Cavendish Update 6/24/16 News/Plant Sale/Concert

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6/24/16 Cavendish Update

1. Cavendish Related News

2. Annual Plant Sale: Pre Order Mock Orange

3. Yes, You Can Get Your Book Autographed

4. Cavendish Concerts Begin 2016 Series with Gypsy Reel

5. Events

1. CAVENDISH RELATED NEWS

House Fire Proctorsville: On Monday, June 20, at about 6 am Proctorsville Fire Department (PFD), with mutual aid from Cavendish, Ludlow,  Chester, Weathersfield, and Springfield Fire Departments, responded to a house fire on Mountain View Ave in Proctorsville. Fortunately no one was at home. The property is a total loss. One PFD Firefighter suffered an ankle injury while working on the interior of the building. He is expected to make a full recovery. Due to the direction of the wind, the Cavendish Valley was engulfed in smoke. The State Fire investigator is determining the cause of the fire.

Springfield Medical Care Systems Receives Dental Care Grant: U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders has announced the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services awarded $1.05 million to three community health centers in Vermont, one of which is Springfield. The health centers will use this new federal funding to expand access to dental care. Ludlow Health Center and its dental care facility are part of the Springfield Medical Care Systems, which received $350,000. VT Digger 

State Bars EB-5 Project at Okemo From Soliciting New Investors: An EB-5, foreign investor-funded project at the base of Okemo Mountain Resort has come under new regulatory scrutiny over statements in its financial prospectus to investors. The Vermont Department of Financial Regulation has stripped the project of its authority to solicit new investors, pending the creation of new disclosures that regulators say will more accurately reflect the risks. Project developers bill the “South Face Village at Okemo” project as “the first four-season luxury home community at Okemo Mountain in over a decade.” At a projected cost of more than $200 million, the real estate venture, according to its developers, will also feature a lodge with “a gourmet eatery, indoor/outdoor pool, hot tubs, health club, and outdoor fireplaces for the ultimate in recreation or relaxation.” VPR 

Rutland Herald and Times Argus Eliminate Print Editions Mon-Wed: The Rutland Herald and the Barre-Montpelier Times Argus will stop publishing print editions Monday-Wednesday, only publishing in print Thursday through Sunday, but seven days a week on-line. Cutting the print editions, is “an attempt to keep from having dramatic layoffs in the newsroom and to try and monetize the technical base we’ve built for social media.” VT Digger 

 VT Lags in Housing Affordability:. According to the  annual “Out of Reach” report, a family in Vermont must earn $21.13 per hour, or $43,947 per year, to afford a modest, two-bedroom apartment. The wage is based on 40-hour workweek for 52 weeks and accounts for rent and utilities in the private housing market. The group defines affordable housing as costing 30 percent or less of salary. Based on the mean renter wage, Vermonters can afford just $613 a month for rent and utilities while the average statewide fair market rent for a two-bedroom apartment is $1,099. Times Argus 

2. ANNUAL PLANT SALE: PRE ORDER MOCK ORANGE: At Barbara Kingsbury's Memorial last week, many people commented on the beautiful and sweet smelling Mock Orange that decorated the church. When it was mentioned that these shrubs would be available at the Cavendish Historical Society’s (CHS) Annual Plant Sale on July 2 in front of the Museum, there was a request for pre ordering.

Thanks to the incredible talents of Svetlana Phillips, with the assistance of her husband and CHS board member Kem, 24 plants were cultivated from Gloria Leven's bush in 2015, wintered over and potted in the best soil thanks to Moonlite Meadows’s aged compost. These are very hearty plants and 100% Cavendish.

For the first time ever, CHS is going to allow pre ordering of the Mock Orange. These are selling for $20 (large) and $10 (small). To pre order:

• Send a check payable to CHS to PO Box 472, Cavendish VT 05142

• Checks can also be dropped off at the Museum on Sundays 2-4 pm

• Specify whether you want a large ($20) or small ($10) plant

• Pick your plant up on July 2 - If you won't be here, we can arrange another time. However, we will not ship plants.

