporate jet. Knapp, like other airports of its type without commercial air service. is seeing these leased planes arrive. As a result, he said, “most of the traffic in corporate jets is with arrivals we cannot identify.”
Among those arrivals that are identifiable, Roberti has seen corporate business persons from Family Dollar, Cracker Barrel, which does business with Cabot Cheese, Home Depot, and Fisher Auto Parts.
Roberti said he tries to identify the company arriving by asking the pilot, but some are wary of identifying their passengers due to competition. He said in today’s business climate flying executives “don’t want their competition to know they are in the area.”
Roberti, whose family has operated the flying service since 1985, said
According to Roberti, a local airport like Knapp is essential to corporate customers because these busy executives can avoid commercial flights that eat up time on crammed schedules.
Recent statistics compiled by the airport and reported for 2012 show that Knapp averages 66 aircraft operations per day. Of that number 60 percent are classified as local general aviation, a third are transient general aviation and four percent are military. There are 53 aircraft based at the field, 50 are single-engine planes, two are multi-engine and one is a helicopter.
Flights in and out of the airport have slackened in recent years, Roberti said. “Back in the 1980s and 1990s we had twice as much traffic or more,” he contends. He blamed the overall economy for diminished traffic here and at other local airports.
The traffic count at Knapp is mostly small, privately owned aircraft. Day trips and pleasure flights account for the majority of traffic. Few of the planes based at the airport are used for business travel, according to Roberti.
Military flights are for the Army Guard, which, according to Roberti, “uses it once or twice a week for training.” Some flights are generated by
The Vermont Flying Service school “is very slow,” reports Roberti. Lessons have declined steeply in recent years due to the economy. The cost of gas has doubled in the past few years, raising the cost of the lessons. Flying lessons currently are $160 an hour. “People have less money to play with,” said Roberti who now has just two airplanes and one part-time instructor. In the 1970s the company operated six airplanes and employed several full- and part-time instructors.
During the depth of the recent recession the federal government through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 allocated funds for local airport improvements.
“You need the facilities for the air traffic,” said Roberti. “The traffic, especially jet traffic, on business travel has to be doing a lot for the local economy.” He deems the airport “a necessary and integral part of the local economy.” With the federal money the airport, in his estimation, ‘‘is well maintained and people comment how nice it is.”
Roberti said airport traffic would increase when the local and national economy rebounds to pre-2008 levels. At that point, he predicted, “the current airport could handle a big increase in traffic with no problems.”
Rouelle said the goal of his department “is to grow the use of the
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Letter to the Editor - GET YOUR FACTS STRAIGHT
Letter to the Editor - GET YOUR FACTS STRAIGHT
Regarding the recent front-page article on the E.F. Knapp State Airport
The photo accompanying the article is depicted as the airport might look to the public arriving by air. However, the photo was taken before the $6.6 million improvement completed in 2010 which altered its appearance considerably. There is now a parallel taxiway the entire length of the north-south runway and the east-west runway was shortened so it no longer intersects the north-south.
The airport is located inBerlin
~Richard Turner,Montpelier
The photo accompanying the article is depicted as the airport might look to the public arriving by air. However, the photo was taken before the $6.6 million improvement completed in 2010 which altered its appearance considerably. There is now a parallel taxiway the entire length of the north-south runway and the east-west runway was shortened so it no longer intersects the north-south.
The airport is located in
~Richard Turner,
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***BERLIN WATER SYSTEM FINANCING SET, CUSTOMERS NEEDED
Pub 8/23/13 by David Delcore, Staff Writer
BERLIN — A municipal water system that has been the subject of on-and-off discussions for nearly two decades could be under construction by next spring.
Town Administrator Jeff Schulz told Select Board members this week that the town’s consultant, Mark Youngstrom, of Otter Creek Engineering, is advocating an aggressive schedule that would involve putting the $5.5 million project out to bid this fall with an eye toward starting construction as soon as the snow melts.
All that remains, according to Schulz, is for Youngstrom to complete the final design of the system that would serve the Berlin Four Corners area and for the town to lock down enough prospective customers to make the system financially viable.
Schulz described both as critical next steps in what has easily been the most sustained and successful effort to create a municipally owned water system in that key area of
Though past efforts have fizzled, the latest, which now dates back six years, has cleared several key hurdles, including locating a suitable water source, obtaining voter approval, and securing favorable financing.
