Sunday, January 17, 2016

 

Berlin News to Know October 29th

BERLIN NEWS TO KNOW  October 29, 2015
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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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For current news look for "BerlinVermont" on facebook for a constant flow of information.  You don't need to be a facebook user to access it, but if you do use facebook, be sure to "Like" it:

For historical news look for "BerlinVermont Memories" on facebook.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/BerlinVermontMemories
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Announcement - Haven't been getting much information out recently as we've been busy helping our oldest, Sara and her husband, Joe, get moved here to Berlin before their baby due date of November 5th.  We arrived Saturday night 11pm and our granddaughter surprised us and decided to be born two days later on Monday, October 26th!!  William (now 4) enjoyed meeting his cousin, Zeta!  Life is good!

Below you will find:
HALLOWEEN FUN!
EXIT 8 SOUTHBOUND TO CLOSE
RICHARD WOOD & GORDON BELSHER PERFORMING
UVM EXTENSION OFFICE MOVED WITHIN TOWN
BERLIN IS BERLIN
BERLIN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL BOARD MEETING ON-LINE
13th ANNUAL FALL SCHOLASTIC CHESS TOURNAMENT
NEXT TAX PAYMENT DUE NOVEMBER 17TH
SCHEDULED MEETINGS / HOLIDAY
ANNUAL SCHOLASTIC BOOK FAIR
BUS STOP CONVERSATIONS - LATEST ADDITION ONLINE
BERLIN CLOSE TO WATER SYSTEM LAUNCH
FROM BERLIN FRONT PORCH FORUM
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HALLOWEEN FUN!
The Montpelier Recreation Dept. is once again hosting a Halloween Party for families at the Montpelier High School Cafeteria.  This will be on Saturday, October 31st 1-2:30pm.  Ghoulish games, freaky fun, frightening food, and mysterious magic by Berlin's favorite magician!  From 1-2pm there are free games and refreshments and 2-2:30 Marko Magic Show.  Sponsors of this event include: VFW Post $792, Ellie's Farm Market, Dunkin Donuts, and Norwich Cadets.
Halloween is a Saturday this year, so downtown Montpelier has decided to step things up a bit! Starting at 3 pm on State Street (between Elm and Main), there will be a Monster Mash with carnival games, an obstacle course and free popcorn and cotton candy, all hosted by the Community Capital Church.
At 3:15 pm, also on State Street, line up for the Costume Contest; the categories are cutest, scariest and most creative in the following age ranges: 0-5, 6-12, 13-18, Adult and Pet. There will also be one overall winner.  Winners will receive gifts and gift certificates from downtown Montpelier stores.
At 4:00 pm, the merchants in downtown Montpelier will be ready for trick-or-treating, giving away candy, toys and other treasures to the community kids. Downtown trick-or-treating has become a safe and fun tradition in Montpelier
Lost Nation Theater invites you to their Spooktacular Haunted Walk in City Hall. From 4-5:30 pm, tour the “kid-friendly” Haunted Walk and get scared with friends and family! 
NECI on Main will be hosting a Haunted House at the Chef's Table. It is open to the public, family friendly and will be from 4-7 pm. Free admission and we will be giving out candy to all trick or treaters, and anyone that dines at NECI on Main that day will get a special Halloween themed treat.
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EXIT 8 SOUTHBOUND TO CLOSE
Exit 8 southbound on and off ramps will be closed Nov 5th - 13th and motorists will need to use exits 7 or 9. Those on I-89 In this area will be reduced to a single lane.  For more details and a map visit: http://vtrans.vermont.gov/sites/aot/files/Press%20Release%20Exit%208%20Bridge%20Final.pdf
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RICHARD WOOD & GORDON BELSHER PERFORMING
November 9th at 7:30pm at the Berlin Congregational Church (1808 Scott Hill Rd) don't miss an amazing performance by fiddler Gordon Belsher and guitarist/vocalist Richard Wood from Prince Edward Island.  Expect high-energy, high-quality music.  Tickets are $15. Call 229-9504.  Your support of this event would be appreciated!
www.rwood.ca/richard-wood-tour-schedule
Interested in a bit of a preview?  Check this out: www.youtube.com/watch?v=1v9qwKsPKR0
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UVM EXTENSION OFFICE MOVED WITHIN TOWN
The University of Vermont Extension office in Berlin has a new home. The office recently moved from its longtime Comstock Road location to 327 Route 302, Berlin, while the mailing address is 327 Route 302, Suite 1, Barre, Vermont 05641. Although the office has a Barre mailing address, it is located within Berlin town limits, so it will continue to be called the UVM Extension Berlin office. The office will be open weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The new phone number is 476-2003.
