Thursday, May 15, 2014
News to Know May 13, 2014
*
This
communication is put together and distributed on a volunteer basis by resident
Corinne Stridsberg simply in an effort to share information and build
community, it is not from the town of Berlin
Please share
this with your Berlin
*
Check out
the Berlin , Vermont
***********************
2004 SUBARU LEGACY WAGON FOR SALE
PERENNIAL PLANT SALE
CATE FARM IN EAST MONTPELIER
VENDORS & BAKERS NEEDED
COMPUTER &CELL PHONE
USERS
COMPUTER &
STUDENT SUMMER MEMBERSHIPS AT FIRST IN FITNESS
VOLUNTEERS LOOK OUT FOR HEALTH OF
RIVERS
***********************
A friend of mine is helping her mom sell her car -
2004 SUBARU LEGACY WAGON
FOR SALE
Dark blue, ten years old with only 32,000 miles, automatic, runs
great, no known defects and some rust, with relatively new tires. $4,500 .
Inspected - good through August.
Owned by senior citizen in Montpelier
***
***
PERENNIAL PLANT SALE
Perennial
Plant Sale Sale
The Berlin
Elementary School PTNA is looking for donations of: perennials, shrubs, berry
cane, and seedling donations for their 1st Annual Perennial Sale. Please
label all donations with plant name. Don't have pots to use? Use cans, milk/juice containers, quart
yogurt/cottage cheese containers, etc. Donations can be dropped off at
the school 5pm - 6:30pm on Friday, May 16th. If you have items to donate but need
help digging them, contact Heather Collins at 802-371-7223 or hcmc@tds.net .
The sale will be on Saturday, May 17th 9am - 12 noon or until plants are gone at the Berlin
Elementary School RAIN or SHINE! Plants from local gardens at great prices!
Perennials, veggie starts, and more.
***
***
CATE FARM IN EAST
MONTPELIER
Don’t miss Cate Farm’s
2014 Seedling Sales, the two remaining are on May 18 and 25th 2014 from 9am until 2pm . They are open for retail at Cate Farm on the Seedling Sale days
only, come rain, snow, frost or shine!!
Lots of annual and perennial flowers, vegetables galore, culinary and
medicinal herbs, something for everyone!!
***
***
A public hearing on the petition to ban all recreation on Berlin Pond
will be held May 27th at the Berlin Elementary school 6-8pm
***
***
Free Pet Adoptions May 31 & June 1st at many locations in
Vermont 10am - 5pm , check out the details
here:http://cvhumane.com/news/maddies-fund-free-pet-adoption-days/
***
***
VENDORS & BAKERS NEEDED
Vendors are needed for a tailgate style community yard sale on Saturday, June 7th in the VSECU parking lot on theBarre-Montpelier Road Berlin
Bakers also needed for a bake sale that is part of this fund-raiser. Please call or write the number / email address above to sign up to bake. Please help us raise funds for the purchase of fencing for these dogs.
VENDORS & BAKERS NEEDED
Vendors are needed for a tailgate style community yard sale on Saturday, June 7th in the VSECU parking lot on the
Bakers also needed for a bake sale that is part of this fund-raiser. Please call or write the number / email address above to sign up to bake. Please help us raise funds for the purchase of fencing for these dogs.
***
***
COMPUTER & CELL PHONE USERS
"LOOK
UP" - if you haven't watched this 5-minute
video yet, it really is worth the time.
http://blog.petflow.com/a-video-everyone-needs-to-see/
***
***
STUDENT SUMMER
MEMBERSHIPS AT FIRST IN FITNESS
Student Summer Memberships at First in Fitness may be
purchased from May 1 through August 31. Summer memberships may be purchased for
a minimum of 3 months or as many as you wish with no enrollment fee at year
round rates. Rates available for individuals, couples, families, students and seniors.