Schulz delivered a bit of good news on the financing this week, telling board members that the U.S. Department of Agriculture is prepared to finance the entire project through its Rural Development program.
Schulz said the town can count on receiving a $1.5 million grant, with the balance of the project — $4 million — being financed through a long-term loan at 2.5 percent interest. Those terms, he said, can be frozen for up to three years, though waiting doesn’t appear to be the preferred option.
Schulz said the design work is underway and potential users will be invited to a public rollout of the proposed system being planned for next month.
The goal, he said, is to obtain commitments from enough large users to comfortably proceed with construction of a water storage and distribution system that would be fed by wells that have already been drilled, tested and permitted to produce nearly 110,000 gallons of water a day.
According to studies produced by Otter Creek, that is more than enough to meet the demand that currently exists in a service area that would include portions of Airport, Crosstown, Comstock, Fisher, Granger, Scott Hill and Shed roads, as well as the full length of Industrial Lane and a short section of Paine Turnpike in the vicinity of Route 62.
With the planned construction of a 400,000-gallon water storage tank on Scott Hill Road, it is also enough to serve additional development in the area, which is already home to the town offices, the local elementary school, the Berlin Mall and several other high-volume water users.
Schulz said several of those users have expressed interest in hooking on to the town system and that he is optimistic many would sign user agreements in coming months.
Though the proposed water rates are still something of a moving target, Schulz said, the USDA financing should enable the town to deliver water to the average home for about $580 a year.
Town officials have repeatedly promised that the cost of developing and constructing the system — including all the work that has been done to date — will be built into the water rates and repaid by users and not taxpayers at large.
The idea of creating a reliable, cost-effective municipal water system in an area that is ripe for development but hampered by groundwater contamination and an inordinate number of private wells that don’t produce potable water, is not new. Earlier studies, including one in 1994, were shelved before the idea was revived and Otter Creek was retained by the town in 2007.
Since that time town officials have invested heavily in the project. They spent $106,000 acquiring the land where the three wells have since been drilled and executed a series of no-interest loans totaling more than $375,000 that will be rolled into the project cost if the system is built.
If for some reason the system isn’t, the town will have to start repaying the first of those loans — $175,000 that paid for preliminary engineering, as well as drilling, testing and permitting the wells — starting in 2015. The town would have until 2018 to start repaying a second loan obtained this year to finance the final design. That loan was for $202,000.
david.delcore @timesargus.com
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***TURNOVER CONTINUES IN
Pub 8/23/13 by David Delcore, Staff Writer
BERLIN — A Select Board that is looking to fill two vacancies in the town offices learned this week there will soon be a third due to the looming departure of veteran administrative assistant Rebecca Richardson.
The Select Board learned of Richardson’s newly tendered resignation on a night when former Town Treasurer Patti Lewis offered to resume her old role on an interim basis and the board cut a deal to outsource most of those duties to a private company at a discounted cost of $75 an hour.
Board members took no action on Lewis’ unsolicited offer and did not inquire about the conditions under which she would agree to return. She held the job for nearly nine years before resigning in November, citing time constraints associated with her role as a local legislator.
The town has hired two treasurers since Lewis left the now-appointed position. Amy Kuzio held the position for about a month, and Marcey Carver, who was hired Feb. 28, abruptly resigned early last month.
Carver’s resignation prompted the board to launch yet another search while at the same time advertising for a new assistant for Town Administrator Jeff Schulz. Kristen Vrancken was hired to fill that position earlier this year but left after less than a month on the job.
At least one board member expressed concern that the search for Schulz’s next assistant had “languished” too long and the hunt for Carver’s successor seemed to lack the urgency he would expect.
“I just don’t want to see this (hiring) process drag on and on and on,” Selectman Ture Nelson said, noting the deadline for resumes was last week and the hiring committee won’t meet for the first time until next week.
“I’d like to have had the interviews today,” Nelson said. “That’s how fast we need to be moving.”
The board did move swiftly to lock down a discounted rate with the company that has been providing the town with accounting and bookkeeping services since Carver resigned.
Despite Lewis’ standing offer to pinch hit, the board agreed to hire the
Schulz urged the board to approve an agreement that would retroactively reduce the center’s rate from $125 to $75 an hour.
