May 12, 2016 The Essex Reporter

Page 1

Splitting the middle

TEAM GREEN Colchester's Flying Hooves 4H Club took part in Green Up Day last Saturday in Essex. SEE PHOTOS ON PAGE 2.

RepoRteR

Dominic Minadeo strikes a forehand while Brendan Brooks looks on during a match last week. Hornet tennis and lacrosse are featured in SPORTS, PAGE 8.

The essex MAY 12, 2016

Vol. 36, No. 19

Prsrt Std ECRWSS U.S. Postage Paid Permit No. 266 Essex Junction, VT 05452 Postal Patron-Residential

5 Corners building gets anchor

McGillicuddy's to hold down bottom floor By JASON STARR

T

he new building at the corner of Pearl and Park streets has its first tenant. McGillicuddy’s, a sports bar/ family restaurant, will open a third res-

taurant in Chittenden County in the 4,500-square-foot corner spot on the ground floor of the building, owner David Nelson of Essex said. The spot will have the same menu as the two existing McGillicuddy’s in Colchester and Williston. It will be Nelson’s

fifth restaurant, as he runs two in Barre and Montpelier. The new venture will be called McGillicuddy’s Five Corners. Nelson said he finalized a lease with owner Milot Real Estate last week for the space, which will have frontage on both Park and Pearl streets with outdoor seating on the corner patio. There remains about 10,000 square feet of street-level commercial space

available. In a recent email to The Reporter, Milot director of development Brett Grabowski had nothing to report on potential commercial tenants. On the upper three floors of the building, 51 apartments are due to open this fall. “I really like the building,” said Nelson, who has lived in Essex Town for three years. “I think it will energize the See DEVELOPMENT, page 12

50 YEARS OF ROTARY Photo by SABRINA LIGUORI Students listen during a class at Essex High School on Tuesday.

Curriculum talks begin for unified transition By ColiN FlaNDers

P

erhaps the most delicate part of the unified school district transition — for students, parents and teachers alike — is curriculum, or how students will be taught. For essex Town school District superintendent Mark Andrews, who’s leading this transition effort, it all starts with leadership. An ad-hoc committee of higher administration from eTsD and the Chittenden Central Supervisory Union are meeting Thursday to begin these conversations. Although the unified district begins operation next July, Andrews said it’d be a mistake to rush these discussions. “I want to make sure we’re really clearly established at the leadership level to understand why we're doing this, and what does it look like, before we talk about the how,” Andrews said last Friday. Finding common ground will help guide school leaders and administrators to implement change, he said. That being said, he assured teachers will play a major role since it would be shortsighted to make decisions without their input. They will be vital in aligning curriculum to content standards, guided by the Common Core. If content standards are the See UNIFIED, page 3

Photos courtesy of ESSEX ROTARY Top left: Essex Rotary charter member Grant Corson addresses the organization. Top right: From left, Pat Scheidel, Pat Spielman and Mike DeWeese work the Essex Rotary corn booth. Above left: Max Levy shakes hands with Essex Rotary president Nancy Freeze. Above right: Rotary members pose before the Essex Rotary Golf Tournament.

Service organization stays true to service goals By SABRINA LIGUORI

“S

ervice above self” is the motto of the Rotary Club, an international organization devoted to public service, and after 50 years, it’s evident Essex’s chapter takes it to heart. The Rotary Club of Essex celebrated

'We became our own club and grew from there.' Founding member Grant Corson its 50-year anniversary on April 13. The club was formed in 1966 as an offshoot of the Burlington Rotary to make attendance at meetings easier.

When a Rotarian misses a meeting, he or she must make it up. Creating an additional club in Essex prevented Essex Rotarians from commuting all the way to Burlington to make up a meeting. The new club soon evolved into much more. “We became our own club and grew from there,” founding member Grant See ROTARY, page 2

Unified board holds inaugural meeting By ColiN FlaNDers

T Photo by COLIN FLANDERS Pictured from left, unified school board members Diane Clemens, Brendan Kinney, Keeley Schell and Wes McClellan at the district’s inaugural meeting.

he Essex Westford Educational Community unified school board held its inaugural meeting at Essex High School on May 5 to little fanfare. Only nine visitors joined the board, two of which were superintendents Judy DeNova and Mark Andrews of the Essex Town School District and Chittenden Central su-

pervisory Union, respectively. The meeting was little more than a progress update since the district won’t create its first budget until next year and the board’s elections occurred last November when Essex, Essex Jct. and Westford residents voted to unify. The most notable decision the board made during the 21-minute meeting was to set its yearly compensation rate at $1,000 for each member, with an additional $500 for

board chairwoman Martha Heath. The board also clarified its current role, noting there seemed to be some confusion in the community. “The primary work of the unified district school board is to work with the superintendents and the project manager to establish the district,” board member Brendan Kinney said. although the five current school boards will dissolve next July, See MEETING, page 3


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