(of note, the edge of Berlin on Route 302 is at the Family Heirloom & Knoll Motel with part of the motel property being in Berlin)
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BERLIN IS BERLIN
It's always wonderful when places in Berlin are referred to as being in Berlin and not one of our neighboring towns.
Did you know that now if you go to the www.amtrak.com website to book train travel, you can start typing in Berlin and get our "Montpelier Junction" station.  I love that it's now being referred to as Berlin-Montpelier or Montpelier-Berlin (instead of the Montpelier or Barre-Montpelier station).
Amtrak folks did a nice job updating the Great American Stations website for our Berlin train station - www.greatamericanstations.com/Stations/MPR
Yes, once person can speak up and explain it and some folks will pay attention and make appropriate changes. 
Would love to see everything in Berlin being referred to as Berlin!
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BERLIN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL BOARD MEETING ON-LINE
The October 12th Berlin Elementary School Board meeting recording became available just a couple days after the meeting. Of note is that two board members have resigned and two new members were nominated to join the board until Town Meeting in March 2016. It's an important time of year as the budget process is starting to develop what will be voted on in March.  http://orcamedia.net/  ORCA also has a facebook page www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=ORCA%20Media
(next school board meeting Nov 9th)
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13th ANNUAL FALL SCHOLASTIC CHESS TOURNAMENT
Saturday, Nov. 21st, 2015 at the Berlin Elementary School.  Organized by Mike Stridsberg, mike@vtchess.info.  Unrated tournament for grades K-12, 4 round Swiss, Game/30.  Great smaller tournament.  The Vermont Chess Information website can be found at:   www.vtchess.info
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NEXT TAX PAYMENT DUE NOVEMBER 17TH
In order to meet this deadline, payments should be brought to the Treasurer at the town office no later than the 17th at 4:30pm or they can be left in the deposit box outside the front door (which will be checked Tuesday morning).  Payments can also be postmarked (not an office meter but postmarked by the post office) by August 17th.  Payments not made will incur a late fee of 8% penalty and 1% interest.  The Treasurer’s office is open five days a week (Monday through Thursday 8am to 4:30pm and on Friday 8am to 4pm).
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SCHEDULED MEETINGS, EVENTS & HOLIDAYS
The following meetings are upcoming:
Friday, October 30 - Halloween Family Dance 6:30-8PM Berlin Elem. School
Monday, November 2 - Selectboard meeting 7pm Town office
Tuesday, November 3 - Development Review Board 7pm Town office
Wednesday, November 4th - Deadline to sign up for Community Luncheon at school next week
Thursday, November 5 - PTNA meeting 6:30pm Berlin Elementary
Monday, November 9 - Sewer Commission 7pm Town office
Monday, November 9 - School Board Meeting 6:15pm Berlin Elem School
Wednesday, November 11 - Town offices closed for Veteran's Day
Wednesday, November 11 - Community Luncheon at Berlin Elem. School
Wednesday, November 11 - Planning Commission 6pm Town office
Monday, November 16 - Selectboard 7pm Town office
Tuesday, November 17 - Quarterly TAX PAYMENT due
Tuesday, November 17 - Development Review Board 7pm Town office
Wednesday, November 18 - B.E.L.T. meeting at Berlin Elem. in Gauthier's room
Saturday, November 21 - Scholastic Chess Tournament grades K-12 held at Berlin Elem.
Monday, November 23 - Sewer Commission 7pm Town office
Tuesday, November 24 - Berlin Economic Committee 6:30pm 
Tuesday, November 24 - Historical Society 7pm, Devin from the State Division of Historic Preservation to speak.  Slide show or videos & other materials for viewing at 6:30pm
Wednesday, November 25 - Planning Commission 6pm Town office
Thursday, November 26 - Town office Closed for Thanksgiving
Friday, November 27 - Town office closed
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ANNUAL SCHOLASTIC BOOK FAIR
Shop in person at the book fair in the school Learning Center November 6th 8am - 8pm and November 9th-13th 8am - 8pm
All proceeds go toward building the school library collection and classroom library collections.
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BUS STOP CONVERSATIONS - LATEST ADDITION ONLINE
Stage 32 presents their fall musical: Sweeney Todd at U-32, November 13, 14 at 7 p.m. And Nov. 15 at 2 p.m.
Elevation study pictures atop Hunger Mountain.
Berlin students learn about worm composting
Third graders receive dictionaries from Rotary.
Downing and Barrows are Outstanding Teachers
Read about them, read a synopsis of school climate data, see current events, board minutes and more in the current issue of Bus Stop Conversations:

