Cavendish Update 12/17/21: SB Mtg/Composting/Masks Required/News

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12/17/21

1.    Cavendish Select Board Mtg 12/13/21

2. Cavendish Info

3.    Cavendish Transfer Station: Composting

4.    Covid update

5.    Events

Masks required in all indoor public spaces in Cavendish

Winter Weather Advisory Saturday 6-8 inches possible

Holiday concert Saturday at St. James Methodist 5 pm

Calcutta’s Gift Giveaway Sat. 12-2 Cavendish Fire Dept and 2-4 at the Proctorsvile Fire Dept.

 

1. CAVENDISH SELECT BOARD MEETING 12/13/21: A video of the Select board (SB) meeting is available at the Okemo Valley TV website. Minutes of the Select Board will be available at the Cavendish Municipal website. Both the Chester Telegraph and the Vermont Journal  have filed reports on this meeting.

The following actions/discussions took place at the meeting:

• Mask Rule Requirement: The board adopted the VT League of Cities and Towns Rule for masking. It is effective immediately and will be reviewed at the monthly SB meetings. Note that because it is a Rule, it cannot be changed by a petition.  Ludlow has passed a similar mandate, while Weathersfield has a modified requirement pertaining to town office buildings. Holiday surgical masks are available for free at the Cavendish Post Office. The CHS Cares Closet (next to the Museum) also has masks available 24/7.

• ARPA eligible projects: Brendan McNamara, town manager, is working with regional planning regarding the use of ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funding. The town has received half of its allotment (slightly more than $200,000) and McNamara has been developing a list of potential projects, which include: water, wastewater, storm water (includes culvert replacement); updating the pump station; digitizing land records; upgrading software for hybrid systems for meetings; and replacing water meters.

•  ‘Mineral Rights Request’ regarding ‘Narbut’ Property on Rt 131. The Town owns the mineral rights on the 65 acres owned by Vincent Narbut, who is looking to sell his property. Narbut would like the Town to give up their “rights.” The board agreed that the town should retain them, but offer a compromise of delaying extraction based on various factors. McNamara will draft a letter to this effect. 

• Select Board budget process. First meeting is Wed. Jan 5 from 6-8.

• Recent ruling by the Supreme Court and Act 250: Cavendish has no zoning. A recent decision issued by the Vermont Supreme Court would change the way Act 250 functions in towns without zoning and subdivision regulations. With implications for Cavendish, the SB will discuss this issue at the January monthly meeting, inviting the Planning Commission to attend. VT Digger posted an article in November, In towns with no zoning, reopened Supreme Court decision has big implications for Act 250.

 

2. CAVENDISH INFO

• Calcutta’s Gift Giveaway: The Calcutta crew will be at the Cavendish Fire Station from 12-2 p.m., and Proctorsville Fire Station from 2-4 p.m. with free gifts and cheer for local children. They will then return to Calcutta’s to meet with Ludlow’s Fire Department and local children from 4-6 p.m. Free buffet from 4-8 p.m. Everyone is invited. Free gift for all kids 16 and younger.

• Benson’s Toys for Tots: Benson’s Chevrolet in Ludlow  is supporting the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation. Help fill their truck with assorted toys (e.g. books, crayons, puzzles, trucks, cars, games etc.) for those who are in need. Unwrapped toys can be dropped off until Dec. 23rd. FMI: 802-228-4000 or www.bensonchevy.com

• Cavendish Historical Society leads a Christmas Ghost Walk

 

3. TRANSFER STATION: COMPOSTING: The town’s Energy Committee has recently released a statement regarding what is, and what is not, compostable at the Town Transfer Station.

The town’s transfer station has onsite composting. What must stay out of the trash and be composted includes those parts of food items that are typically discarded rather than eaten such as peels, rinds, cores, eggshells, seeds, pits, bones, coffee grounds and paper filters, loose-leaf tea & paper tea bags, and fats/oils/grease. It also includes food plate scraps or leftovers and any food that went bad. And not just food must be composted - if it was once part of something alive, like a plant or animal, it does not belong in the landfill. So, grass clippings and any other yard debris must stay out of the trash and can be put into the compost.