By popular demand, and in case you didn’t get around to it, “patio” tomato plants (Better Boy, Early Girl, Sweet 100s, and Brandywine) will be available for sale. These are potted and staked in five-gallon containers and can sit out on the back deck/yard/patio for easy pickings this summer. Because of the handle, you can bring them in on cold nights and probably get to October before you need to call it quits. Tomatoes are limited and were sold out by 9:30 last year so recommend getting to the sale early if you want one.

New this year will be herbs and raspberry plants. There are even a few special miniature herb gardens in window boxes. As always, there will be plenty of beautiful hosta along with wild ginger,  Salmon Seal, iris, Snow on the Mountain and other perennials.

If you have questions call 802-226-7807 or e-mail margocaulfield@icloud.com

3. YES YOU CAN GET YOUR BOOK AUTOGRAPHED: The Cavendish Historical Society (CHS) has received inquiries about purchasing autographed copies of “Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn: The Writer Who Changed History.”   The first children’s book ever written on Cavendish’s famous resident, it is suitable for all ages, particularly because of the many photographs thanks to the Solzhenitsyn family.

You can receive an autographed copy in one of the following ways:

• There will be a book signing as part of the July 2 Plant Sale, from 8:30-2:30 at the CHS Museum 1958 Main Street (Route 131)

• On Sundays from 2-4 pm the Museum is open and you can pick up a copy then.

• If you prefer, you can order a copy from CHS by sending a check for $18.00 ($14.99 for the book and the balance for shipping and handling) to CHS, PO Box 472 Cavendish, VT 05142. Please specify how you would like the book inscribed.

4. CAVENDISH 2016 CONCERTS BEGIN WITH GYPSY REEL: The Cavendish Community and Conservation Association (CCCA) and the Town of Cavendish invite everyone to spend an evening having fun on the Proctorsville Green on Wednesday, July 6th, starting at 6:00 p.m. when the annual summer music series kicks off with the sounds of Gypsy Reel.

The Celt band that rocks, Gypsy Reel has for over twenty years played high energy, stirring music rooted in the Celtic tradition but garnered from the whole world. Their music is an exciting synthesis of world rhythms and influences from three continents. Based in Ludlow, Vermont the band continuously captivates local audiences.

This will be the first of six concerts that are held on consecutive Wednesday nights in July and August. For a listing of all 2016 concerts please go to the Upcoming Events page at www.CavendishCCCA.org.

CCCA encourages all area residents and visitors to join their friends and neighbors in front of the gazebo on the green. Bring a blanket or a comfortable chair, have a picnic, or just lie back and relax on the grass. It’s a fun way to enjoy the summer weather and either reconnect with old friends or make new ones. 

As always, the concerts are free and open to the public. In case of inclement weather, please check the Cavendish Facebook page. For more information please call Robin at 226-7736.

5. EVENTS

JULY 2 (Saturday): Cavendish Historical Society’s Annual Plant Sale plus book signing of “Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn: The Writer Who Changed History.” 8:30-2:30 pm at the CHS Museum, 1958 Main Street (Route 131).

JULY 4 (Monday): Happy 4th of July This is a legal holiday with the town office, banks and most businesses closed for the day.

JULY 6 (Wednesday): Gypsy Reel Concert, 6 pm Proctorsville Green. Free

 For information on upcoming events, go to the Cavendish Connects Calendar. For area events, check the Okemo Valley Chamber of Commerce calendar. 

Cavendish Update 6/17/16 Retirement/SB Mtg/News

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 6/17/16 Cavendish Update

1. Cavendish Select Board Meeting 6/13/16

2. Cavendish Related News

3. Cavendish Business Directory Updating

4. Events

1. CAVENDISH SELECT BOARD MEETING 6/13/16: Select board (SB) meetings are recorded by LPC-TV and are available at their website and on Comcast Television.  Written minutes are available at the town’s website.  

With a number of important issues to discuss, the most significant piece of information was given at the end of the meeting when Rich Svec, town manager since 1988, announced his retirement effective September 2016. At this juncture, no information has been given about search committees for his replacement, restructuring or how the select board will proceed in addressing this significant change in town governance.

