Public Hearing on Solar Farm 3/17/16

A Public Hearing on Solar Ranger’s Proposal solar installation on what was once the old Barker Farm in Ludlow will take place on Thursday, March 17. A site visit will be held at 3 pm at the Barker Farm property with a public hearing taking place at 7 pm at the Cavendish Town Office. 

The proposed Coolidge Solar Project will be up to a 20 MW of solar generation consisting of up to 95,000 solar photovoltaic panels installed in linear arrays on both sides of Barker Road on lands referred to as the “Barker Farm” near the intersection with Nelson Road and Quent Phelan Road. The lines needed to connect the solar project to the VELCO station cross Cavendish land, which automatically gives the town “party” status.

The Ludlow Select Board has approved this project, while Green Mountain Power does not support the plan.

The governor and other administration officials have cautioned that the project and similar ones proposed earlier this year are out of scale with Vermont's energy needs. And officials at Green Mountain Power, which would be the obvious utility to buy the power, also are skeptical.

 "One thing we're always focused on is this moving toward a new energy future, where it's generated and used closer to where it's needed, and is it cost-effective? And in looking at this project, with the information we have right now, it's not passing those two screens for what is important for our customers and what they tell us they'd really like to see happen," said Kristin Carlson of Green Mountain Power. WCAX

Select Board Meeting Agenda 3/14/16

The Cavendish Select Board will meet on Monday, March 14 at 6:30 PM at the Cavendish Town Office. The agenda will be as follows:

1. Call the meeting to order

2. Conduct Annual Board of Selectmen Organizational Meeting including discussion of recent election results and Town posts which remain vacant.

3. Convene the regular monthly meeting

4. Review/approve minutes of the meetings of February8th and March 7th, 2016

5. Sign Orders

6. Review Correspondence

7. Adjust agenda

8. Hear Citizens

9. As Local Board of Liquor Control, review and consider application for a second class liquor license for Mini Beez Store

10. Discuss forthcoming (March 17th) Public Service Board hearing on the Ranger Solar Project which is located mostly in Ludlow but has a minor Cavendish involvement in the way of power transmission lines to the Coolidge Substation which is mainly located in Cavendish.

11. Update on recent Cavendish Telecommunications Committee activities especially with regard to broadband access and cell phone reception in Cavendish.

12. Review for approval and adoption revised Cavendish Cemetery Regulations

13. Discuss recent delivery of TerraStar truck (replacement of truck#4), disposition of International 4700 (replaced truck) and consider offering of Clark’s Truck Service regarding trade in values, possible consignment sales of used vehicles (old trucks 3 & 4) and potential purchase of a replacement for truck #3 (scheduled for 2016).

14. Manager to discuss the wrap-up of the ERP grant program.

15. Review of other town activities including spring roads, water and wastewater system matters including wastewater system energy audit, solar project operations, energy committee activities, etc.

16. Other business

17. Adjourn

Cavendish Update 3/11/16 News/Events/Act 46

As we spring forward on Sunday-Day Lights Savings goes into effect-please be sure to not only set your clocks ahead one hour before you go to bed Saturday night, but change batteries in smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. Also the PVFD wishes to remind everyone that as the seasons change and people begin to do spring clean ups, it’s illegal to burn outside without a burn permit. To obtain a burn permit in Cavendish and Proctorsville you must contact the fire Warden or one of his keymen. Permits will only be issued when the fire danger is low and it is safe to burn.
Fire Warden Roger Sheehan 226-7692 / 802-954-8481
Keymen Robert Glidden 226-7302 / 802-558-4321
Keymen Raymond Fitzgibbons 226-7288
Keymen Shane Turco 802-342-3935
 
3/11/16 Cavendish Update
1. Cavendish Related News
2. Cavendish Stone Buildings
3. Spring Sing
4. Act 46 “Creating Pre K 12 Education Systems”
5. Women’s Club Meeting
6. Events
 
1. CAVENDISH RELATED NEWS
Abracadabra Coffee Co. in Cavendish: Clint Hunt and Antoinette Willey have been roasting coffee in Cavendish under the name Abracadabra Coffee Co. for eight months. They sell whole bean coffee in biodegradable and recyclable packaging to local restaurants and specialty food stores. Rutland Herald
 
Congratulations to the Gross Kids for their Wins at the Lego Contest: At the recent 2016 Lego Contest at the Newsbank Conference Center, with entries from 19 towns, the Gross family of Cavendish came out strong winners. Ephram took 2nd place in the Pre K division for his “helicopter” entry. Judah took 2nd place in the K division for “Scotchie’s Bath,” while Stella took 1st place among the 4th graders for her “Community Church.”
 