Plastic bags are not compostable-they can be recycled at Shaw’s and other grocery stores. Dump the contents into the pile and either throw the plastic into the trash or take it home and clean it for recycling. Most plastic food containers and utensils are likewise not compostable, even if the manufacturer says they are. Food scraps will compost in a few months, the containers and utensils will take many years if at all to compost. Please no plastic or containers in the Transfer Station compost pile!

Read the full statement from the Energy Committee

4. COVID UPDATE: For local information on testing, vaccinations, boosters, notifying contacts as well as other resources, including those for people with  Long Covid, please see the Cavendish COVID-19 Resource Guide.

WEEKLY DATA; Cavendish & Surrounding Towns: While Cavendish had 3 new cases (80 total) this past, Springfield had 110 new cases, surpassing 1,000 cases (1,084 total). Ludlow had 8 cases (160 total), Chester 22  (321 total) and Weathersfield 28 (151 total). Windsor County is now experiencing a sharp rise in cases, and along with Rutland, and Bennington counties, are the highest in the state

Schools: The VT Dept of Health’s school report for Dec. 13, reports no new cases at CTES or Ludlow Elementary. Green Mountain had 3 new cases (17 total), while Chester Elementary had one new case (15 total). There were 258 cases last week in Vermont schools and 2,749 cases since the start of the school year. 

State: At Tuesday’s press conference, Gov. Scott and his team stressed that the current surge squarely rests on the 5% of VT adults who are un vaccinated. They account for about 75% of hospitalizations. Last week, there were days the unvaccinated made up 90% of the Covid patients in the ICU…The vast majority of Vermonters have stepped up, done the right thing, and gotten vaccinated. And as a result, they’re not the problem. I simply can’t justify going back into a state of emergency, putting restrictions on the 95% of Vermont adults who have done the right thing and gotten vaccinated, when the problem is being driven by less than 5% of that population - unvaccinated adults - who by now have had every opportunity to get vaccinated and have decided not to. Secretary Mike Smith took it a step further by describing the high costs of treating the unvaccinated as well as the negative impact it’s having on the health care system.

Tuesday’s Modeling showed that VT cases have decreased 15% over the last 7 days and increased 31% over the last 14 days. Those not fully vaccinated were 34X more likely to die from Covid-19 over the last 6 weeks compared to those fully vaccinated and boosted. VT reported 350 fewer cases this week compared to last week, though Dec.

Seropositivity (percentage of tests that are positive) has dropped from 4.8% to 4.6% in the last week. Vt has had 57,333 cases, 448 deaths (30 so far in December) with 60 people in hospital, 19 in the ICU.  

TESTING: In an effort to try and lessen the anticipated increase in cases from the holidays, Mike Smith said Tuesday that the state is purchasing more LAMP tests and rapid at home tests. In response to an inquiry yesterday about which health department testing sites would be offering LAMP (results similar to a PCR are available in less than an hour), VT Department of Health responded by saying, Currently, the health department is not providing at-home test kits directly to Vermont residents. The provision of LAMP testing for COVID-19 through select health department sites is being considered. Specific details and logistics have not been finalized. At-home rapid tests may available at some major pharmacies and retail outlets. The health department is not currently recommending one brand over another. Note that many test sites are closed on Dec. 24.

OMICRON: While Vermont has yet to have a case of the new variant, all of the surrounding states, and Canada have cases. Omicron is spreading like wild fire. In a week, it went from 0.4% cases in the US to 2.9%. In New York and New Jersey, approximately 13% of Covid cases are omicron. Yesterday, NYC health officials reported that the positivity rate had doubled in three days.

