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.
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 […]
Time to vote
The Norman Rockwell image is that Vermont governments are supremely open and Vermonters ensure that openness through hearty civic participation through institutions like Monday’s annual Town Meeting and Tuesday’s Election Day. That belief is reinforced each March by national media reports that tell of the quaintness and fervor of Vermont’s Town Meeting day. So, it’s […]
Bock sees hope in enterprise economy, influx of baby boomers
By Cynthia Prairie To add to Chester’s tax base, Tom Bock sees hope in the baby boom generation, those with money who wish to retire to quiet, small town Vermont. To add to the job base, Bock, who is running for his fourth consecutive year on the Select Board, believes that light manufacturing – an […]
Jonynas sees benefit to police review board, promoting Chester
By Cynthia Prairie Arne Jonynas calls on his experience in both public and private sectors to inform his views on town government and his duties on the Select Board. Jonynas is seeking a third one-year term. In a recent interview, Jonynas, who owns Chester Plumbing, recalls working at the Town of Windsor Windham Highway Department. […]
Ravlin wants new businesses, new residents
By Cynthia Prairie Tami Wilkins Ravlin will tell you quite honestly that she’s a bit nervous. After all, the Chester native has never run for public office. And despite her background in accounting and information technology, she knows she’s got a learning curve to master should she be elected to the Select Board. She is […]
Select Board Meeting Agenda for Wednesday, Feb. 6
The Chester Select Board will meet on Wednesday, Feb. 6 at Town Hall, 556 Elm St. in Chester. The five-member board meets the first and third Wednesdays of the month. Current members are John DeBenedetti, chairman; Derek Suursoo, vice chairman; Tom Bock; Arne Jonynas and Bill Lindsay. SELECTBOARD MEETING AGENDA 7 p.m. Feb. 6, 2013 […]
One challenger in Select Board elections; voters face fiscal issues at Town Meeting
Just one non-incumbent is seeking a seat on the Chester Select Board, where three of the five terms are up for election: one 3-year term held by Bill Lindsay and two one-year seats held by Tom Bock and Arne Jonynas. Newcomer Tami Ravlin, a 40-year-old lifelong resident of Chester, is hoping to win a one-year […]
From the editor: Thank you for an exciting 1st year
One year ago, if you were interested in news about Chester, you might find the occasional story – fire, crime, accident or town government issue – in the Southern Vermont sections of the Rutland Herald or the Eagle Times. Or chances are, you turned to the blog at Chestervermont.org. But for the past year, The […]
New Bartonsville Covered Bridge opens
Photo Gallery by Cynthia Prairie It was a beautiful but freezing winter day that brought together many Vermonters to celebrate the opening of the new Bartonsville Covered Bridge. First, below is Susan Hammond’s famous video of the bridge collapsing. It helped bring attention to the efforts to rebuild it. Following that is the morning events […]
