Monday, September 01, 2014
News to Know August 23, 2014
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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 friends and neighbors. If you're not already
receiving this news directly by email, send an email to request this to corinnestridsberg@gmail.com.
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Check out the "Berlin , Vermont " Community
News page on facebook to find bits of current news, some not included here: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Berlin-Vermont/205922199452224
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Notes:
PLEASE BE SURE TO VOTE ON
TUESDAY, AUGUST 26 8AM - 7PM AT THE
TOWN OFFICE
Today (Saturday 8/23) is
the Musical Instrument Sale down at the Bethany Church 115 Main St. Montpelier
9am - 2pm http://sharethemusicvt.org/sale.htm
It's also the last day of the 50% off sale at
Sally's just off Exit 9 in Middlesex:
Sally's Second Act Thrift Shop is having a huge
summer sale! Monday, August 18 - Saturday, August 23. 50% off everything
(except Sun's Eye Essential Oils, Duckworth T-Shirts, painted sap buckets and
furniture). We need to make room for our fall and winter inventory so come on
down and get some great deals! For more info call 802-585-6215.
If you have a home, or are aware of one, that is
going to be going on to the market here in Berlin , I know several
people looking - especially in the under $200,000 price range.
I'm always glad to include a listing in this News to Know also.
Below you will find:
SCHOOL PHOTOS SAVINGS CODES
THE WHOLLY KALE!
TOWN NEWS UPDATES
HIGHEST RATE IN THE STATE, BERLIN PUBLIC SAFETY
READY TO SERVE?
RECALCULATING ROUTE
WONDER CARDS & COMICS AT THE CHAMPLAIN VALLEY FAIR!
PICK YOUR OWN POTATOES IN SEPTEMBER
FROM BERLIN FRONT PORCH FORUM
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The Berlin Volunteer Fire Department will hold a car wash at the "Four Corners " station
starting at 8am and going until about 1pm on Saturday, August 23.
This is a fundraiser for the department and is by donation.
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SCHOOL
PHOTOS SAVINGS CODES
Just got a good tip regarding school photos:
"a google search can net various discounts from Lifetouch. I'm not sure
the codes work if you fill out the paper version of the order form but it works
with the online version. I only get the 18 count "exchange" school
photo sheet but googled and found a 10 percent discount if you put in 10forany
at the discount box online. It only saved me a total of 2 bucks but for those
with larger orders or more kids, it adds up. There might be better coupons
online for those getting packages. This is the first year I thought to look for
discount codes!"
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THE WHOLLY KALE!
"The Wholly Kale!" raw juice bar's official ongoing
hours to end of season (prob. end of Oct.) are Tues-F: 9am to 7pm , Sat: 11am-7pm , and Sun & M
closed. Also, bulk orders (half & whole gallons) are accepted and can be
delivered within a 15 mile area.
"The Wholly
Kale!" raw juice bar is opening at 67 Slayton Ave off Route 12
(next to GMTA), operating out of a food trailer. Owned and operated by Lisa
Lamoreaux and family. They are serving fresh, cold pressed raw juice. All of
the ingredients are grown either on-site or bought
locally and therefore are subject to change daily due to season / availability.
Initially hours will be 11am to 7pm. Find more details athttp://thewhollykale.wix.com/thewhollykale or call
802-249-5942
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TOWN NEWS UPDATES
Make it a habit to call the Berlin Resource Line weekly to get
updated information on meetings, events, and deadlines. The number is 552-8805 and a new recording is
made each Friday.
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Tax bills went out in the mail on August 21st.
The first payment is due September 22nd and the following three quarterly
payments are still do on the 15th of
November, February, and May.
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The Sewer Commission meets on Monday, August 25th.
The Planning Commission next meets August 27th.
Note the Selectboard will meet on Wednesday, September 3rd instead of on Monday the 1stwhich
is Labor Day.
The Development Review Board will meet Tuesday, September 2nd.
These meetings are at the Town Office at 7pm . Agendas are posted at the Town Office and can
be found on the town website www.berlinvt.org
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The primary election will be on Tuesday, August 26th with polls open 8am to 7pm at the town office.
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In response to a petition received, after months of deliberation
the Vermont Department of Environment Conservation has announced that they will
NOT ban fishermen, paddlers, and swimmers from using Berlin Pond.