The following additional  action was taken at Monday night’s meeting:

• Fire Districts: Outlined a strategy to begin the discussion of one taxing fire district

• Approved a town wide reappraisal beginning in 2017, but fully operational in 2018-2019, due to a wide disparity between current assessments and fair market value.

• Reviewed another draft of the Cavendish Municipal Water System By-Laws and agreed that a public hearing should be held on July 11 with implementation taking place in September.

• Report from the town’s sexton shows that cemetery costs are down and revenue up. Various youth groups will be helping over the summer to right and clean head stones and do pruning.

• A meeting has been set for June 20 at 5 pm for the SB to meet with John Broker-Campbell, Floodplain Manager for Southern VT regarding the Cavendish Flood Hazard Area Regulations.

• Agreed that the town auditor, Peter LaBelle, can make changes in line items due to minor entry glitches dating back to 2000 and 2005. Such changes will not impact the town’s bottom line and will be noted in next year’s town report

• Approved the increasing of tipping fees at the Transfer Station (solid waste fees will be doubled-$1.50 for a small bag to $3.00 for a large one) and requiring all vehicles using the transfer station to display a permit. These changes will take effect on September 1st.

For a full report on the SB meeting, please see The Dish. 

2. CAVENDISH RELATED NEWS

 Connie Kendall Retires from CTES: Originally hired as a paraprofessional, Connie Kendall began teaching in the Primary Unit (K-1) in 1992. Eventually she became the full time Kindergarten teacher as well as the America Reads Coordinator. Many will remember her reading the “Fudge” series during the All Night Read-A-Thon, making “Stone Soup” with her students and playing her guitar. Kendall loves gardening as well as her wood fired sauna, both of which we hope she has plenty of time to enjoy in her retirement. Thank you Connie for your many years of service to the Cavendish community and enjoy your retirement.

Weathersfield Trail Head Robbery: State Police are investigating a theft from a vehicle that occurred at the Weathersfield Trail Head parking area located off High Meadow Road in Weathersfield. A couple hiking returned to their vehicle and found the passenger side window smashed and a purse stolen from inside. The purse was described as a black leather Michael Kors pocketbook containing the victim’s personal effects. This crime occurred between 1000 and 1100 hours on 6-13-16. Anyone with information regarding this theft is asked to contact Tpr. Brian Turner at the Rockingham Barracks."

Springfield Area Man Indicted on Multiple Armed Robberies: Matthew Martin was arraigned Tuesday, who ordered him back into custody and detained until his trial. Martin could face up to 25 years in prison on each of two counts of armed robbery one of which was the December robbing of the Heritage Family Credit Union in Ludlow. VT Digger 

3. CAVENDISH BUSINESS DIRECTORY UPDATING: Cavendish Connects is currently updating the Cavendish Business Directory.  If you have a Cavendish business and/or are a resident that owns a business and are not currently listed or incorrectly listed, please e-mail cavendishconnects@gmail.com withinformation. Please provide business name, website URL, best phone number and a brief description of your business. If you see a business listed that is no longer operational, please let us know that as well.

4. EVENTS

JUNE 17 (Friday): GMUHS Graduation

JUNE 18 (Saturday): Annual Running of the Books race to benefit the Cavendish Library

JUNE 19 (Sunday): HAPPY FATHER’S DAY

JUNE 20 (Monday): Select Board special meeting, 5 pm

JUNE 21 (Tuesday): CTES Board Meeting 5:30 pm at the School

 For information on upcoming events, go to the Cavendish Connects Calendar. For area events, check the Okemo Valley Chamber of Commerce calendar. 

Select Board Meeting 6/13/16

Select board (SB) meetings are recorded by LPC-TV and are available at their website and on Comcast Television.  Written minutes are available at the town’s website.

In an evening with many important issues discussed, probably the most significant piece of information was given at the end of the meeting when Rich Svec, town manager, gave notice that he was retiring in Sept. Svec has been town manager since 1988 and is the longest person to have served the town in this capacity.