“At this point it’s a significant savings over what we’re paying now,” Schulz said, noting the town has already received roughly 14 hours of assistance from the center.
Nelson said the arrangement didn’t necessarily preclude the board taking Lewis up on her offer, and Chairman Brad Towne noted some of the $7,200 commitment could be used to pay for training yet-to-be hired town employees, Town Clerk Rosemary Morse and Richardson.
Towne seemed genuinely surprised when he learned moments later that
Schulz joined the board in expressing regret over
“We need to have a serious conversation about what positions you want to combine,” he said, provoking a cryptic one-word response from Selectman Pete Kelley.
“Outsource,” Kelley said.
With one assistant’s position now vacant, another soon to be and no town treasurer, the municipal office staff will be reduced to Schulz, Morse and Mary Wissell, who works part time for the sewer commission.
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WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT STONEWORKS? FIND OUT MORE
On Sept. 14, the VT Historical Society offers a Second Saturday Gallery Talk featuring Italian-American Stoneworkers at the VT History Center at
Middlebury College Professor Ilaria Brancoli-Busdraghi will present a short talk about the heritage and history of Italian-American stoneworkers in
The Society’s Leahy Library at the
The library is open Tues.-Fri.
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***SING FOR PEACE 9/22 , FREE ADMISSION, DONATIONS TO PLANTING HOPE
The 6th annual SING FOR PEACE,
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***STATE COMMITTED TO 25 BEDS AT NEW
VTDIGGER
Secretary of Administration Jeb Spaulding says that if
See more at: http://vtdigger.org/2013/08/30/state-committed-to-25-beds-at-new-berlin-state-hospital/
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***COST-SHARING AMONG
VTDIGGER
The cities of
- See more at: http://vtdigger.org/2013/08/05/cost-sharing-among-ways-vermont-cities-and-towns-could-save-money/
***
***TWO YEARS AFTER TROPICAL STORM IRENE
Note - I was seeing a lot in the news regarding the two year anniversary of Tropical Storm Irene but not a lot specific to
Hi Corinne,
The following are some responses to your questions regarding
post Irene efforts.
Q1: The one Berlin
A1: The property owners (the Brennans) received
official FEMA approval for the buyout of the property several weeks
ago. The approval for this property took extra time because
the property was not originally shown to be in a flood hazard area. The
property has been reclassified as being in a flood hazard area and the FEMA
maps have been received. The next step in the process is to get a
property appraisal and for FEMA to finalize the paper
work.
*
Q2: I believe there was a survey being done in the town as
to the number of culverts and the size and I'm wondering how many culverts have
been replaced with larger ones and how many more are planned to be
replaced?
A2: Regional planning was assisting the town on this effort;
they collected the data and are going to prepare a final report. I will
check with Regional Planning on their progress. Also, I
have directed the Road Foreman to keep a detailed list of all new and replaced
culverts (size, length, location). In addition, after the
storm numerous culverts were replaced (and
documented).
*
Q3: Are there any bridges that need work done?
A3: The only bridge that sustained damage was the Lovers
Lane Bridge Lovers
Lane Bridge
*
Q4: How many homes had structural damage and have
those issues been resolved?
A4: 70 homes within the Westons
Park
*Q5: How many homes had mold issues and have those issues been resolved?
A5: I/we have not heard of any mold problems recently.
*Q6: How many homes at Weston's mobile home park were lost and how many of those have now been replaced?
A6: (see above)
*Q7: What is the status of River Run Manor?
A7: There was a total of 16 homes destroyed at River Run in
the May 2011 storm. No homes can be replaced without extensive
filling and flood mitigation efforts. In addition, it will require
DRB review and approval; which may be difficult considering that much of the
property is at least 2 to 3 below the base flood elevation.
We discussed a potential state buyout, however, the
state indicates that a buyout may be difficult at this time considering that
the property is in foreclosure.
*
Q8: Have businesses that had Irene related losses received
assistance? How many businesses were affected?
A8: The Town does not get involved with this issue as the
businesses had to work through the Federal SBA Program for assistance (also see
above).
*Q9: Is the town prepared to help folks and/or home relocate from the flood plains before or after the next flood?
A9: The town does not have funds and typically does not
allocate funds for such relocations – it would have to come from the federal or
state government. If individuals approached the town
regarding such a program or assistance, the town may be willing to assist with
applications and outreach to the federal government.