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HIGHEST RATE IN THE
STATE, BERLIN PUBLIC
SAFETY
The two quotes below are
from Bill Fraser, Montpelier ’s City Manager; you can find the whole story at:
www.montpelier-vt.org/page/350/Taxes-Fees.html
“If we look at communities around the state with high tax rates we
start seeing some interesting parallels. There’s our Central Vermont counterpart, Barre City claiming the top municipal (non-school) tax rate
in Vermont .”
A
city claiming to have the highest tax rate in the state is not one we want to
lock ourselves into a cost sharing partnership with. I sat next to Thom Lauzon,
mayor of Barre at a public safety committee meeting a few years ago, after the
meeting, which he was quite skeptical about, he looked me right in the eye and
said, “If anyone wants to help Barre pay our bills, we’ll let them” and then he
laughed. The Berlin select board respectfully declines to help Barre
pay their bills.
“Montpelier handles over 18,000 to 20,000 police incidents
(large and small) annually. At more than two calls for service per capita, this is the highest police activity rates
in Vermont except for Barre City . By
comparison, Burlington - even with the colleges and being the center of
the metro area - only handles about one police incident per capita.”
Barre city wins another
“highest” in the state for police activity followed by Montpelier coming in with a close second. These two facts
alone should be enough to convince anybody that entering into a cost sharing
agreement with Barre and Montpelier is not in Berlins best interest. Pat McDonald is the special
projects manager in Barre City (Times Argus, April 25, 2014 ) and apparently getting Berlin onboard with the Regional Public Safety Authority
to help Barre “pay their bills” is one of her special projects.
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READY TO SERVE?
Pub 8/21/14
Times Argus Talk of the Town
BERLIN — Town officials say they’ve tried everything except going door to door, but they can’t seem to find anyone interested in serving on the local sewer and cemetery commissions.
Perhaps we can help.
No there’s nothing glitzy or glamorous about sewers and cemeteries and the fact that both five-member commissions are currently short-handed could be a reflection of that.
However, the under-the-radar work those folks do is important and in small-town Vermont it relies on volunteers willing to give up some of their time and a bit of their brainpower for the greater good.
Just ask Norb Rhinerson.
Rhinerson created two of the vacancies we’re talking about when he recently moved from his longtime home inBerlin to the Gardens in
Williamstown.
Rhinerson’s change of address forced him to surrender his seats onBerlin ’s cemetery and sewer
commissions, leaving both panels down multiple members.
The five-member cemetery commission, which meets seasonally, is now down three members, making a quorum a mathematical impossibility. The sewer commission, which meets monthly, is short two members. That isn’t a show-stopper, but it makes a quorum a challenge and means the commission is one member’s conflict of interest from being unable to make important decisions. (This isVermont and that isn’t a reach
because one of the members is developer Henry LaGue.)
It’s why regular folks like Rhinerson, people who pitch in, are the backbone of a community and why, if you live in Berlin, you might consider dropping a letter of interest off at the town offices on Shed Road, or giving Interim Town Administrator Tom Badowski a call (223-4405 ext. 4).
It can’t be all that time-consuming because Rhinerson, who served on the sewer commission since 1998, had been pulling double-duty since joining the cemetery commission in 2003. Sure, he was retired, but he still managed to serve as president of the Berlin Historical Society and as the town’s webmaster.
BERLIN — Town officials say they’ve tried everything except going door to door, but they can’t seem to find anyone interested in serving on the local sewer and cemetery commissions.
Perhaps we can help.
No there’s nothing glitzy or glamorous about sewers and cemeteries and the fact that both five-member commissions are currently short-handed could be a reflection of that.
However, the under-the-radar work those folks do is important and in small-town Vermont it relies on volunteers willing to give up some of their time and a bit of their brainpower for the greater good.
Just ask Norb Rhinerson.
Rhinerson created two of the vacancies we’re talking about when he recently moved from his longtime home in
Rhinerson’s change of address forced him to surrender his seats on
The five-member cemetery commission, which meets seasonally, is now down three members, making a quorum a mathematical impossibility. The sewer commission, which meets monthly, is short two members. That isn’t a show-stopper, but it makes a quorum a challenge and means the commission is one member’s conflict of interest from being unable to make important decisions. (This is
It’s why regular folks like Rhinerson, people who pitch in, are the backbone of a community and why, if you live in Berlin, you might consider dropping a letter of interest off at the town offices on Shed Road, or giving Interim Town Administrator Tom Badowski a call (223-4405 ext. 4).
