All Entries in the "Featured" Category
Derry board mulls cannabis vote, talks wastewater sites
By Cherise Madigan © 2021 Telegraph Publishing, LLC The Londonderry Select Board has committed to holding a special town meeting to vote on whether to opt into Vermont’s nascent retail cannabis market, as well as whether to adopt a previously rejected local option tax for revenue from retail sales. Cannabis was not the only contentious […]
Local state reps outline priorities for 2021 session
By Cherise Madigan ©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Local state legislators returned remotely to Montpelier for the 2021 session, focusing on the Covid-19 pandemic and recovery efforts. To find out what local legislators were specifically addressing this session, The Telegraph spoke with Reps. Tom Bock of Chester (D-Windsor 3-1), Kelly Pajala of Londonderry (I-Windham-Bennington-Windsor), Linda Joy […]
Weekly Covid Update: Rates continue to decline while hospitalizations rise State says Springfield Hospital's Moderna doses OK to use
©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Vermont’s Covid-19 weekly new case total, death toll and positivity rate have continued to decline for the fourth week in a row, according to the state Department of Health. New case weekly numbers dropped below the 1,000 mark to 899 reported this week. The total number of cases now stands at […]
Weston Select Board sets May 25 Town Meeting Details remain unsettled amid concern over loss of tradition
By Cherise Madigan ©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Weston Select Board, expressing concerns about permanently losing Town Meeting Day, has decided to reschedule its Town Meeting this year tp Tuesday, May 25, although the details on where it will be held and how votes will be conducted won’t be revisited until the board’s March 23 […]
Moderna: Springfield’s 860 doses OK to use Covid-19 vaccines reported as 'discarded' were not
By Shawn Cunningham and Cynthia Prairie © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Vaccine manufacturer Moderna and federal officials have determined that the 860 doses of Covid-19 vaccine that were thought to be affected by a temperature change during storage are not spoiled. Although it has been widely reported that those doses were discarded, they continue […]
Temperature questions shut down vaccine clinic at Springfield Hospital Differing monitor readings throw doubt on efficacy of 860 doses
By Cynthia Prairie ©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Kathleen Bell was standing “right at the door” of Springfield Hospital at 9 a.m. Wednesday waiting to enter to get her second dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, when a hospital worker came out to announce that they clinic was now closed and those scheduled would be contacted for […]
Chester board approves $3.3 million budget
By Shawn Cunningham © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Chester Select Board approved the town’s $3.343 million budget at its Wednesday, Jan. 20 meeting and decided to use the general fund surplus of $335,295 to pay upfront for the match for the grant to do the Depot Street sidewalk project rather than borrowing the $200,000 […]
Chester board OKs annual warning, drops cannabis discussion Town budget, paving bonds, dump truck and police cruiser among items to be voted
By Shawn Cunningham © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Chester Select Board at a special meeting on Monday afternoon approved the town’s warning for the March 2 Town Meeting Australian ballot, but decided to postpone putting an article on cannabis sales in front of the voters until board members could discuss it further in a […]
Covid cases vs. ‘case rates’: How population plays into local numbers
By Cherise Madigan ©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Cases of Covid-19 are continuing to rise in area towns, with Springfield up by 22 to a total of 108 and Manchester up by 27 to 81 in the span of just one week. By comparison, Vermont statewide has experienced has seen its case count rise by 898 […]
Weekly Covid Update: Vaccinations to begin for Vermonters 75 and up Signups begin Monday, shots on Wednesday, with Phase 2
©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC On the morning of Monday, Jan. 25, Phase 2 of the Vermont vaccination plan will begin, allowing Vermonters age 75 and older to begin registering for inoculations. The first vaccines for this group will start on Wednesday. The website and phone number for vaccination registration will be released on Monday morning. […]
GMUSD budget up less than 1% despite special ed hike
By Shawn Cunningham © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC The directors of the Green Mountain Unified School District approved a $14.2 million budget last Thursday. It represents an increase of less than 1 percent over last year’s spending plan, despite a recent 14 percent increase by the Two Rivers Supervisory Union, which charges its spending back […]
Vermont vaccine rollout shifts to age based eligibility
By Shawn Cunningham © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC With the supply of the vaccine to combat Covid-19 in Vermont smaller and less reliable than anticipated, the administration of Gov. Phil Scott is changing its strategy for rolling it out. In what has been called Phase 1A, workers in health care, residents in long-term care facilities […]
Derry Board still mulls details of Town Meeting; opts for caretaker service, nixing full-time hire
By Cherise Madigan ©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC A new Highway and Buildings maintenance position mulled by the Londonderry Select Board earlier this month will not come to fruition following criticism of the expenditure from some residents and board members. The proposed position, which would have totaled nearly $80,000 per year with benefits, will now be […]
Weston board reviews increased T&G tax rate, eyes Town Meeting delay
By Cherise Madigan ©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Despite a decreased budget, the Taconic & Green Regional School District’s estimated tax rate is expected to increase by 3.9 cents in fiscal 2022, according to Weston’s representative on the district board, Deborah Lyneis. The increase will bump the current equalized rate of $1.603 to about $1.642, she […]
Covid Weekly Update: State of emergency, vaccine rollout continue Not all activities seen as drivers of Covid numbers
©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Gov. Phil Scott extended the state of emergency throughout Vermont through mid-February as new weekly Covid-19 totals again topped 1,000 for the second week in a row. The new weekly total of 1,115 was down slightly from the record-setting high of 1,207 last week, for a total of 9,734. Seven Vermonters […]
TRSU board approves 14% budget increase
By Shawn Cunningham © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC Last Thursday night, the board of the Two Rivers Supervisory Union unanimously approved a budget of $6.548 million, which taxpayers in the SU’s two districts will see as assessments in the district budgets for the 2021/22 school year. The spending plan included an overall increase of $807,764 […]
Chester board opts out of in-person Town Meeting All questions to be voted by Australian ballot; online informational meeting to be held
By Shawn Cunningham © 2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Chester Select Board last Wednesday opted to hold an informational meeting on Monday, March 1 followed by a vote on all issues before the voters by Australian ballot on Tuesday, March 2 — Vermont’s Town Meeting Day. At the beginning of the discussion, board chair Arne […]
Project Londonderry volunteers establish new non-profit organization Members work toward North Village Master Plan, seek community input
From the editor: To correct the record: Project Londonderry organizers have notified The Chester Telegraph that the 501(c)(3) organization recently established is actually known as The Community Fund for Londonderry, and is separate from the Project Londonderry initiative, which remains a volunteer effort coordinated by the Town Planning Commission. The Community Fund for Londonderry is […]
Local Covid-19 numbers grow in post-holiday spikes
By Cherise Madigan © 2021 Telegraph Publishing, LLC The Vermont Department of Health announced 165 new cases of Covid-19 on Tuesday, with 38 hospitalized, eight of whom are in intensive care. Now more than 500 new cases have been reported since Thursday, Dec. 31. Since Sunday, Vermont’s seven-day average positivity rate has risen from 2.3 […]
Chester Rotary seeks ‘competent organization’ to take over Fall Festival
By Cynthia Prairie ©2021 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Chester Rotary is hoping that a “competent organization” will soon step forward to take over the annual Chester Fall Festival “for the sake of the community and the town,” said Rotary President Ian Montgomery on Tuesday morning. The festival, which was in its 45th year with the […]