 The following action was taken at Monday night’s meeting:

Fire Districts: With both Fire Districts present, Stewart Lindberg, Prudential Board Chair for Fire District #2 (Cavendish) discussed how the current economic climate, limited volunteers and costs indicated a need for one taxing fire district. Because Fire District 2 was created by an act of the Vermont legislation, dissolution of the District would need to go back to the legislature. As part of getting the process started, it was agreed that the two Prudential Boards should meet. Since there is a desire that their be transparency in this process, Svec offered to help arrange for a public meeting at the Cavendish Elementary School. While he also suggested that the town and school board moderator, SB member Mike Ripley could moderate, many in the audience felt that an independent be hired to serve this purpose. One suggestion was John Wood Jr who recently completed the report Fire Services Evaluation for the Ascutney and West Weathersfield Volunteer Fire Departments, who are discussing a merger.  

District #1’s (Proctorsville) Prudential Board meets on June 14. Lindberg said that he wouldn’t be able to make that meeting because of work but he hoped to have someone from Fire District #2 present who could begin this discussion.

It was noted that more than 10 years ago, there was an effort to merge the two districts into one. For more on the history of the fire districts, and what transpired in 2005, go to the Cavendish Historical Society’s blog post Town of Cavendish Fire Districts History 

Town-Wide Reappraisal: Because there is a growing disparity between assessments and fair market value, particularly for one group of properties, the SB has agreed that a town –wide reappraisal is needed. While work will begin in 2017, the actual reappraisal will take place in 2018-2019. The SB went into executive session for the discussion of this agenda item.

Adjustments to Accounting System: Diane McNamara, Town Treasurer, discussed with the board two bookkeeping items dating back to 2000 and 2005 respectively, which were entered incorrectly. Neither item will impact the town’s bottom line. However, the town’s auditor Peter LaBelle, said he would not make adjustments without the SB’s approval. The SB agreed that changes could be made and that this be reflected in next year’s Annual Town Report.

Cemetery Operations: Since the dissolution of the Cemetery Commission and their function taken over by the town, costs have been significantly reduced and revenue significantly increased. The latter is due to the implementation of a new fee schedule. Two different youth groups will be working in the cemeteries this summer, righting and cleaning stones, as well as pruning trees and bushes. Last summer’s work by volunteers from the Cavendish Historical Society has kept the orange mold from spreading in the Cavendish Village Cemetery. However, not all affected stones could be cleaned last year, so that will be priority one for the July volunteers. All stones in Hillcrest have been righted and the vault has been restored. A new roof is on the Cavendish vault and painting is planned for the sheds in Cavendish and Hillcrest.

Cavendish Municipal Water System By-Laws: The SB reviewed another draft of the By-Laws and agreed that a public hearing should be held on July 11 with implementation taking place in September.

Cavendish Flood Hazard Area Regulations: A meeting has been set for June 20 at 5 pm for the SB to meet with John Broker-Campbell, Floodplain Manager for Southern VT.

Transfer Station E-Waste Law and Fee Increases: Cavendish has not increased transfer station related fees since 1991. Since then significant changes have taken place in Vermont requiring that anything that can be recycled or compostable be kept out of the landfill and some items have been banned from the landfill altogether.

Cavendish is reimbursed at the rate of .8¢ per pound for some Electronic Waste but it is not sufficient to cover the cost of running the E-waste facility and removal cost. The Zero Sort recycling at best is break even but generally does not cover operational costs. The state wants to see that those using the transfer station be responsible for paying for it so that a town’s transfer station doesn’t rely solely on taxes.

Over the last 25 years, Cavendish has expanded the function of the transfer station thereby reducing not only the town’s carbon footprint, but also costs, since many items that once went into the municipal solid waste (MSW) compactor are now recycled for free.

In developing the fee schedule, surrounding towns’ transfer stations policies and fee schedules were studied and Cavendish has been found to charge significantly less for similar service. For example, the Ludlow Transfer Station has a $10 yearly residential permit fee, which includes 52 transfer station logoed disposal bags. These are the only ones that can be deposited in the MSW compactor. These bags are clear so the attendant can see what’s being thrown out. Many of the surrounding towns weigh trash while Cavendish charges by the bag .75¢ or $1.50 depending on the size of the bag. While it would be ideal for Cavendish to go with a “weighing” system, there isn’t the space to do that. To understand how other towns operate, check out the Southern Windsor/Windham Counties Solid Waste District website. 