It can’t be all that time-consuming because Rhinerson, who served on the sewer commission since 1998, had been pulling double-duty since joining the cemetery commission in 2003. Sure, he was retired, but he still managed to serve as president of the Berlin Historical Society and as the town’s webmaster.
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RECALCULATING ROUTE
Pub 8/21/14 Times Argus Talk of the Town
BERLIN — Plans to rename a Berlin street that apparently confuses the heck out ofGPS systems hit a speed
bump this week when the man who lives on the corner of Hersey Road and the road
soon-to-be-formerly-known as Green Mountain Drive urged the Select Board to
rethink their position.
The board, for lack of a better suggestion, proposed renaming the roadCaledonia Drive .
Why?
Well, it runs pastAddison Drive and turns into Bennington Drive and in the interest
of keeping the whole county theme going they settled on Caledonia Drive .
Enter Tom Atkins, who didn’t quibble with the board’s county logic, but argued they should have picked one closer to home.
“Why don’t we name it ‘Washington Drive ?’” he asked. “It’s a
nice county with a good name.”
Sure there is a “Washington Street ” in Barre, but Atkins
noted that’s in an entirely different zip code and shouldn’t cause the GPS confusion that has
motorists bound for Green Mountain Drive in Montpelier mistakenly driving
past his home in Berlin .
It isn’t like anyone else really cared. Atkins sat through a good bit of the board meeting waiting to speak his piece during a public hearing where he was the only “public.”
Though it meant re-warning the hearing and trying yet again, board members agreed to see what the public thinks about Atkins’ suggestion on Sept. 15.
BERLIN — Plans to rename a Berlin street that apparently confuses the heck out of
The board, for lack of a better suggestion, proposed renaming the road
Why?
Well, it runs past
Enter Tom Atkins, who didn’t quibble with the board’s county logic, but argued they should have picked one closer to home.
“Why don’t we name it ‘
Sure there is a “
It isn’t like anyone else really cared. Atkins sat through a good bit of the board meeting waiting to speak his piece during a public hearing where he was the only “public.”
Though it meant re-warning the hearing and trying yet again, board members agreed to see what the public thinks about Atkins’ suggestion on Sept. 15.
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Pub 8/20/14 Times Argus by David Delcore
Board members quickly dismissed a proposal to use $50,000 of the undesignated fund balance that the town carried into the fiscal year that ended June 30 as a source of budget revenue this year. Instead, they agreed to squirrel the money away in case of a municipal emergency.
According to board members, the savings to homeowners would have been minimal — $30 on a house assessed at $200,000. Had the board supported the proposal to offset the tax increase, it would have trimmed the municipal rate by about 1.5 cents — from roughly 47.5 cents to a little over 46 cents per $100 of assessed property value.
The rate that the board belatedly set — 47.49 cents — reflects an increase of 4.52 cents from the previous year and will add roughly $90 to the tax bill for a home assessed at $200,000.
That rate tells a little less than half the story in Berlin, where the town tax rate — including the figure set by the state to pay for operating Berlin Elementary School and the town’s share of the budget for U-32 Junior-Senior High School — just went up more than 11 cents for residential properties and just over 8 cents for commercial properties.
Those increases will be reflected in the bills that will be mailed out more than a month behind schedule later this week.
For homeowners the new combined residential rate translates into roughly a $225 increase in the tax bill for a $200,000 home, with $90 of the increase attributable to the town and the balance tied to the schools. While the rate increase for commercial properties is slightly less, it will add roughly $80 in taxes for every $100,000 in assessed value.
The rate-setting process typically occurs in early July, but a lengthy delay in lodging this year’s grand list forced the board to wait until Monday to take care of that piece of business. By law, property owners must be given 30 days from the date tax bills are mailed to pay the first installment, which in a normal year would have already been due. Instead of Aug. 15, officials expect the first installment will be due Sept. 20 or 21. The remaining three quarterly installments will not be affected.
@Tagline:david.delcore @timesargus.com
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WONDER
CARDS & COMICS AT THE CHAMPLAIN VALLEY FAIR!
"I will have a HUGE BOOTH at the BIG
Champlain Valley Fair in Essex Jct., underneath the grandstands. Aug 22- 31.
Offering for sale a huge comic collection of mostly $1, $2, and $5 comics.
These are great for filling in your collection cheaply. Also new graphic novels
at 30% OFF and HALF PRICE, MTG cards, Pokemon, cool toys, and sports cards."