Dr. Fauci said on Thursday, omicron “ has an extraordinary ability to transmit efficiently and spread. It has what we call a doubling time of about three days and if you do the math on that, if you have just a couple of percentage of the isolates being omicron, very soon it's going to be the dominant variant.”

Preliminary data on the first 43 people in the US who have been infected with the variant, show that half were 19 to 39 years old, and 34 had been fully vaccinated. Nine people had received a booster shot at least 2 weeks prior to becoming infected.  Most people experienced only mild symptoms, which is what would be expected from a group of fully vaccinated individuals. Medscape

There is a very high rate of transmission associated with omicron variant as well as a much higher rate of breakthrough cases, though those who have had booster shots seem to have better protection. Research, released on Wednesday gives a clue why this might be happening. Compared to the earlier Delta variant, omicron multiplies itself 70 times more quickly in tissues that line airway passages, which may facilitate person-to-person spread. But in lung tissues, Omicron replicates 10 times more slowly than the original version of the coronavirus, which might contribute to less-severe illness.

What We Can Learn from the 1918 Flu Pandemic as the Omicron Variant Spreads

5 .EVENTS

DECEMBER 18 (SATURDAY): St. James Methodist Church (Proctorsville), Christmas Concert, 5 pm. Free Admission. Donations welcome

-       The Calcutta crew will be at the Cavendish Fire Station from 12-2 p.m., and Proctorsville Fire Station from 2-4 p.m. with free gifts and cheer for local children. They will then return to Calcutta’s to meet with Ludlow’s Fire Department and local children from 4-6 p.m. Free buffet from 4-8 p.m. Everyone is invited. Free gift for all kids 16 and younger.

DECEMBER 23 (THURSDAY)-JANUARY 2 (SUNDAY): Schools’ holiday break

DECEMBER 24 (FRIDAY): Christmas Eve Town Office Closed

DECEMBER 25 (SATURDAY): MERRY CHRISTMAS

DECEMBER 26 (SUNDAY)-DECEMBER 31 (SATURDAY): HAPPY KWANZA

DECEMBER 31 (FRIDAY) New Year’s Eve Town Office Closed

JANUARY 17 (MONDAY): Martin Luther King’s Day Town Officer Closed

CA❤︎ENDSH VAXXING & MASKING TO PROTECT SELF & OTHERS

    IF YOU READ THIS PLEASE HELP SUPPORT CAVENDISH CONNECTS

 

 

 

 

Cavendish Masking Rule

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At the Dec. 13 Select Board, the Cavendish Select board unanimously adopted the following Rule requiring the wearing of face coverings in public spaces. Masks are available for free at the CHS Cares Closet, next to the CHS Museum on Main St. in Cavendish Village. Masks are in the upper left hand corner, are free and available 24/7.

TOWN OF CAVENDISH VERMONT: RULE REQUIRING FACE COVERINGS INDOORS IN PUBLIC SPACES

Section 1. Authority. The Rule is adopted by the Select Board of the Town of Cavendish under authority of Act 1, an act relating to temporary municipal rules in response to COVID-19 (2021).

Section 2: Purpose. The purpose of this Rule is to require all individuals to wear face coverings while indoors at locations that are open to the public in order to prevent and mitigate the spread of COVID-19 and protect the public health and safety of the Town of Cavendish.

Section 3. Requirement to Wear Face Coverings. All individuals in the town of Cavendish shall wear face covering while indoors at locations that are open to the public.

Section 4. Exceptions. Face coverings are not required for:

• “children under 2 years;” “ A person with a disability who cannot wear a face covering or cannot safely wear a face covering for reasons related to the disability;” “A person for whom wearing a face covering would create a risk to workplace health, safety, or job duty as determined by the workplace risk assessment;” “ Any person while eating or drinking inside any establishment that serves food or beverage;

Section 5. Other Laws. This Rule is in addition to all other ordinances and rules of the Town of Cavendish and all applicable laws of the State of Vermont. All ordinances, rules or parts of ordinances, rules, resolutions, regulations, or other documents inconsistent with the provisions of this Rule are hereby repealed to the extent of such inconsistency.

