July 6, 2015

Page 1

MONDAY Â Â EDITION

ADDISON COUNTY

INDEPENDENT

Vol. 27 No. 16

Middlebury, Vermont

X

Monday, July 6, 2015

X

32 Pages

75¢

$&53& DI¿UPV VXSSRUW IRU SLSHOLQH Commission  votes  23-­9  for  Phase  I

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By  JOHN  FLOWERS 0,''/(%85< ² ,Q D FRQÂżU-­ mation  of  its  previous  support,  the  Addison  County  Regional  Planning  Commission  (ACRPC)  board  voted  23  to  9  on  Wednesday,  July  1,  to  con-­ tinue  its  support  of  Phase  I  of  Ver-­ mont  Gas  Systems’  Addison  Natural Â

Gas  Project. The  purpose  of  the  specially  called  meeting  was  to  determine  whether  a  change  in  the  commission’s  posi-­ tion  might  be  in  order  given  the  78  percent  rise  in  the  estimated  costs  of  laying  the  natural  gas  pipeline  from  Colchester  to  Middlebury  and  into  Vergennes.  The  cost  was  originally  pegged  at  $86  million,  but  over  the  past  two  years  ballooned  to  $154  million,  raising  new  questions  about Â

the  public  good  the  Phase  I  project  would  provide.  Ten  members  of  the  39-­member  board  had  petitioned  for  a  review  of  its  earlier  support,  which  triggered  the  board’s  decision  last  month  to  schedule  Wednesday  night’s  meet-­ ing  to  take  up  the  issue. 7KH ERDUGÂśV VWURQJ FRQÂżUPDWLRQ of  support  sends  a  timely  message  to  the  Vermont  Public  Service  Board,  which  recently  concluded  two  days Â

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Vergennes  school  rates  not  known

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Vermont Army Band will play on By  JOHN  FLOWERS VERGENNES  â€”  They  won’t  be  playing  taps  after  all  for  the  40th  Army  Band  of  the  Vermont  National  Guard. 9HUPRQW *XDUG RIÂżFLDOV FRQÂżUPHG ODWH ODVW ZHHN that  the  40th  â€”  which  had  been  slated  to  be  decom-­

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of  technical  hearings  reviewing  those  new  cost  estimates,  among  other  considerations,  to  determine  whether  it  should  reopen  its  review  of  the  project’s  public  good. While  the  ACRPC  vote  is  not  binding  on  projects  governed  by  the  PSB,  the  state  board  does  consider  the  viewpoints  of  local  boards  in  its  decision-­making. ACRPC  executive  director  Adam  (See  Pipeline,  Page  30)

missioned  and  possibly  made  a  detachment  of  the  New  Hampshire  National  Guard  39th  Army  Band  â€”  KDV EHHQ JLYHQ DQ LQGHÂżQLWH UHSULHYH “MG  Steven  Cray  announced  today  that  the  40th  Army  Band,  VTARNG,  will  not  be  decommissioned  (See  Band,  Page  30)

5DLQ\ -XQH ERJV GRZQ IDUPHUV :HDWKHU KXUWV TXDOLW\ TXDQWLW\ RI FURSV ² DQG ÂżQDQFHV By  ANDY  KIRKALDY ADDISON  COUNTY  â€”  Accord-­ ing  to  the  National  Weather  Service,  June’s  rainfall  in  Burlington  of  8.67  inches  proved  to  be  the  third  highest  since  1884,  trailing  only  1922  and  2013. Nobody  had  to  tell  Vermont  farm-­ ers  that  news.  â€œEvery  year  we  have  our  little  times  and  issues  with  wet  weather,â€? Â

said  Peter  James,  co-­owner  of  Wey-­ bridge’s  Monument  Farms.  â€œBut  this  year  it’s  been  the  entire  month  of  June.â€? Heavy  rain  and  clouds  in  June  pose  special  problems  for  dairy  farmers.  That  month  is  when  they  plan  to  EULQJ LQ WKHLU ÂżUVW FURS RI KD\ IHU-­ tilize  and  grow  a  second  cut  for  an  early  July  harvest,  and  watch  their Â

newly  planted  corn  begin  to  thrive.  James  last  week  said  things  did  not  go  according  to  that  plan  â€”  he  said  Monument  Farms  might  have  cut  DERXW D ÂżIWK RI LWV ÂżUVW KD\ JURZWK before  the  rains  came,  has  not  been  able  to  get  equipment  into  its  soaked  ¿HOGV WR IHUWLOL]H D VHFRQG FXW DQG LV seeing  corn  â€œstrugglingâ€?  to  survive.  â€œThe  corn  needs  the  sunlight  to  (See  Fields,  Page  7)

By  ANDY  KIRKALDY VERGENNES  â€”  As  expected,  the  Vergennes  City  Council  on  June  30  increased  the  Vergennes  munici-­ pal  tax  rate  by  2.5  cents  to  75  cents. That  increase  will  add  $25  to  city  tax  bills  per  $100,000  of  assessed  value.  Aldermen  had  been  targeting  that  number  for  months  and  in  their  recent  meetings  had  made  major  cuts  to  a  draft  budget.  Aldermen  also  approved  a  2015-­2016  general  fund  budget  of  $2,121,912.  That  number  is  an  in-­ crease  of  about  $34,000,  or  1.6  per-­ cent,  over  the  2014-­2015  general  fund  budget  of  about  $2.088  million. The  general  fund  budget  includes  police,  public  works  and  administra-­ tive  spending,  plus  other  expenses  such  as  support  of  local  and  county  agencies  and  charitable  donations  approved  on  Town  Meeting  Day.  7KH EXGJHW GRHV QRW LQFOXGH ÂżUH GH-­ partment  spending,  which  is  largely  funded  by  surrounding  towns  and  sewer  spending,  which  is  fee-­based. Unlike  in  other  Addison  County  communities,  in  which  residents  vote  on  budget  proposals  in  March,  in  Vergennes  aldermen  set  the  bud-­ get  in  June. The  city’s  total  tax  rate  remains  uncertain  due  to  the  multiple  votes  on  the  Vergennes  Union  High  School  budget,  according  to  Addison  North-­ ZHVW 6XSHUYLVRU\ 8QLRQ RIÂżFLDOV 7KH\ ZHUH H[SHFWLQJ VWDWH RIÂżFLDOV WR PDNH $1Z68 VFKRRO WD[ UDWHV Âż-­ nal  later  this  week.  According  to  ANwSU  estimates,  (See  Vergennes,  Page  6)

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