Author Archive for Cynthia Prairie
Cynthia Prairie has been a newspaper editor more than 40 years. Cynthia has worked at such publications as the Raleigh Times, the Baltimore News American, the Buffalo Courier Express, the Chicago Sun-Times and the Patuxent Publishing chain of community newspapers in Maryland, and has won numerous state awards for her reporting. As an editor, she has overseen her staffs to win many awards for indepth coverage. She and her family moved to Chester, Vermont in 2004.
Zaremba defends Dollar General plans in court
This is Part I of two parts reporting on this week’s Dollar General appeal, only covering the testimony for Dollar General and cross-examination. Please share your views in the Comment section below the article. By Cynthia Prairie NEWFANE Many punches were thrown, quite a number were landed but none seemed to be a knockout in […]
Judge hears from Dollar General proponents
Posted at 8 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2013 NEWFANE The first day of testimony in the appeal of the Act 250 approval of a Dollar General for Chester wrapped up shortly before 5 p.m. after an early morning site visit and testimony from witnesses on behalf of the Zaremba Group, the developer for the 10,000-store […]
Playhouse plans for year-round performances with Walker Farm expansion
By Cynthia Prairie The Weston Playhouse Theatre Company is planning to expand its theatrical offerings to year-round with a new cultural center at the 4.9 acre Walker Farm, just north of its Weston Green main stage. The company, which attracts audiences from throughout the northeast, currently stages shows from late spring to early fall, offering […]
Toddler playset finally goes up at the Pinnacle
Click any photo to launch the gallery.
UPDATES: DRB on Dollar General; Ballinger’s stinkin’ Kickstarter campaign; Winston art is selling
The five-member Chester Development Review Board decided at its meeting on Monday, Aug. 12 that it would begin deliberating the Dollar General case on Thursday, Aug. 29. The meeting is not open to the public. In April 2012, the DRB had approved the construction of the proposed 9,100-square-foot Dollar General store. But opponents of the […]
DRB begins to address Dollar General proposal again
The Chester Development Review Board has gone through all the documents from the previous hearings on the proposed 9,100-square-foot Dollar General Store, according to zoning administrator Michael Normyle. At its Monday, Aug. 12 meeting, the five-member board will announce that it will begin considering what steps to take next. The meeting begins at 6 p.m. […]
LIFE IN WATERCOLORS: Winston painting sale evokes memories of the Chester Art Guild
By Cynthia Prairie Galen Pinkham is a large man with a ready smile, a welcoming laugh and a wealth of stories. He navigates this Grafton home with the ease of someone who grew up among the books, the record albums, the furniture and, especially, the many paintings that hang from just about every wall. Many […]
After decision hiccup, town agrees to seek grant, loan for exterior repairs to Whiting Library
By Cynthia Prairie The Chester Select Board last Wednesday, July 17, walked back on earlier suggestions that the Whiting Library Board of Trustees come up with more than the original $10,000 it had pledged toward major repairs of the library building. It instead agreed to apply for a federal grant and loan and put in […]
Recent storms raising e. coli levels in area rivers
The Southeastern Vermont Watershed Alliance began its annual water quality testing on Wednesday, June 19th, with Wednesday, July 3 as its second river sampling day. Throughout the summer season, volunteers from SeVWA take water samples from specific spots in the Williams, Saxtons, West and Rock rivers and the North Branch and Whetstone brooks, testing for […]
A fresh start, a new name for the WAAWWE market
By Cynthia Prairie It’s 10 days to relaunch and the four women around the picnic table are excited. Not only does it seem that the summer has finally taken hold in Southern Vermont, but their surroundings are in disarray, a happy dishevelment of reconstruction, rebuilding, renewal. Across the parking lot, the bright and […]
Judge sends Dollar General OK back to DRB for clarifications
UPDATE: Chester to convene DRB hearing to get clarifications. See the 2nd section below for the press release. By Cynthia Prairie The judge reviewing the Chester Development Review Board’s April 2012 approval of a Dollar General store for Main Street has remanded the decision back to the DRB for a number clarifications. In effect, the […]
New Two Rivers SU readies to move to Fletcher Farm House
By Cynthia Prairie The new Two Rivers Supervisory Union will begin operating this summer out of buildings at Fletcher Farm, 611 Vt. Route 103 in Ludlow. The new consolidated school union will be taking over the two-story, 3,360-square-foot Fletcher Farm House, which was renovated in 2007, and 800-square-feet of space in the Roost, one of […]
Boy injured after entering substation, knocks out power to 7,000
By Cynthia Prairie A power outage yesterday afternoon that affected almost 7,000 Green Mountain Power customers — 2,773 in Chester alone — occurred when a youth entered a “locked and secure” Springfield substation and “came in contact with energized electrical equipment,” GMP spokeswoman Dotty Schnure said last night. Schnure added, “Our hearts go out to […]
Residents express concerns about development during hearing on proposed bylaws
By Cynthia Prairie A handful of Chester residents testified last Wednesday before the Select Board on changes they would like to see to the proposed Unified Development Bylaws, which for the first time will include zoning and subdivision regulations and flooding protection within one document. For the public hearing, Select Board member Tom Bock moved […]
Boston Marathon story: A motorman’s job, a wife’s anguish
By Cynthia Prairie Sarah Ringquist-Paulicelli of Hanover, Mass., her four children and a nephew came to Chester last weekend for a nine-day visit with her mother, Sharon Baker, owner of the Country on the Common clothing store. Sarah’s husband, John, planned to join them for a two-night visit Monday evening, after work. But at 3:05 […]
Neighbors of proposed solar farm seek smaller fence
By Cynthia Prairie Good fences may make good neighbors, but aesthetically pleasing fences could go a long way to making happy neighbors. That was the opinion of several Chester residents whose properties border a planned solar farm near Trebo Road. They were attending a preliminary hearing for the Public Service Board Monday night at Chester-Andover […]
Citing deadline and lack of Select Board support, SoVerA pulls astronomical observatory offer
By Cynthia Prairie In a letter to the Chester Select Board, the Southern Vermont Astronomy Group has withdrawn its offer to donate to Chester, and then operate a publicly accessible astronomical observatory on town land. The letter, dated March 12, states that in October 2012, SoVerA received initial enthusiastic support from town manager David Pisha, […]
Voters approve Windsor County Courthouse renovations
The 24 towns of Windsor County approved – 5,412 to 3,828 at the March 6 elections – a$2 million, 20-year bond to pay for extensive renovation to the Windsor County Courthouse in Woodstock. Because the ballots were co-mingled before the count, vote tallies by town were unavailable, said Chester Town Clerk Deb Aldrich. The courthouse, […]
TOWN MEETING: Voters agree to purchase new grader, dump truck and police SUV
ON THE COVER: Chester’s annual Town Meeting gets under way. Photo by Claudio Veliz By Cynthia Prairie It was a relatively pain-free Town Meeting in Chester Monday night, with about 110 voters showing up to support almost unanimously every one of 13 fiscal articles that had to be voted on, including raising $2.4 million in […]
Act 250 panel gives Dollar General land-use permit
By Cynthia Prairie The District Environmental Commission on Wednesday gave the Zaremba Group the necessary land-use permit to build a 9,100-square-foot Dollar General store on 1.4 acres on Main Street in Chester. Still, the commission also placed several requirements on the developers and the store itself, including: adding a “Stop Ahead” sign on Route 103 […]