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Celebrating Northfield Artists also: Northfield 's One-Room Schools , NOrthfield Tourist Souvenirs, Richardson Cemetery
Restoration Project, and other displays about Northfield 's History.
2014 Exhibit and Labor Day Book and Ephemera
Sale - the Northfield Historical Society is cleaning house.
More details at: http://www.nhsvt.org/home/exhibit-information
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PICK
YOUR OWN POTATOES IN SEPTEMBER
Reminder that Pick Your Own Potatoes is in
September!! One Sunday only - date isn't
set yet but likely to be the same Sunday as Tunbridge Fair (9/14) or the
following Sunday (9/21). It is a bit
weather dependent in order for the digger to get through the field.
Here is a news story on potato picking last
year (yes, that's one of our daughters and our grandson in the story!):
http://www.wcax.com/story/23496106/families-gear-up-for-potato-picking
As my friends and followers know, this is my
FAVORITE day of the year. On just one
Sunday in September you can go down to the Chappelle's potato fields in
Williamstown and pick your own potatoes behind the digger. Wear your sneakers (or boots) and you might
want a pair of gloves. You don't do the
digging, the equipment does. You walk
along and pick whatever size and quantity of potatoes you care to. We usually bring 5-gallon buckets to put the
potatoes into (or bring milk crates or bags) and then if picking a large
quantity transfer them into some burlap bags (coffee bean or grain bags) on the
side of the field near where the scales are.
If you want to go check it out but want them to
do all the work, you can buy a 50 lb sack of pre picked potatoes with the price
varying depending on the type (chefs, bakers, or unclassifieds).
The prices are extremely reasonable - I think
it was 35 cents a pound last year.
It's been "Reba" round white potatoes
they usually have for picking although they grow some other types you can buy
in the 50 lb bags.
The pre picked 50 lb bags of potatoes are
available no only on the pick-your-own day but also at the Chappell warehouse
throughout the season.
Barb & Bob Chappelle 3242 South Hill Road , Williamstown 802-433-5930
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FROM BERLIN FRONT PORCH FORUM
Below are some recent posts .... there have been many more about a
variety of topics, looking for services, garage sales, meeting announcements,
events, etc. Membership is free - to join go to: http://frontporchforum.com
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U-32 School Board Update (FPF #411 8/22/14)
Greetings
from your U-32 School Board of Directors! We are very excited for the start of
a new school year and the return of our students and staff. We are especially
looking forward to working with our new principal Steven Dellinger-Pate, whom
we hope you get a chance to meet at the school or through one of his visits
throughout our community. The Board has committed to posting updates each month
to inform people about our work.
Over
the past month, the Board has been working to finalize our own goals for the
year which include defining the learning outcomes we all want for our students
and improving our communication with the community especially during the
budgeting process. The Board will be hosting a community forum on these topics
on October 1st
from 6:00-7:00pm in Room 131 at U-32. We hope you can come, learn more about our
work and share your ideas. You can always communicate with the Board by
attending one of our regular meetings (generally first and third Wednesday of the month at 6:00pm ) or contacting us
individually http://www.u32.org/grades9-12/administration/school-board/board-of-directors.
We value your input on ways to improve our school for the benefit of our
community and our students.
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Primary Election Tuesday
(FPF #411 8/22/14)
ANNE DONAHUE, COUNTERP@TDS.NET, STATE
REPRESENTATIVE, WASHINGTON-1
It
is a pretty low profile election, so this is a reminder that next Tuesday is primary election day in Vermont , and there are a few
primaries that do have contested slots. It may seem not worthwhile to vote in
this one, but here are two suggestions for reasons to go to the polls:
1. Because you can! Let's not lose sight of this privilege that we have, missing in so many other places in the world. Put your name down as someone who cares enough to exercise your rights.
2. Minor, special-interest candidates can get elected when there is a very low turnout, so though you may assume the leading person, whom you prefer, doesn't need the help of your vote, this is how surprise upsets can occur.
Anne
1. Because you can! Let's not lose sight of this privilege that we have, missing in so many other places in the world. Put your name down as someone who cares enough to exercise your rights.
2. Minor, special-interest candidates can get elected when there is a very low turnout, so though you may assume the leading person, whom you prefer, doesn't need the help of your vote, this is how surprise upsets can occur.
Anne
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Multi-Family Garage & Tool Sale (FPF #410 8/21/14)
Posted
to: Berlin
Event: Aug 23, 2014 to Aug
24, 2014
Household goods, kids clothing, Lacross
equipment, crafts.