Section 6. Severability. If any section or provision of the Rule is held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid such findings shall not invalidate any other part of this Rule.

Section 7. Effective Period. This Rule shall take effect immediately upon the approval by the Select Board and shall remain in effect for a period not to exceed 45 days following its initial adoption. The Select Board shall meet during the 45-day period in which this initial Rule is in effect and vote either to rescind this Rule or to extend it for an additional 30 days. Thereafter, the Select Board shall meet at a minimum once every 30 days to reconsider this Rule, at which meeting the Select Board shall vote either to rescind this Rule or to extend it for an additional 3—day period. The filing of a petition under 24 V.S.A. 1972 and 1973, shall not govern the taking effect of this Rule.

Adopted by the Selectboard of the Town of Cavendish at its meeting on this 13th day of Dec., 2021.

Signatures of Select Board, Town of Cavendish Georg Timko, Sandra Russo, Mike Ripley and Robert Glidden

Cavendish Transfer Station: Composting

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The following is from the Energy Committee regarding what is, and what is not, compostable at the Town Transfer Station.  Please no plastic or containers in the Transfer Station compost pile!

When the Vermont legislature banned food scraps from the trash and mandated that all Vermonters compost food scraps, the Town of Cavendish engaged the services of a company to haul away those scraps each week. That quickly became hugely expensive, so the town decided to try a different route.

For several months now the Cavendish transfer station has been composting on site. Any Cavendish resident with access to the transfer station can use the new composting section for no extra charge.

What must stay out of the trash and instead be composted includes those parts of food items that are typically discarded rather than eaten such as peels, rinds, cores, eggshells, seeds, pits, bones, coffee grounds and paper filters, loose-leaf tea & paper tea bags, and fats/oils/grease. It also includes food plate scraps or leftovers and any food that went bad. And not just food must be composted - if it was once part of something alive, like a plant or animal, it does not belong in the landfill. So, grass clippings and any other yard debris must stay out of the trash and can be put into the compost.

Eventually the newly created compost will be available to Cavendish residents free of charge, although it will take time for the scraps and waste to become useable compost. Meanwhile the town employees have asked that people be more careful in what they throw into the compost pile. Plastic bags are not compostable. Note-plastic bags can recycled at Shaw’s and other grocery stores. Dump the contents into the pile and either throw the plastic into the trash or take it home and clean it for recycling. Most plastic food containers and utensils are likewise not compostable, even if the manufacturer says they are. Food scraps will compost in a few months, the containers and utensils will take many years if at all to compost.

For those people who have a yard where they can set up a compost pile or bin, there’s no reason to bring that food and yard waste to the transfer station. Instead, create your own compost. It’s usable to enrich the soil of lawns, gardens, and potted plants.

For information on how to make your own compost, or about any aspect of food waste disposal, go to https://dec.vermont.gov/waste-management/solid/materials-mgmt/organic-materials

Cavendish Update 12/10/21 Jobs/Masks/News/Events

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12/10/21

1.    Cavendish Info

2.    Job Postings: Town & Mack Molding

3.    Covid update

4.    Events

Winter Weather Advisory has been posted for our area from 3 AM-10 AM on Saturday. Mixed precipitation, freezing rain. Ice accumulations.

Sunday is the Proctorsville Christmas Ghost Walk. Meet 7 pm in front of the War Memorial (across from Svec Park).

 

1. CAVENDISH INFO

• Local mask mandates

• Letters to Santa Now Open at the Cavendish Post Office: Children have their own mail slot to use at the Cavendish Post Office so they can drop off their letters to Santa. Thank you Miguel (post master).