Payment in full is required at time of enrollment. College Students pay High
School Rate! - $49/month plus tax (if you are interested in swimming it's best to
sign up at the Berlin club to have it be your "home" club and you can
take classes at both clubs.) http://firstinfitness.com/summer-memberships Student
Memberships are available for both High School and College students. Note: In
addition to regular membership options College students may purchase a
one-month membership during school breaks.
***
***
VOLUNTEERS LOOK OUT FOR
HEALTH OF RIVERS
Pub. 5/9/14 Times Argus by Amy Ash Nixon
MARSHFIELD — Buckets filled
with young trees were placed on both sides of the Martin Bridge on Thursday,
where dozens of tiny red flags pushed into the ground told volunteers where the
plantings should find their new homes in the ready spring earth.
For the past week, volunteers organized through the Friends of theWinooski River
Ann Smith, executive director of Friends of the Winooski River, was out along the riverbanks working alongside volunteers and taking breaks when new groups showed up to lend more hardworking hands.
Students helping with the planting of dogwoods, willows and other trees along the river’s edge Thursday came fromGreen Mountain Valley School Websterville Baptist School
“This is old farmland,” Smith said of the town-owned conservation area, and the Marshfield Conservation Commission works with the volunteers to help maintain and improve the buffer area along the river.
When Websterville science teacher Virginia Collins and four students arrived Thursday to volunteer, instead of explaining to the students the importance of riverbank riparian buffer restoration, Smith had the four teens explain it to her.
The students, Shannon Hannon, of North Randolph, Ashley Sanders, of Barre, Delainey Vorce, of Barre, and Jacob Bartlett, of Brookfield, all ticked off the reasons it is important to restore the buffer, which include filtering of stormwater runoff. Smith was impressed with their quick, accurate responses and talked about how improving the buffer through the addition of woody plants with strong root systems would also help with flood resiliency, slowing waters down and reducing flooding in the immediate area.
Don Coffey, from the nonprofit Trout Unlimited group, was busy filling two buckets at a time with water from the river to nourish the newly planted trees. He said the organization works to help improve the health of rivers in theWashington County
He said Thursday’s turnout and enthusiasm were good to see. “For one thing, many hands make light work,” he said with a smile.
Some of the students pitching in Thursday were from the EarthWalk program’s Teen Land Project and were there with their lead mentor, Erik Gillard.
Clustered around a young maple being planted were three students from the Teen Land Project — Cricket Liebermann, ofEast Montpelier , Brendon Lareau, of
Barre, and Lucas Boyden, of Duxbury. They all helped hold the tree’s roots in
place as earth was patted down around it to stabilize it.
“I’m having fun,” Lucas said when asked about the volunteer project.
Thursday was the last of four days that volunteers have assisted with riverbank work this spring.
Some 1,800 native trees have been planted along the banks of the Dog and Winooski rivers inBerlin Marshfield
“We really appreciate the help of our volunteers,” Smith said. “It’s a great way to get people outside, get their hands dirty, and learn about local ecology and stream protection.”
According to the group, many local riparian areas were damaged by the high waters of Tropical Storm Irene and by annual spring flooding, and all rivers protected in this effort run intoLake Champlain , so efforts here help
there as well.
Over the past eight years the group has planted 14,000 trees and shrubs on 35 acres in the Winooski watershed, including at sites in Cabot, Marshfield and Plainfield, and on the Stevens Branch in Barre, the North Branch in Worcester, and the Dog River in Northfield and Berlin.
To learn more about the efforts, visit www.winooskiriver.org.
amy.nixon @timesargus.com
For the past week, volunteers organized through the Friends of the
Ann Smith, executive director of Friends of the Winooski River, was out along the riverbanks working alongside volunteers and taking breaks when new groups showed up to lend more hardworking hands.
Students helping with the planting of dogwoods, willows and other trees along the river’s edge Thursday came from
“This is old farmland,” Smith said of the town-owned conservation area, and the Marshfield Conservation Commission works with the volunteers to help maintain and improve the buffer area along the river.
When Websterville science teacher Virginia Collins and four students arrived Thursday to volunteer, instead of explaining to the students the importance of riverbank riparian buffer restoration, Smith had the four teens explain it to her.