*Q10: How much money was spent by the town on Tropical Storm Irene (and what was the breakdown of how this money was spent) and how much was reimbursed by FEMA? How much was reimbursed by the state.
A10: The Town had a total of $470,000 in damage to roads and
bridges during Irene. The federal government reimbursed the
town 90%, and the State 5%.
*Q11: Was there any work done on the rivers?
A11: The Town has not performed any mitigation efforts on
the rivers. The Board did invite Pat Ross, ANR Rivers
Engineer, to a meeting to discuss potential river alteration and mitigation
measures on the Dog River Dog River
*Q12: What steps have been taken in
A12: As noted above, the Town has performed extensive
culvert and drainage work within and along roads in the town right of
way. In addition, the town has revised its zoning regulations to
restrict new development from special flood hazard areas (the floodplain) along
the Dog River
*
Jeff Schulz, Town Administrator(802) 223-4405 jschulz@berlinvt.org
***
***TROPICAL STORM IRENE:
VTDIGGER 8/28/13
At the Weston Mobile Home Park, there are two neat rows of
refurbished mobile homes and newly seeded grass. But beyond them are mounds of
dirt and construction machinery where, pre-Irene, other homes were located. See more at: http://vtdigger.org/2013/08/28/tropical-storm-irene-mobile-home-parks-slowly-recovering-while-state-and-nonprofits-work-to-prevent-future-disasters/
***
***
FROM
Below are several recent postings... there have been many
more about a variety of topics, looking for services, garage sales, meeting
announcement, events, etc.
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ANDREA CHANDLER– Crosstown Road
The
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Selectboard
Update (New Treasurer!) (posted JEREMY HANSEN – Selectboard Member,
The first news is that we appointed a new Town Treasurer last night:
A few other notes from last night's meeting:
* As part of the continuing work on the water system, our
contractor Otter Creek Engineering will be in
* The Vermont Agency of Transportation is planning some
paving work for 2015 on portions of Hwy 62, Berlin State Highway Barre-Montpelier Road
Let me know if you have any questions or concerns! Jeremy
279-6054
***
GMTA is
Launching a New Website Sept. 9 (posted
TAWNYA
KRISTEN – Community Relations Mngr., GMTA
New Website - Same URL - www.gmtaride.orgWe'll be making public transportation easier than ever, with online purchasing of bus passes, and Google Transit to plan your trips. A mobile-friendly design makes it convenient when you are on the go. From local routes to our regional connections with CCTA, you'll find everything you need to get you where you need to go. Try it out on September 9th at gmtaride.org
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Berlin School Seeks Driver for Single Student Two Mornings
per Week (posted CHRIS DODGE •
Posted to:
Categories: Seeking
The
***
JEREMY HANSEN •
Posted to:
Categories: Seeking
Hi everybody-
The Town of
*****
The Town Clerk for the Town of Berlin, VT seeks a qualified person to fill the position of Assistant Town Clerk. This support staff will have the primary responsibility to provide administrative support to the Town Clerk.
The ideal candidate will have experience in a business or municipal office setting in which there is direct contact with the public. This position requires interaction with the public and town employees. This is an appointed position that reports to the Town Clerk, and is a part-time (25) hours per week.
Candidates must have the necessary job related experience to fulfill the minimum requirements of the job. The salary is commensurate with experience.
To apply, send resume, cover letter and list of three references by
*****
You can direct questions about this position to our Clerk Rosemary Morse at the address above or via email at townclerk@berlinvt.org
And just to keep you all in the loop, we have already interviewed a handful of candidates for the Assistant Town Administrator position and will be interviewing some great candidates for Treasurer this evening (Thursday, August 29th). We should be back up to full staffing before too long.
Thanks!
Jeremy
279-6054
***
Seeking to Help a Berlin Neighbor (posted
CHRIS DODGE •
Posted to:
Categories: Discussion and organizing
The
boys shoes size 5 1/2
boys husky jeans - 14 or 30/26
boys t-shirts 14-16 XL
boys long sleeve shirts 14-16 XL
short sleeve button up shirts 14-16 XL
socks (for a 10 year old)
boxers 30 waist
Donations of non-perishable food or gas/grocery cards also gladly accepted.
Thank you!
Chris Dodge, Principal
# posted by Corinne's blog of Berlin and area happenings @ 4:51 AM 
