All Entries in the "Featured" Category
Chester board hears pros and cons of short-term rentals, ordinance Will look at ordinance again after lawyer's review
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Last Wednesday’s Chester Select Board review of a proposed ordinance that would require the registration of short-term rentals – like those marketed online by Airbnb and VRBO – brought out those in favor of regulation and those defending their income stream, as well as an emotional appeal […]
Vermont moves permanently to universal
vote-by-mail system Ranks No. 1 in MIT's Election Performance Index for 2020
By Matt DeRienzo Center for Public Integrity Vermont’s progressive election laws have put it in the Top 10 among U.S. states in voter turnout for decades. At the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, it switched to a universal vote-by-mail system for the 2020 election. Last year, it made that change permanent. It’s easy to register […]
Hollowed Community? Residents ring alarm over growth of unhosted short-term rentals
By Cara Philbin and Cynthia Prairie © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Housing in the rural central tier of southern Vermont always has been dependent upon single-family homes. While Chester – with a population of 3,005 – has two purpose-built, townhouse-style apartment complexes, they are rare in most villages. Instead, residents in this east-west corridor have […]
Chester Police Dept. study finds communication lacking, training procedures outdated
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Chester Police Department needs to improve its communication with the public as well as bring its policies and related training procedures into the 21st century, according to a number of recommendations in an assessment of the town’s Police Department written by Jim Baker, a former director […]
Chester boards up ‘health hazard’ Hennessey house
By Shawn Cunningham © Telegraph Publishing LLC On Tuesday afternoon, employees of the Town of Chester boarded up the house at 138 Cummings Road to keep people from staying in the house that the town says has no running water or working septic and is surrounded by a junk yard containing hazardous materials. The house […]
State House candidates Ryan, Chase touch on variety of issues during Windham forum
By Cynthia Prairie ©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC More than 40 people turned out on a stormy Tuesday night — in person and on Zoom — to hear the first candidate forum for a seat in the Vermont State House from the new Windsor-Windham District of Athens, Chester, Grafton and Windham. Democrat Heather Chase and Republican […]
Chester board bars occupancy at Cummings Rd. residence Health order mandates clean up
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC At its Sept. 7 meeting, the Chester Select Board heard testimony regarding the state of the property at 138 Cummings Road owned by John Hennessey, then approved a health order that bans occupancy at the residence until a major clean up is done and mandates ongoing measures […]
GM board votes to put $20 million renovation bond before district voters
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC On Aug. 25, the board of the Green Mountain Unified School District decided to move forward with a multi-year, $20.5 million project to renovate its three school buildings. The vote was 6-1 — with three members absent — to put a 20 year bond before the voters […]
Guide to the 2022 Chester Festival on the Green
© 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC The 47th Chester Festival on the Green remains a weekend filled with music, great arts and crafts, good food and friends set in the charming Vermont town of Chester. This year’s event will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 17 and Sunday, Sept. 18 on […]
Chester planners send ordinance regulating short-term rentals to Select Board
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC At a special meeting held on Monday, Aug. 22, the Chester Planning Commission put the final touches on an ordinance to register and regulate short-term rentals (such as those offered via Airbnb and VRBO) and voted to send it to the Select Board for review and adoption. […]
With a red carpet, cookout and tours, GM schools ready for reopening
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Next Wednesday, Aug. 31 will be the first day of schools for children in the Green Mountain Unified School District and unlike so many schools around the country, not one of the three has a teacher vacancy. But the high school is down two para-professionals and […]
Derry board asks One Londonderry to remove liaison following email kerfuffle
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Concerns over the relationship of a private organization with a mission to improve aspects of Londonderry and the town government and its transparency responsibilities prompted the Select Board at its Monday, Aug. 15 meeting, to take the unusual step to ask One Londonderry to remove one of […]
Turnout is high in local primary voting; November matchups decided
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Held in the hot and vacation rich month of August, Vermont’s primaries are generally sleepy affairs in which a relatively small number loyalists from the state’s three parties – Democratic, Republican and Progressive – come out to reaffirm the incumbents and chose the occasional challenger. But this […]
Andover bridge reconstruction to close road
Aug. 22 to Nov. 4
By Cynthia Prairie ©2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Construction crews are expected to begin assembling on site this week to begin the process of taking down and replacing Andover Bridge No. 9, over Trout Brook, just southeast of the switchback on the Weston-Andover Road. The road is expected to be closed starting on Monday, Aug. 22, […]
Chester planners wrestle with scope of short-term rental ordinance
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC While the main event was a warned public hearing for an amendment to the town’s Unified Development Bylaws — which includes its zoning regulations — Monday night’s Chester Planning Commission meeting spent far more time and energy on the undercard — a discussion of the latest draft […]
After 20 years, Chief Cloud to retire from Chester Police
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC After nearly 20 years with the Chester Police Department, Chief Rick Cloud has told the town he intends to retire. In a July 18 letter to Town Manager Julie Hance, Cloud said he was resigning effective Jan. 7, 2023 and appreciated the opportunity the town had afforded […]
Popple Dungeon bridge construction falls behind schedule
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC A nine-week bridge construction job in Chester may stretch to 12 if the company doing the work up on Popple Dungeon Road has its way. According to Town Manager Julie Hance, Alpine Construction of Schuylerville, N.Y., has asked for three more weeks to finish the installation of […]
Chester Business Coalition talks business growth, affordable housing, state funding
By Shawn Cunningham © 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC Saying that there is no one – such as a chamber of commerce or other organization – representing businesses in Chester, Steve Mancuso kicked off the July meeting of the nascent Chester Business Coalition at the American Legion on Monday night. Founded by Mancuso, an electrician who […]
Chester planning panel to hold public hearing on zoning change
© 2022 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Chester Planning Commission will hold a public hearing concerning a proposed amendment to the town’s Unified Development Bylaws (which includes zoning regulations) at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 1 at Town Hall, 556 Elm St. The amendment concerns legacy uses and adaptive reuses and the change would affect every […]
Chester planning panel kicks off zoning rewrite with first public workshop
By Shawn Cunningham © 2002 Telegraph Publishing LLC In preparation for a new re-write of the town’s zoning regulations — known as the Unified Development Bylaws — the Chester Planning Commission held the first of several workshops with consultant Jason Rasmussen Monday night. Rasmussen is the executive director of the Mount Ascutney Regional Commission, which […]