The students, Shannon Hannon, of North Randolph, Ashley Sanders, of Barre, Delainey Vorce, of Barre, and Jacob Bartlett, of Brookfield, all ticked off the reasons it is important to restore the buffer, which include filtering of stormwater runoff. Smith was impressed with their quick, accurate responses and talked about how improving the buffer through the addition of woody plants with strong root systems would also help with flood resiliency, slowing waters down and reducing flooding in the immediate area.
Don Coffey, from the nonprofit Trout Unlimited group, was busy filling two buckets at a time with water from the river to nourish the newly planted trees. He said the organization works to help improve the health of rivers in the
He said Thursday’s turnout and enthusiasm were good to see. “For one thing, many hands make light work,” he said with a smile.
Some of the students pitching in Thursday were from the EarthWalk program’s Teen Land Project and were there with their lead mentor, Erik Gillard.
Clustered around a young maple being planted were three students from the Teen Land Project — Cricket Liebermann, of
“I’m having fun,” Lucas said when asked about the volunteer project.
Thursday was the last of four days that volunteers have assisted with riverbank work this spring.
Some 1,800 native trees have been planted along the banks of the Dog and Winooski rivers in
“We really appreciate the help of our volunteers,” Smith said. “It’s a great way to get people outside, get their hands dirty, and learn about local ecology and stream protection.”
According to the group, many local riparian areas were damaged by the high waters of Tropical Storm Irene and by annual spring flooding, and all rivers protected in this effort run into
Over the past eight years the group has planted 14,000 trees and shrubs on 35 acres in the Winooski watershed, including at sites in Cabot, Marshfield and Plainfield, and on the Stevens Branch in Barre, the North Branch in Worcester, and the Dog River in Northfield and Berlin.
To learn more about the efforts, visit www.winooskiriver.org.
amy.nixon @timesargus.com
***
***
Pub 5/7/14 Times Argus by
David Delcore
BERLIN — The Select Board will publicly
oppose a grass-roots group’s effort to persuade the state to restore sweeping
restrictions on the recreational use of Berlin Pond and has agreed to remove
“No trespassing” signs that have barred access to the pond across a tiny
town-owned parcel on Paine Turnpike South.
On the strength of two tiebreaking votes by Chairman Ture Nelson, the board did what it wouldn’t — and, arguably, couldn’t — two weeks ago due to the absence of two board members and the unspoken opposition of one — Jeremy Hansen. Hansen declined at the time to second two pond-related motions that resurfaced, as promised, Monday night.
This time the full board was there, and Pete Kelley’s renewed motion that members send a letter to the state Department of Environmental Conservation reiterating the town’s interest in continued recreational use of the pond didn’t die for lack of a second.
Brad Towne, who missed the April 23 meeting, seconded Kelley’s motion, and Nelson kicked off the discussion by suggesting the board take a stand in response to a petition filed with the state by the group Citizens to Protect Berlin Pond.
“I would like to see us look after our interest in the pond and write comments opposing this petition,” Nelson said, noting a public hearing on the request is set for May 27 at6 p.m. at Berlin Elementary School
Nelson’s statement rekindled a familiar back-and-forth that featured a few new wrinkles.
One of them involved Hansen, who was critical of those who he claimed have sought to marginalize participants in what he described as a noble effort to protect a “unique” natural resource.
First, Hansen, who described himself as the son of a professional fishing guide, sought to establish his outdoorsman credentials.
“I’m a fisherman, and if it wasn’t awkward and bulky and very fragile I would have brought in my 54-inch muskie mount that I caught about 10 years ago,” he said.
Hansen said he could understand and appreciate the lure of the pond to many, but he sides with those who believe it should be off limits, as it was for several decades before the Vermont Supreme Court struck down long-standing recreational restrictions two years ago.