• TRSU Looks to align school schedules for both its districts: Superintendent Lauren Fierman noted at the recent TRSU meeting, she would like to see a single schedule for all schools in the TRSU. Currently, CTES has an early release on Tuesdays in order for the teachers to have ”embedded professional development time.” Chester Telegraph

• Christmas Concert: St. James United Methodist Church (570 Main St., Proctorsville) will be holding a Christmas Concert on Dec. 18 (Saturday) at 5pm. Admission is free. Donations welcome. FMI:802-455-6500

• Grant program to help homeowners settle unpaid mortgage, utility bills: A program that aims to help eligible Vermont homeowners settle thousands of dollars in unpaid dues is expected to launch by January. VT Digger

 

2. JOB POSTINGS: The Town of Cavendish has an immediate opening for a Temporary, full-time Highway Department crew member. Applicants are required to have current CDL, good driving and work records and must be in good physical health. Solid experience in construction and heavy equipment operation, including dump truck operation, is essential. A comprehensive job description is available to serious applicants. Applications, resumes and inquiries should be directed to: Brendan McNamara, Town Manager, Town of Cavendish Municipal Building 37 High Street, P.O. Box 126, Cavendish, Vermont 05142. (802) 226-7291. Cavendish is an Equal Opportunity Employer

 Mack Molding will be holding a job fair on Wed. Dec. 15 from 8-4 at the Cavendish location (2044 Main St). Employee referral bonus $500. Sign on Bonus $3,000. Flexible part time hours available. $15.63/hr-$22/hr.

3. COVID UPDATE: For local information on testing, vaccinations, boosters, notifying contacts as well as other resources, please see the Cavendish COVID-19 Resource Guide.

WEEKLY DATA:

• Cavendish & Surrounding Towns: Once again, Cavendish- 8 new cases (77 total); Chester-36 new cases (299 total) and Springfield -124 new cases (974 total) have set records for highest number of new cases in the past week. Ludlow had 7 cases (152 total) and Weathersfield had 8 new cases (123 total).

• Schools: The VT Dept of Health’s school report for Dec. 6, lists CTES as having no new case in the past week with 2 cases total. Note, we are aware of at least two other cases at the school. VT Digger recently posted an article State, local data show discrepancies in Covid-19 cases in Vermont schools, which helps to explain why this is happening.

Green Mountain had 6 new cases this past week, for a total of 14, while Ludlow and Chester elementary schools reported no cases. There were 246 cases last week in Vermont schools and 2,491 since the start of the school year. 

• State: VT continues to set new records for number of new daily cases as well as high daily hospitalizations. Cases of Covid have doubled in the last six months.

Tuesday’s Modeling showed that VT cases have increased 54% over the last 7 days and increased 31% over the last 14 days. A post-Thanksgiving surge is underway with the not fully vaccinated having a 95% increase in the last 7 days while fully vaccinated increased 52%, Those not fully vaccinated were 15 times more likely to require hospitalizations in November compared to those who were fully vaccinated. Health Commissioner Dr. Levine noted Tuesday that 91% of those currently in the ICU were not vaccinated. He also noted two pediatric hospital cases. Over the last 7 days cases have increased for all age groups. However,  VT also has the highest testing rate so is more likely to capture more positive cases.

Seropositivity (percentage of tests that are positive) has dropped from 5.2% to 4.8% in the last week. Vt’s case count is 54,321 with 426 deaths and 87 people in hospital, 23 in the ICU.  

TESTING: On Tuesday, the Governor and his team discussed a new approach to testing. From now until March/April, there will be a steady move to replace the PCR testing with LAMP testing, which does not require a lab and can provide results in an hour. This testing is viewed as reliable as the PCR and is currently in usedas part of “Test to Stay” in the schools. Note that a negative LAMP test is sufficient to shorten a 14-day quarantine or return to school after an illness. The second component will be testing at home using rapid antigen testing.