Vendor Applications Due for Ludlow Farmer’s Market: Have something you make and want to sell this summer? Consider the Ludlow Farmer’s Market. Vendor applications are due by March 15.
 
After Years and Millions, VTel Wireless Promises Unfulfilled: The Springfield, Vt., telecommunications company in 2012 and 2013 won separate funding grants from both the federal government and the state to launch wireless mobile phone service to areas of Vermont that do not receive cellular phone service. The federal money was to make mobile phone service available along 941 miles of state roads where drivers cannot get a cellphone signal. The state money was to add mobile voice capabilities across VTel’s statewide wireless broadband network. Neither project appears yet to have been deployed, based on a Valley News investigation. Meanwhile, the company has argued with state regulators over whether the cellphone service it offers needs to comply with rules governing the geographical location of callers that is automatically supplied to dispatchers when customers make emergency calls. Valley News
 
Employers Needed for Fifth Annual Employment Fair: The River Valley Workforce Investment Board announced that it will be hosting the 5th Annual River Valley Employment Fair from 2 to 5 p.m. Wednesday, April 27, at Riverside Middle School in Springfield. Employers or resource organizations interested in participating in the fair should contact the Employment Fair Coordinator, Suzanne Groenewold at (802) 885-8310 or at sgroenewold@rvt.org. There is no fee for job seekers to participate. Eagle Times
 
VT Becomes 5th State to Require Paid Sick Leave: Signed into law by Gov. Shumlin, the bill takes effect in 2017, and will require companies to provide three days of paid sick leave in the first year of the law, and five days annually thereafter. While temporary workers, and employees who work less than 18 hours a week, aren’t covered by the mandate analysts expect the law will mean paid sick for about 60,000 workers in Vermont that don’t currently have the benefit. VPR
 
Interested in Your Vermont Ancestors?: The New England Historic Genealogical Society in Boston is offering free online access to four Vermont databases, and many other Vermont resources, for all of March in honor of Vermont's 225th birthday. Access the resources at www.americanancestors.org/vermont.
 
2. CAVENDISH STONE BUILDINGS: Throughout Cavendish are a number of buildings made of “sneckered Ashlar” construction- Cavendish Universalist “Stone” Church, Glimmerstone, and Black River Health Center to name just a few. This technique refers to walls constructed with exterior andinterior surfaces composed of mortared stone slabs arranged vertically onedge, tied together with smaller horizontal slabs called "snecks." The spacebetween the wall surface was filled with rubble stone. Oral tradition indicates that Scottish stonemasons working in Canada were responsible for introducing the technique into Vermont.
 
While there are several local sources for the mica schist stone, it is believed that the former quarry/vein at the end of Tierney Rd in Cavendish was the source for the stone for at least the Cavendish Stone Church and Glimmerstone.
 
Learn more about these buildings, and see pictures, at the Cavendish Historical Society blog. A special note of thanks to Kem Phillips who hiked the ice to take the pictures of the quarry at the end of Tierney Rd.
 
3. SPRING SING: Do you like to sing?  Gethsemane Church in Proctorsville is looking for some singers to join our choir for our Easter celebration on Sunday, March 27 at 11am.  The music will be easy to learn and joyful and it is not necessary to know how to read music.  There will be rehearsals the next two Sundays (March 13 and 20) at 12:30 pm at the church (on Depot Street).  Please contact the Rev. Todd McKee if you are interested:  GethsemaneChurchVT@gmail.com or 603-667-5458.
 