“We used to have something that was virtually unique inVermont
That’s when Hansen took aim at those responsible for what he characterized as “the juvenile use of personal attacks against people who are not in favor of increased access” to the pond. He said painting those local residents — a group that includes a “police chief, a nurse and a musician” — as “environmental extremists” and the “fringe element” was unnecessary. And to suggest, as some publicly have, that they would intentionally contaminate the pond in order to blame outdoor enthusiasts was over the top, he said.
“A lot of people have been respectful, but to the rest of you: ‘Shame on you,’” Hansen said. “I didn’t think that was the way things worked inVermont
While Hansen urged the board not to take a petition on the pending petition, a representative of the state Department of Fish and Wildlife sought to dispel the myth that his department is interested in constructing a traditional boat ramp on Berlin Pond.
“That has never been the intention of the Department of Fish and Wildlife,” said Mike Wichrowski, adding that the state has focused exclusively on creating “carry-on access” where those with kayaks and canoes can park off the road and safely get onto the pond.
Wichrowski said the department was prepared to continue exploring the potential for developing a modest access area near an existing parking lot on the north end of the pond and is offering to split the cost of a survey needed to determine the boundaries of an old road bed the town owns in that area.
However, Wichrowski said that while preliminary work can continue, construction of what has been described as a gravel parking area with a path to the pond would have to wait until after the Department of Environmental Conservation rules on the citizens group’s petition.
“We’re not going to move any dirt until these petitions have been settled,” he said.
Board members heard from residents ofBerlin Montpelier
Citing May Pond in Barton and Lake Champlain as examples, Wichrowski said allowing recreational use of public drinking water supplies is “more the norm than not” and said he was confident the pending petition would not produce a decision that barred low-impact recreational use of the pond.
Though the Montpelier City Council has supported the citizens group’s request, it sought far more modest restrictions — a ban on ice shanties and gas-powered augers — in a separate petition that is now under consideration.
After listening to both sides, Nelson snapped a 2-2 tie, joining Towne and Kelley in voting to send a letter reiterating the town’s support for public access to the pond. Hansen and Roberta Haskin voted against the motion.
The second 3-2 vote of the evening capped a discussion over whether to strip down “No trespassing” signs on a town-owned parcel on Paine Turnpike South that has 85 feet of pond frontage.
The signs were initially posted to prevent a run on the property in the immediate aftermath of the Vermont Supreme Court ruling. Board members were told by some the signs had outlived their usefulness and by others that taking them down without careful consideration would be a mistake.
Both sides agreed the initial wave of use that accompanied the court’s ruling had subsided and doubted the town parcel would get much use given the easier access onMirror Lake Road
However, some, like resident Bob Wernecke, questioned why public land was posted; others, like Cathy Hartshorn, argued there was no need to take the signs down.
Two town residents offered a possible reason.
Betty Copeland said having a safe place to paddle to without trespassing could be a good thing for those who are out on the pond. And while several suggested it would be far easier to launch a kayak or canoe from Mirror Lake Road, Frank Mier said wandering to the water’s edge, wading in, or perhaps do a little shore fishing might be nice.
“It doesn’t necessarily have to be a boat access,” he said. “I understand there’s fine fishing along that shore.”
Nelson joined Kelley and Towne in voting for removing the “No trespassing” signs.
david.delcore @timesargus.com
On the strength of two tiebreaking votes by Chairman Ture Nelson, the board did what it wouldn’t — and, arguably, couldn’t — two weeks ago due to the absence of two board members and the unspoken opposition of one — Jeremy Hansen. Hansen declined at the time to second two pond-related motions that resurfaced, as promised, Monday night.
This time the full board was there, and Pete Kelley’s renewed motion that members send a letter to the state Department of Environmental Conservation reiterating the town’s interest in continued recreational use of the pond didn’t die for lack of a second.
Brad Towne, who missed the April 23 meeting, seconded Kelley’s motion, and Nelson kicked off the discussion by suggesting the board take a stand in response to a petition filed with the state by the group Citizens to Protect Berlin Pond.
“I would like to see us look after our interest in the pond and write comments opposing this petition,” Nelson said, noting a public hearing on the request is set for May 27 at
Nelson’s statement rekindled a familiar back-and-forth that featured a few new wrinkles.