According to the Governor, We’ve been working to secure thousands of rapid at-home tests. ..We want to have tens of thousands of these available at no charge to Vermonters. ..You might have seen that President Biden is working to allow Americans to be reimbursed for at-home tests in the New Year. Commissioner Pieciak and his team at DFR [Dept. of Financial Regulation]  had already been working on this, so we’ll launch this in Vermont within the next couple of weeks.

DFR today will issue an emergency rule requiring commercial insurers to cover the cost of rapid COVID-19 take-home tests, it will be retroactive to December 1.

Once the emergency rule is fully in place, those with commercial insurance will be able to get take-home COVID rapid tests at a pharmacy, without out-of-pocket costs.  We believe this will cover about 140K Vermonters, and we’re working to extend it beyond commercial insurance, in hopes of covering most Vermonters. And again, we think this is an important step to take now and we encourage people to use tests before & after holiday gatherings.

This will be in addition to giving our tens of thousands for free, once we finalize logistics with the federal government and other partners.

Currently, those on Medicaid or Medicare are not eligible for this reimbursement. Efforts are being made to make these tests available for free who don’t qualify for the reimbursement program.

If you test positive on a home test: A positive self-test result means that the test detected the virus, and you are very likely to have an infection.

-       Stay home or isolate for 10 days, wear a mask if you could have contact with others, and avoid indoor gatherings to reduce the risk of spreading disease to someone else.

-       Contact your health provider about you positive test. It’s important to talk to your provider ASAP. Your provider can determine if you are a good candidate for monoclonal antibodies or some of the newer medications that can reduce severity and need for hospitalizations.

-       Notify Contacts: Use How to Notify Contacts if you Test Positive for Covid

-       Notify the VT Health Dept. using the VT Covid-19 Self-Test Reporting Form

OMICRON: Several studies have been released this week. Preliminary results from two small studies strongly suggest the vaccines will be much less effective at stopping infections from the omicron variant but will still likely offer protection against severe disease. The study in Germany also indicates that a third shot, or a booster, will partially recover the effectiveness of the vaccines, at least for a few months.

 Omicron variant is four times more transmissible than Delta

NEWS/LIT REVIEW

• Agency of Human Services Secretary Mike Smith to retire at the end of this month: Mike Smith, a critical player in Vermont’s pandemic response and the state’s secretary of human services, is retiring at the end of the year. 

• State kid-vaxx incentive program could bring thousands of dollars into TRSU schools

• FDA has authorized Pfizer booster for those 16-17 at least six months after their last dose.

• DHMC’s No Visitor policy (with certain exceptions) goes into effect Dec. 10. Rutland is now restricting visitors as is Springfield Medical Center.

 

4.EVENTS

DECEMBER 12 (SUNDAY): Christmas Ghost Walk-Proctorsville. 7 pm, meet at the Proctorsville War Memorial. Free and open to the public. Donations welcomed.  FMI: 802-226-7807 or e-mail margocaulfield@icloud.com

DECEMBER 13 (MONDAY): Cavendish Select Board Meeting, 6:30 pm Cavendish Town Office.

DECEMBER 18 (SATURDAY): St. James Methodist Church (Proctorsville), Christmas Concert, 5 pm. Free Admission. Donations welcome

DECEMBER 23 (THURSDAY)-JANUARY 2 (SUNDAY): Schools holiday break

DECEMBER 24 (FRIDAY): Christmas Eve Town Office Closed

DECEMBER 25 (SATURDAY): MERRY CHRISTMAS

DECEMBER 26 (SUNDAY)-DECEMBER 31 (SATURDAY): HAPPY KWANZA

DECEMBER 31 (FRIDAY) New Year’s Eve Town Office Closed

JANUARY 17 (MONDAY): Martin Luther King’s Day Town Officer Closed

CA❤︎ENDSH VAXXING & MASKING TO PROTECT SELF & OTHERS

    IF YOU READ THIS PLEASE HELP SUPPORT CAVENDISH CONNECTS