4. ACT 46 CREATING PRE K -12 EDUCATION SYSTEMS: Act 46 was passed by the legislature in 2015. Simply stated it reads, “On or before July 1, 2019 educational opportunities in Vermont shall be provided through “sustainable governance structures” that provide PreK 12 educational opportunities at a reasonable cost.” The Act has many components, but the essence is that mergers need to occur if a “structure” has less than 900 students. This means that the structure (which may be comprised of several schools) has one administrative office, one school board, one curriculum, one budget and one tax rate.
 
In 2013 WSWSU and RWSU voluntarily chose to consolidate supervisory unions and became the TRSU. We have in excess of the required numbers as mandated by Act 46, but we still have individual school boards for all of our districts and individual school budgets and all of our districts have different tax rates. Act 46 mandates one school board and one budget. There are various incentives included in the Act for merging (homestead tax reduction for the first four years of operation) and disincentives (no tax relief and loss of small school grants) for not fully merging.
 
A “Merger Planning Committee” with representation from all the school districts in the
TRSU, has been established to look at all of the ramifications of merging and see how we can meet the letter of the Act. Sub Committees have been looking at implications for Educational Benefits, Finance, Property, First Year Plan, Governance and Outreach.
 
The Committee is holding focus forums in all of the towns to explain the Act and to answer questions that anyone in the community might have. Our Focus Forum is scheduled for Tuesday, March 15 at 6:30 at CTES. Please come ask questions and learn how this may affect our school and community.
 
5. WOMEN’S CLUB MEETING: The March meeting of the Okemo Valley GFWC Women's Club will be held Monday, March 14, 2016 at the Black River Valley Senior Center in Ludlow, VT. This month's speaker will be Vickie Ball from Habitat for Humanity. The meeting will begin at 7pm and will also include a business meeting and refreshments in addition to the speaker. Anyone interested in attending is welcome and may contact President Marylou Shaw, 802-228-5673, Membership chairwoman Roxie Davis, 802-226-7417 or any member. The General Federation of Women's Clubs www.gfwc.org  is an international women's organization dedicated to community improvement by enhancing the lives of others through volunteer service.
 
6. EVENTS
March 12 (Saturday): Sugar on Snow Supper at the Cavendish Baptist Church 5:30-7 pm
March 13 (Sunday): Spring forward for DAYLIGHT SAVINGS. Move clocks ahead one hour. Spring Sing rehearsal, 12:30 at Gethsemane Church, off Depot St. See article 3.
March 14 (Monday): Select Board Meeting, 6:30 pm at the town office. This is the annual organizational meeting; Okemo Valley Women’s Club Meeting at the Senior Center in Ludlow, 7 pm.
March 15 (Tuesday): Act 46 Focus Forum, CTES, 6:30 pm, see article 4 above
March 17 (Thursday): HAPPY ST. PATRICK’S DAY
 
For information on upcoming events, go to the Cavendish Connects March Calendar. 

Cavendish Update 3/4/16 Town Meeting Results/Act 46/Events

Happy 225th Vermont!

3/4/16 Cavendish Update
1. Cavendish Town Meeting Results
2. Cavendish Related News
3. Happy 225th Birthday Vermont
4. Act 46 Focus Forum at CTES
5. Sugar on Snow Supper
6. Events
 
1. CAVENDISH TOWN MEETING/ ELECTION RESULTS
All articles of the Annual Town Meeting (page 10 of the Town Report) and School Meeting were approved. Citizen Service Awards were given to Ginny Garrow for her 20 years of work at the Town Office and Will Hunter, who has been an active member of the Cavendish community for many years. This was his last meeting as Town and School Moderator. There was considerable discussion during the school portion about Act 46, nursing, and the lack of handicap parking during the day for those wishing to use the community library. A report on Town Meeting is available at The Dish.
 
The results of Cavendish's Australian ballot are as follows: CTES budget passed (301/98); GMUHS (1,027/561); River Valley (Cavendish passed it but requires approval from multiple towns). Julie Gignoux was the write in for the Library Board. Sanders was the Democratic choice for President (Sanders 250, Clinton 29), while the Republican choice was Trump (57) Kasich (36), Rubio (21), Cruz (17). There was insufficient write ins for either town moderator or school moderator.  All other candidates were elected as they were running unopposed and there were insufficient write ins to challenge them.
 
