All Entries in the "Featured" Category
Truck wreck sends diesel into Williams River Route 103 expected to be closed til 11 p.m. Tuesday
By Shawn Cunningham © 2019 Telegraph Publishing, LLC A Ryder tractor unit hit a guardrail on 103 North in Chester Tuesday evening, narrowly avoiding a roll into the Williams River. But damage to the truck sent gallons and gallons of diesel fuel into the water. At around 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 11, while the Chester […]
Derry board walks line between zoning enforcement, resident’s need
By Bruce Frauman ©2019 Telegraph Publishing LLC Londonderry Select Board member Bob Forbes on June 3 kicked off a 40-minute discussion on how to handle zoning enforcement at 213 Middletown Road. At the May 20 meeting, the board had given owner James Twitchell two weeks to take the burned-out house down and remove all the […]
TRSU displays pattern of Open Meeting Law violations Powden's question reveals boards go into executive session without knowing why
By Shawn Cunningham ©2019 Telegraph Publishing LLC A Chester Telegraph analysis of the meetings of the Two Rivers Supervisory Union Board of Directors and of those of its school district boards reveals eight recent instances of lax observance of the laws that protect the public’s access to public meetings. A May 2 revelation that TRSU […]
Telegraph rejects TRSU account, remedy of Open Meeting violation Suggests informing members early, in detail about prospective executive sessions
By Shawn Cunningham © 2019 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Chester Telegraph has rejected the account and remedy of the Open Meeting Law violation given by Paul Orzechowski, chairman of the Two Rivers Supervisory Union board, contending that he did not fully address the violation and that the complaint remains unresolved. On May 7, Cynthia Prairie, […]
Weston board considers plan for ash beetle threat
By Bruce Frauman ©2019 Telegraph Publishing LLC The Weston Select Board on Tuesday, May 28 moved forward on several ongoing projects including addressing threats from the emerald ash borer beetle, and upgrade of the town website. Tree Warden Raymond Mara distributed a packet of information and proposals from the state on how to deal with […]
Sweeping changes proposed to Chester zoning Information meetings set for June
By Shawn Cunningham © 2019 Telegraph Publishing, LLC The Town of Chester is undergoing the most comprehensive overhaul of its zoning regulations and zoning districts since they were first enacted more than 40 years ago. The Unified Development Bylaws – as they are known – have been completely revamped and, if approved by the Select […]
Sunday Artisans Alley Market debuts in Chester
By Cynthia Prairie ©2019 Telegraph Publishing LLC It was a perfect sunny and cool Sunday morning for the inaugural opening of the Artisans Alley Market in Chester, conceived by Sharon Baker of Sharon’s on the Common to highlight local, small creators and bring more people into downtown Chester during the weekends. Seven vendors, selling everything […]
Firefighters find missing Chester boy after 3-hour search
By Shawn Cunningham © 2019 Telegraph Publishing LLC Firefighters and police searched the woods of Smokeshire for nearly three hours this afternoon before finding a 9-year-old boy who had gone missing from his home earlier in the day. The Chester Fire Department was called out around 2:30 p.m. to search for the boy. The boy’s […]
AOT maps route to lower speed limit at GMHS
By Shawn Cunningham © 2019 Telegraph Publishing, LLC Representatives of Vermont’s Agency of Transportation came to Chester on Monday to look at Rt. 103 around Green Mountain High School and hear from the public on why the speed limit should be lowered from 40 mph to 30 mph there. Marcos Miller, Tyler Guazzoni and Mario […]
TRSU chair Orzechowski: ‘We violated open meeting law’ Orzechowski apologizes, Powden does not attend, Prairie unconvinced
By Shawn Cunningham © 2019 Telegraph Publishing LLC With Two Rivers Supervisory Union Superintendent Meg Powden not in attendance, board chair Paul Orzechowski admitted that the TRSU board had violated Vermont’s Open Meeting Law and apologized at a May 16 special meeting held by video conference with members attending from Chester-Andover Elementary, TRSU in Ludlow […]
Chester loses bid for Tomasso land, eyes gravel extraction at water tank property
By Shawn Cunningham © 2019 Telegraph Publishing LLC Town properties – current and potential – took up the majority of the Wednesday, May 15 Chester Select Board meeting as Chairman Arne Jonynas told the meeting that he had asked that the Tomasso property be put on the agenda to keep the public abreast of what […]
Grafton softens earlier language, delivers Route 35 petition to Chester
By Cynthia Prairie ©2019 Telegraph Publishing LLC It took three months, but Grafton Select Board chair Joe Pollio finally delivered the long-awaited petition to Chester Town officials demanding the quick repair of Route 35 in Chester. There is one twist. The petition, whose last of 232 signatures was apparently gathered more than two months ago, […]
TRSU board to answer open meeting claim in special session
By Shawn Cunningham © 2019 Telegraph Publishing, LLC The board of the Two Rivers Supervisory Union will meet on Thursday night to discuss and take action on The Chester Telegraph’s claim that the closed door session at its May 2 was a violation of Vermont’s Open Meeting Law. The agenda for the special session says […]
Derry residents hear Nature Conservancy’s plans for Glebe Mountain
By Cherise Madigan © 2019 Telegraph Publishing LLC The future of a 3,500-acre parcel of land on Glebe Mountain, in the towns of Londonderry and Windham, was the topic of discussion during a session hosted by the Nature Conservancy at the Londonderry’s Old Town Hall last night. There, around 20 residents discussed their experiences with […]
GMUSD board OKs contract, appoints new member, seeks safety upgrades in Cavendish
By Shawn Cunningham © 2019 Telegraph Publishing LLC The board of directors of the Green Mountain Unified School District ratified its agreement with its support staff at a special meeting last Thursday, but not without questions about the timing of the work. The agreement, which covers para-educators, personal care assistants, food service workers, bus drivers […]
Chester Telegraph claims TRSU board violated state Open Meeting Law
By Shawn Cunningham © 2019 Telegraph Publishing LLC In a complaint dated May 7 and sent to Two Rivers Supervisory Union Superintendent Meg Powden and board members, Cynthia Prairie, editor and publisher of The Chester Telegraph, is contending that the board of the SU improperly entered into an executive session even after it was warned […]
Hazardous waste disposal days, hours to change Chester Select Board discusses special town meetings on EMS building, loader
By Shawn Cunningham © 2019 Telegraph Publishing LLC The hazardous household waste collections that have been held at the Springfield Transfer Station a couple of times a year are in for a big change, which may make them both harder to access and more expensive. Last Wednesday night, Derek Suursoo, who represents the Town of […]
GMUSD board balks at hearing CTES complaints
By Shawn Cunningham © 2019 Telegraph Publishing LLC While the agenda for the Green Mountain Unified School District’s Thursday, April 25 meeting was full — and the public portion of the meeting went on for three hours — one question hung over the proceedings until the end and even then some members of the public […]
After April 15 flooding, Weston board considers repairs to Town Office basement
By Bruce Frauman ©2019 Telegraph Publishing LLC The longest discussion at the April 23 Weston Select Board meeting revolved around installing sump pumps in the Town Office building at 12 Lawrence Hill Road following flooding in the basement during heavy rains and melting snow in mid-April. Acting chair Jim Linville said the basement flooded on […]
Chester solons mull water, gravel and Hogs
By Shawn Cunningham © 2019 Telegraph Publishing, LLC Acting as the town’s Water and Sewer Commission, the Chester Select Board, at its April 17 meeting, approved taking out a $45,000 from the state’s Drinking Water and Groundwater Protection Division to inventory and map the entire water system. The Asset Management Planning loan is offered to […]