One of them involved Hansen, who was critical of those who he claimed have sought to marginalize participants in what he described as a noble effort to protect a “unique” natural resource.
First, Hansen, who described himself as the son of a professional fishing guide, sought to establish his outdoorsman credentials.
“I’m a fisherman, and if it wasn’t awkward and bulky and very fragile I would have brought in my 54-inch muskie mount that I caught about 10 years ago,” he said.
Hansen said he could understand and appreciate the lure of the pond to many, but he sides with those who believe it should be off limits, as it was for several decades before the Vermont Supreme Court struck down long-standing recreational restrictions two years ago.
“We used to have something that was virtually unique in
That’s when Hansen took aim at those responsible for what he characterized as “the juvenile use of personal attacks against people who are not in favor of increased access” to the pond. He said painting those local residents — a group that includes a “police chief, a nurse and a musician” — as “environmental extremists” and the “fringe element” was unnecessary. And to suggest, as some publicly have, that they would intentionally contaminate the pond in order to blame outdoor enthusiasts was over the top, he said.
“A lot of people have been respectful, but to the rest of you: ‘Shame on you,’” Hansen said. “I didn’t think that was the way things worked in
While Hansen urged the board not to take a petition on the pending petition, a representative of the state Department of Fish and Wildlife sought to dispel the myth that his department is interested in constructing a traditional boat ramp on Berlin Pond.
“That has never been the intention of the Department of Fish and Wildlife,” said Mike Wichrowski, adding that the state has focused exclusively on creating “carry-on access” where those with kayaks and canoes can park off the road and safely get onto the pond.
Wichrowski said the department was prepared to continue exploring the potential for developing a modest access area near an existing parking lot on the north end of the pond and is offering to split the cost of a survey needed to determine the boundaries of an old road bed the town owns in that area.
However, Wichrowski said that while preliminary work can continue, construction of what has been described as a gravel parking area with a path to the pond would have to wait until after the Department of Environmental Conservation rules on the citizens group’s petition.
“We’re not going to move any dirt until these petitions have been settled,” he said.
Board members heard from residents of
Citing May Pond in Barton and Lake Champlain as examples, Wichrowski said allowing recreational use of public drinking water supplies is “more the norm than not” and said he was confident the pending petition would not produce a decision that barred low-impact recreational use of the pond.
Though the Montpelier City Council has supported the citizens group’s request, it sought far more modest restrictions — a ban on ice shanties and gas-powered augers — in a separate petition that is now under consideration.
After listening to both sides, Nelson snapped a 2-2 tie, joining Towne and Kelley in voting to send a letter reiterating the town’s support for public access to the pond. Hansen and Roberta Haskin voted against the motion.
The second 3-2 vote of the evening capped a discussion over whether to strip down “No trespassing” signs on a town-owned parcel on Paine Turnpike South that has 85 feet of pond frontage.
The signs were initially posted to prevent a run on the property in the immediate aftermath of the Vermont Supreme Court ruling. Board members were told by some the signs had outlived their usefulness and by others that taking them down without careful consideration would be a mistake.
Both sides agreed the initial wave of use that accompanied the court’s ruling had subsided and doubted the town parcel would get much use given the easier access on
However, some, like resident Bob Wernecke, questioned why public land was posted; others, like Cathy Hartshorn, argued there was no need to take the signs down.
Two town residents offered a possible reason.
Betty Copeland said having a safe place to paddle to without trespassing could be a good thing for those who are out on the pond. And while several suggested it would be far easier to launch a kayak or canoe from Mirror Lake Road, Frank Mier said wandering to the water’s edge, wading in, or perhaps do a little shore fishing might be nice.
“It doesn’t necessarily have to be a boat access,” he said. “I understand there’s fine fishing along that shore.”
Nelson joined Kelley and Towne in voting for removing the “No trespassing” signs.
david.delcore @timesargus.com
# posted by Corinne's blog of Berlin and area happenings @ 12:39 PM 
