Author Archive for Shawn Cunningham
Variations on a Town Meeting Day Area towns choose formats, new dates for annual votes
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Once again this year the Vermont legislature has taken its cue from the continuing Covid pandemic and is giving municipalities options in how they can manage Town Meeting Day. And area select boards have chosen several variations — from fully remote meetings and Australian ballots for all […]
Chester resident gets cannabis sales on the ballot
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Chester voters will be making one more choice when they go to the polls (or fill out absentee ballots) for this Town Meeting day, as a petition to put an opt-in vote on retail sales of recreational cannabis garnered the required signatures to put it before the […]
Chester board nixes putting cannabis vote on ballot; petition could force issue
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Chester Select Board at its Wednesday, Jan. 19, meeting, discussed and took public input on placing an “opt-in” article for retail sales of cannabis on the Town Meeting day ballot and for the second time in two years, decided against it. But a petition that’s being […]
Andover board unanimously reverses town meeting decision; two members resign
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Early in its Monday, Jan. 24 meeting, the Andover Select Board unanimously reversed its stance on how Town Meeting should be conducted, changing from all business being done by floor vote to a hybrid information meeting on one day, with voting by Australian ballot on Town Meeting […]
Frigid weather grows Popple Dungeon sculpture
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC While the recent cold snap has frozen pipes, drained heating fuel tanks and put deep dents into wood piles, there’s one bright side to the frigid weather. Peter Delaney’s annual ice sculpture is growing fast on his Chester property. At the beginning of the season, the mild […]
Hearth & Home: New owners blend talents to bring new life to Stone Hearth Mustoe-Eklund family take on work of transforming 200-year-old inn
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Five days before Christmas, Vicky Mustoe, her son and daughter and son-in-law arrived in Chester. Moving from Orlando, Fla., the family was about to begin a new chapter in their lives — transforming The Stone Hearth Inn and Tavern on Route 11 West into Stone Hearth Inn […]
Area towns shuffled, separated under proposed redistricting plan
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Vermont House yesterday passed H. 589 to bypass the work done by a tri-partisan board set up to create a legislative redistricting plan. The move substitutes the bill as the design for the “initial district plan.” The text of the legislation says that lawmakers will be […]
Andover board opts for in-person Town Meeting; Bodin says voters’ voices are being disrespected
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Long simmering disagreements over a number of issues boiled over at Monday’s Andover Select Board meeting after the board decided on a 3 to 2 vote to return to a “floor vote” Town Meeting rather than using Australian ballots as it did last year due to the […]
Chester board opts for remote Town Meeting; kicks cannabis vote down the road
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC For the second year in a row, the Chester Select Board has concluded that putting the question of allowing retail sales of cannabis before the voters needs more board discussion, although they may look at it on Wednesday, Jan. 19, the final day before they must finalize […]
Police look for suspect in Westminster armed robbery
© 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Vermont State Police are looking for a suspect in one and possibly two armed robberies that took place on Thursday in Westminster and Springfield. According to a VSP press release, a man entered the Allen Brothers Farm Store on Rt. 5 in Westminster at 6:54 p.m. showing a handgun and […]
Chester board OKs ‘statement’ encouraging individual Covid mitigation measures
By Shawn Cunningham © Telegraph Publishing LLC While a number of area towns including Cavendish, Ludlow and Windham have instituted mask mandates for public buildings, the Chester board issued a statement that while there is increasing transmission of Covid in Vermont and New Hampshire, “The Town of Chester is not supportive of implementing a mask […]
GMUSD board narrows focus on major infrastructure spending, bond issue
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Mike Davey of Energy Efficient Investments was back before the Green Mountain Unified School District board on Monday, Dec. 21 with some new numbers for a proposed $20 million project to renovate and upgrade the district’s three schools. GMUSD operates two elementary and one high school with […]
Rt. 131 in Cavendish reopens as crash cleanup is completed
By Shawn Cunningham © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Vermont Rt. 131 in Cavendish appears to be open to traffic again after being closed for nearly a day as emergency personnel worked to get a tractor trailer out of the Black River. Read yesterday’s Telegraph article here. But while the closure no longer appears on New […]
UPDATED: Truck crash into river closes Rt. 131 in Cavendish; recovery ongoing
By Shawn Cunningham ©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC UPDATE 5:45 p.m. – In what appears to be a change of plan, Proctorsville Fire has just told Hartford Dispatch that the tractor portion of the rig has been removed from the river and they are working on the trailer. We will continue to monitor scanner traffic through […]
Rt. 103 murder suspect to be released on bail Piri pleads not guilty, must surrender passports and guns
By Shawn Cunningham © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC A Florida physician who owns a second home in Londonderry pled not guilty Monday to a charge of second degree murder in the 2019 shooting death of Roberto Fonseca-Rivera during a virtual arraignment and will be released on bond. He will be released on $250,000 bond after […]
Murder suspect returned to Vermont, to be arraigned Monday
By Shawn Cunningham © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Jozsef Piri, the man who authorities have charged with the 2019 murder of Roberto Fonseca-Rivera, the 44-year-old Boston man who was driving a produce truck along Rt. 103 in Rockingham, has been extradited to Vermont and will be arraigned on Monday. According to the Vermont State Police, […]
Chester board’s mask discussions to continue through holidays
By Shawn Cunningham © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC While the Cavendish Select Board approved a mask mandate for public places with little debate and even less public attendance last Monday, Chester’s board has held two meetings and appears stymied over how to recommend but not mandate that people wear masks in public buildings due to […]
Police arrest Londonderry 2nd-homeowner in 2019 Rockingham murder
UPDATE Dec 16 – 2:25 p.m. – Jozsef Piri is being held in the Collier County (Florida) Jail and his first appearance before a judge is scheduled for 2 p.m. Friday, Dec. 17. By Shawn Cunningham © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC A Florida physician with a second home in Londonderry has been arrested in the […]
Cavendish adopts mask mandate for public buildings
By Shawn Cunningham © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC By a unanimous vote on Monday evening the Cavendish Select Board adopted a model mask mandate written by the Vermont League of Cities and Towns that will require the wearing of masks in all public buildings. Board members and Town Manager Brendan McNamara acknowledged that the mandate […]
Residents safe, 3 dogs perish in Chester house fire
By Shawn Cunningham © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Three residents of home at 35 Circle Drive in Chester escaped a fire last night but three of their five pets perished, said Chester Fire Chief Matt Wilson this morning. Wilson told The Telegraph that the call came in at 10:32 p.m. Tuesday for a structure fire […]