Also, if you’d like to subscribe to Bus Stop Conversations and receive it in your in box every two weeks during the school year, please send us an email. Send to: dwolf@u32.org with "subscribe Bus Stop" in the subject.
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BERLIN CLOSE TO WATER SYSTEM LAUNCH
Pub. 10/27/15 Times Argus by David Delcore
  BERLIN — Town officials are weeks away from christening a municipal water system that was discussed for decades and will remain something of a work in progress even after it is fully functional next month.
  More than six months after Munson Earth Moving broke ground on the project, the Williston contractor is nearing the point where users — some more ready than others — will be able to hook on to the system and begin consuming water produced by three bedrock wells on Scott Hill Road.
  Those town-owned wells — drilled as the community cautiously explored the potential for a municipal water system — were tested and approved long before Munson was hired to complete the $5.5 million project earlier this year.
A pump house has since been constructed on the Scott Hill Road site, as has a 400,000-gallon water storage tank. The contractor has installed most of the 32,000 linear feet of transmission line that was contemplated when work began in April. Two additional spurs — one on Richardson Road and another on Birchwood Drive — are also complete, and Town Administrator Dana Hadley said the system should be up and running by mid-November.
  All that remains, according to Hadley, is for one crew to wrap up work on Industrial Lane and another, which is currently working on Paine Turnpike, to head out Crosstown Road.
  Once that work is done, Hadley said, the perimeter of a system capable of serving the entire Berlin Four Corners area will be in place and those most eager for water will be able to hook on.
  According to Hadley, many, if not most, of those connections won’t happen until next year, though he is aware of a few large users that plan to hook on as soon as possible.
  The Comfort Inn, Applebee’s restaurant and an adjoining convenience store — whose owners hope to replace it with a larger facility including a visitors center — have started work on connections, and Hadley said the town offices won’t be far behind. The municipal water system will resolve a long-standing problem associated with contaminated groundwater that has plagued both residential and commercial properties.
  Hadley said properties accounting for at least 80 “equivalent residential units” are expected to swiftly hook on to the new system. The balance of the 400 committed ERUs — the wells are permitted to serve up to 432 — likely will connect to the system by next spring, he said.
  With the town finally poised to launch its new utility, the hunt is on for someone to operate it and a rate structure is being developed.
  According to Hadley, the Select Board will discuss the merits of contracting with a private firm to operate the municipal system when it meets next week and the proposed rate structure will soon be submitted for the board’s consideration.
Thanks to interest that was stronger than initially projected, Hadley said the annual cost of water should be comfortably within the $600 estimate per equivalent residential unit used during the developmental stage of the project. All customers will be charged a quarterly fee that will finance the cost of constructing and operating the system, and likely a consumption-based charge.
  According to Hadley, perhaps half of those who have committed to buying water from the town are also customers of the local sewer system, and the plan is to eventually develop a combined bill for both municipal utilities that is due quarterly. Sewer customers pay twice a year, in February and August.
  The perimeter of the system — a massive U that includes Paine Turnpike, Fisher Road and Airport Road, as well as spurs on Crosstown, Granger, Richardson and Shed roads, Industrial Lane and Birchview Drive — will be finished next month. However, Hadley said two nonessential aspects of the project will remain undone.
  One involves installation of a belatedly proposed section of line along Comstock Road, linking the water line now being installed on Paine Turnpike to the one already in place on Airport Road. Though there aren’t many potential customers on Comstock Road, the $210,000 segment of transmission line will create an internal loop that engineers say will improve the hydraulics of the system and make future leaks easier to isolate without disrupting service to all users.
  Munson will turn its attention to Comstock Road once the rest of the system is operational.
  The other piece of unfinished business involves a planned interconnection with a privately owned spring-fed system that serves a sliver of Berlin located along the Barre-Montpelier Road corridor.
  According to Hadley, Berlin must exercise its expiring option to buy the system from owner Dean Hedges before the end of the year, because the acquisition is built into its financing for the water system. However, the town hasn’t yet obtained an easement it needs for the interconnection to cross the site of Berlin Health and Rehabilitation Center.
  Hadley said it is possible the town will have to run Hedges’ system, which serves 47 customers, as a stand-alone operation until it is able to obtain the easement necessary to combine the systems.
david.delcore @timesargus.com
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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

Booth Rental Opening  FPF #739  10/13/15

Angela Johnson • angjjohns@yahoo.com School St. 
Posted to: Berlin
I am purchasing Yvonne's Riverside Salon at 37 Elm St. Montpelier, on December 1st. I have Booth rental openings for Full or Part time Cosmetologist , Barbers, or Manicurist, in a family friendly salon. Flexible hours. If interested call 223-7611 or email angjjohns@yahoo.com.

Civil War Stories  FPF #752 10/25/15

Emily Richards • emr2220@hotmail.com • Us Route 302 
Posted to: Berlin
A small group of students at U-32 are looking for Civil War stories about Berlin--If you have connections, family stories, resources, or any other information regarding the town of Berlin during the Civil War, we are interested!
Feel free to email me at: erichards17@student.u32.org or Lauren Morse at: lmorse17@student.u32.org
We look forward to hearing from you!



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