The SB approved that starting September 1:

• All vehicles using the transfer station must display the transfer station sticker. These are $5 a vehicle, with the first one being free. Those not displaying the sticker will not be allowed to use the transfer station. Permits can be purchased at the Cavendish Town Office. Permits are replaced for free if the old one is scraped off and brought to the town office. Whether this will become a yearly fee will be discussed in the fall.

• The cost to deposit in the MSW will double in price, with tipping fees being $1.50 for small bags and $3.00 for large.

• There will be no charge for the disposal of the following: Lawn mowers; BBQ/Gas Brills; Bicycles/Tricycles/Metal Kiddy cars; Part/pieces of cars, truck motorcycle, snowmobile, farm equipment, brake rotors, drums, exhaust components, shocks, struts, fuel tanks, body panels, front end components, block transmissions, radiators, pumps etc.; Misc Metal-fence posts, piping, metal gutters, aluminum siding, aluminum windows/doors, metal roofing, lawn chairs, and other small metal parts; washers, dryers and stoves; water heaters and pressure tanks; furnaces, boilers and wood stoves; televisions; computers (desktop, laptops and tablets), printers (laser, ink jet and dot matrix) and monitors (tube type, LCD and flat panel); auto rims with out tires.

• Tipping fees will be charged for a number of items, with a new fee schedule to be posted shortly at the Cavendish Transfer Station website. One of the bigger changes will be for building and demolition debris. Currently there is a $40 per cubic yard fee. This will be increased to $50 per cubic yard. Fees for bulky furniture will also be increasing along with those for mattresses and box springs, tape recorders, windows, tires, VCRs, CD//DVD players etc.

Note that the following items are not accepted at the Transfer Station and need to be disposed of as household hazardous waste: urethane cartridges or tanks, partially filled spray paint, hair sprays, lacquers, enamels, shellac window cleaners; wood and metal finishing products; solvents, such as carburetor cleaners; all anti-freezes; insecticides and lawn and garden products. Note that household paint can be disposed locally at LaValley’s and Aubuchon Hardware.

For questions about the Transfer Station, please call Bruce McEnaney at the Town Office 802-226-7291. 

Cavendish Select Board Meeting Agenda 6/13/16

The Cavendish Select Board will meet on Monday, June 13, 6:30 pm at the Cavendish Town Office. The Agenda will be as follows:

1. Call the meeting to order

2. Review/approve minutes of the meetings of May 9th and May 23rd, 2016

3. Sign Orders

4. Review Correspondence

5. Adjust agenda

6. Hear Citizens

7. Board of Listers to discuss a matter of adjustments to the grand list as a result of grievance hearing proceedings and discussion with regard to planning for a future town-wide reappraisal.

8. Diane McNamara, Town Treasurer to discuss with the Board of Selectmen the need to make some minor adjusting entries in the accounting system to resolve some long needed corrections.

9. Follow-up to discussion which took place at the May 23rd meeting with Cavendish Fire District #2 Prudential Committee chair and the Cavendish Fire Department Chief on Fire District and Departmental affairs.

10. Update on town cemetery operations and review of the activities during the past year under the general supervision of the Board of Selectmen

11. Review of update draft of the Cavendish Municipal Water System By-Laws. The Board of Water Commissioners has made proposed modifications to the existing document and has submitted it to the Board of Selectmen for review and adoption. Board of Selectmen to establish a date for public hearing and adoption of the by-laws.

12. Set date for review and discussion of Cavendish Flood Hazard Area Regulations update with John Broker-Campbell, Floodplain Manager for Southern Vermont.

13. Discussion of the new (effective July 1, 2016) E-Waste (electronics waste) state plan program and Cavendish contract with NCER. Review of revisions to the Cavendish Transfer Station fee schedule for approval and establishment of effective date.

14. Updates on other town activities

15. Other business