Carpentry tools including Brad nailer,
Edge Bander, sanders, painting supplies, sheet rocking equipment, hardware,
router & much, much more. Sat & Sun 8/23 &24 from 9-3 route 12 in
Riverton.
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Huge Yard Sale This Weekend! (FPF #410 8/21/14)
Posted
to: Berlin
Everything must go! Furniture, kitchen
ware (including some cast iron pieces!), home decor, books, CD's, jewelry,
men's clothes, women's clothes, some children's items, etc.! Everything will be
priced to sell, or can be negotiated! There will even be an adorable child
selling lemonade, and a petting zoo (our own pets, actually) on the premises
for your amusement : )
Come check it out Saturday and Sunday,
from 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. at 148 Highland
Avenue in Berlin (the road just
across from Mattress Land on the Barre-Montpelier
Road ). 7th house on the right up Highland ...we've got a
gray house with white trim, and a Goat Crossing sign at the foot of the
driveway! Hope to see you this weekend!
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Sellers Wanted for Tailgate Style
Community Yard Sale (FPF #409 8/20/14)
Martha Clelia • Paine Turnpike South
Posted
to: Berlin
Interested in participating in a community
yard sale? Saturday, September 13th at the VSECU parking lot on Rt 302 in
Berlin, 9:00 am to 2:00 pm. $15.00 to reserve a two-spot space. Space is
limited so please reserve early - call 522-0613 or email FriendsofVermontDogs@gmail.com.
This is a fund-raising event for an all-volunteer non-profit dedicated to
building fences and dog houses for dogs that live outside 24/7/365. For more
information visit us on Facebook.
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Aug. 4 Selectboard Meeting Notes &
Aug. 18 Agenda (FPF #408 8/18/14)
Posted
to: Berlin
Event: Aug 18, 2014 , 7:00 PM to 10:00
PM
Sorry for the lateness of this posting -
I'm including both my notes from the last meeting and Monday's agenda:
1) Bike lane study
The Barre-Montpelier
Road bike lane/pedestrian study has produced
some interesting results, and in particular is looking at slimming down the
portion with 4 lanes to be 2 lanes with a bike lane on either side. Here's the
draft "alternatives" document:
If you're interested in being kept in the
loop about the ongoing study, please contact Bob Wernecke (rwernecke@hotmail.com).
2) New store at Berlin Mall?
It looks like there might be a Kohl's near
Berlin Mall in the next few years. Thoughts?
3) Vacancies
I know you're tired of hearing about
these, but it's really important that we get at least one more person on the
Sewer (and soon to be Water) Commission. You'd play a crucial part in the
functioning of this valuable service, and it's not a huge time commitment.
Please consider taking the role of Commissioner!
(And we also have vacancies on the
Emergency Management Team, Planning Commission, and Cemetery Commission!)
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Seeking Candidates for Geriatric Assistant to
LNA Program (FPF Middlesex #1393 8/22/14)
Woodridge
Rehabilitation and Nursing is looking for candidates for the Geriatric
Assistant to LNA Program startingSeptember 8th. There
are 8 openings in the program for this term. Participants will earn a wage
working as a Geriatric Assistant while enrolled in the LNA training program.
The cost of the training program is covered by CVMC. If you're interested in
starting a career in healthcare and would like to learn more, visit our
website:
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Bottle Drive for U32 Fringe Festival (FPF Middlesex #1390 8/19/14)
Hi,
my name is Aven Williams. I am a member of U-32 high school's amazing theater
department. Next summer, I, along with a handful of students and adults who
make up the theater community here at U-32, are planning an ambitious and
exciting trip to Scotland 's world theater
festival, The Fringe! The Fringe is a great opportunity for emerging artists
from around the world to get a whole new perspective and learn more about doing
what they love and do best in the performing arts. For a group of ambitious
high school students it will be one amazing adventure, and with your help we
will be able to raise the money in no time. One of our first fundraisers is
bottle drive for the of the month of August. We have an account with the
Montpelier Discount Beverage (next to Shaw's) and it would be greatly
appreciated if you could drop them by for "U-32 Theater-Fringe." One
of my parents and I can also come by and pick them up at your house, just let
us know through this email. Thank you for supporting and encouraging the young
artists in your community!
For
more information about our trip and updates on other fundraisers please check
out the U-32 goes to the Fringe Festival Facebook page.
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