2. CAVENDISH RELATED NEWS
Wind Storm Knocks Out Power in Cavendish: With winds up to 85 miles an hour on Monday night, March came in like a lion, leaving a number of homes without power on Tuesday March 1. At one point, while a transformer was replaced on Mill Street, Cavendish village, including the town office, was without power. Fortunately, this did not impact the school and voting. Power was restored to the entire town before nightfall.
 
CHS Newsletter: The Winter 2016 edition of the Cavendish Historical Society newsletter-Scribbler II is now available on-line at the CHS blog. Those desiring a print version of the newsletter should e-mail margoc@tds.net or call 802-226-7807.  
 
BRGNS Celebrates Five Years: The staff and volunteers at Black River Good Neighbor Services, Inc. invite you to join them at the BRGNS Thrift Store on Wednesday March 9th to celebrate their fifth anniversary at the Ludlow Community Center. The store will be open for its normal hours from 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 pm with special activities, including something special for the kids, hourly events, scavenger hunts, door prizes, special sales and tours of the food shelf.  As a non-profit community organization, BRGNS provides confidential, temporary food, clothing and financial assistance to those in need, to help them return to self-sufficiency. BRGNS serves the towns of Ludlow, Cavendish, Mount Holly and Plymouth. They are always in need of volunteer help so if you have a few hours to donate, please call Audrey at (802) 228-3663.
 
3. HAPPY 225TH BIRTHDAY VERMONT
On March 4, 1791, Vermont became the 14th state. In 1777, Cavendish’s first settler John Coffeen was among the representatives and signers of Vermont’s Constitution. Meeting in Windsor, VT, the Constitution said that Vermont was an independent state and not part of New York or New Hampshire. Based on Pennsylvania’s 1776 Constitution, Vermont’s founding document had several radical innovations including a prohibition on slavery and universal manhood suffrage unencumbered by property qualifications. The Constitution also provided a mechanism for proposing amendments, if needed, every seven years. In 1793, the VT constitution was amended to reflect it’s joining the United States two years prior. This revised Constitution remains the core of the current Constitution.
 
4. ACT 46 FOCUS FORUM AT CTES
There was considerable discussion at the School segment of Town Meeting about Act 46 and what it means for our town. Act 46 of 2016 Act 46 is designed to encourage and support local decisions and actions that: Provide substantial equity in the quality and variety of educational opportunities statewide; Lead students to achieve or exceed the State’s Education Quality Standards, adopted as rules by the State Board of Education at the direction of the General Assembly; Maximize operational efficiencies through increased flexibility to manage, share, and transfer resources, with a goal of increasing the district-level ratio ofstudents to full-time equivalent staff;  Promote transparency and accountability; andAre delivered at a cost that parents, voters, and taxpayers value. Fact Sheet Department of Education
 
While the Department of Education has a webpage on Act 46, focus forums are being held to assist residents in understanding the intent of the legislation and how it will impact their community. To that end, a focus forum will be held on March 15 (Wednesday), 6:30 pm at the Cavendish Elementary School in Proctorsville. FMI: 802-226-7758
 
5. SUGAR ON SNOW SUPPER
The Cavendish Baptist Church’s Helping Hand Class will once again be sponsoring the annual “Sugar-on-Snow Supper, March 12, from 5:30 to 7 pm at the Parish Hall, 2258 Main St., Cavendish. Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for ages 6-12 and under 6 are free. The menu, served buffet style, includes baked beans (sweetened with maple syrup), ham (raisin sauce available), squash, coleslaw, pickles, breads, homemade doughnuts, decaf coffee, tea, punch and of course sugar-on-snow. Take out meals available. FMI: 802-226-7724
 
6. EVENTS
March 4 (Friday): 225th Anniversary of VT Statehood
March 6 (Sunday): A Walk in the Woods (Dinner and a Movie) at the Cavendish Community Library, 1 pm
March 8 (Tuesday): Community Luncheon at Gethsemane Church, off Depot Street in Proctorsville at noon. Menu is New England Boiled Dinner. Suggested donation $4
March 9 (Wednesday): Celebrate Black River Good Neighbors 5th anniversary by stopping by the Thrift Store in Ludlow during normal store hours 10-4 for special treats and surprises.
 
For information on upcoming events, go to the Cavendish Connects March Calendar.