By Polly Mikula Vermont is just days away from hitting its threshold to remove all Covid-related health restrictions, state officials said Tuesday, June 1. When 80% of the state’s eligible population is vaccinated (one dose administered to residents 12 years old or older) then the remaining mandated protocols for masking and distancing will be removed. …

By Emma Cotton/VTDigger Rutland Mayor Dave Allaire ordered the Quality Inn to shut down after city and state inspectors found numerous health and safety violations at the motel. Around 40 people experiencing homelessness, currently housed there, will need to relocate immediately. Other motels in Rutland have the capacity to accept those displaced by the situation, a…

By Emma Cotton/VTDigger The Rutland Raider mascot is still up for debate. In the next several weeks, a new committee will decide whether the Rutland School Board adhered to its own rules when it voted last October to abandon the high school mascot and its arrowhead imagery. Committee members met for the first time on Tuesday,…

Last fall at Castleton University, Professor David Blow tried something different in his Media Writing class, asking his students to write a biweekly blog. The result is a published book, “Covid Chronicles.” “Life is tough for everyone during this pandemic, but college students are losing so much of that sacred experience,” Blow wrote in his…

The Community College of Vermont (CCV) will celebrate its 2021 graduates, along with the Class of 2020, with a virtual event on Saturday, June 5 at 2 p.m. More than 450 students from the Class of 2021 will receive associate degrees. Graduates represent all 14 Vermont counties, 10 states, and 15 countries. The youngest graduate…

By Curt Peterson The Killington Select Board unanimously authorized execution of a contract engaging White + Burke Real Estate Advisors, Inc. to shepherd the town’s application for approval of a tax increment financing (TIF) district, pending approval by the town’s legal counsel. Approval as a TIF district would provide funding for infrastructure improvements that would…

Governor Phil Scott and Sen. Bernie Sanders help 100 programs receive grants to expand offerings for state’s Summer Matters initiative Governor Phil Scott, Senator Bernie Sanders and Vermont Afterschool announced Friday, May 28, the recipients of the Summer Matters for All grant program. A total of $3.85 million was awarded to about 100 programs in…

By Kit Norton/VTDigger When the Covid-19 pandemic closed down restaurants and bars, Vermonters developed a taste for buying takeout booze. Now legislation on its way to Gov. Phil Scott’s desk would allow to-go alcohol sales for two more years. Scott indicated at the press conference Tuesday, June 1, that he supports the bill, "It was my…

Attorney General TJ Donovan announced May 26 that his office has reached settlements with nine different online sellers of electronic cigarettes for violations of Vermont’s Delivery Sales Ban and Vermont’s Consumer Protection Act.  Under the settlements, the companies resolved claims that they sold electronic cigarettes, e-liquids, or other tobacco paraphernalia to individual consumers. As of…

By Richard Davis Editor’s note: Richard Davis, a retired nurse who lives in Guilford, was a columnist for the Brattleboro Reformer for 25 years and now posts a weekly blog on iBrattleboro. Many of us have been wearing masks for over a year and have looked forward to the day when our faces could be on full…

Dear Editor, I want to address an article from the May 12 edition “Killington Softball League’s return is conditional.” I want to clarify a few things because I feel I’ve been misrepresented. I’ve been the commissioner of the Killington Softball League for the past 15 years. I’ve had a great relationship with the town and…

Dear Editor, I recently learned that the Bennington Housing Authority no longer provides housing for people with a disability if they are under the age of 62 in their existing subsidized apartments. While "seniors" who no longer can age in place because of the architecture of our current homes will face slightly less competition for a…

By Elayne Clift As I watched the flag-draped coffin of the late Billy Evans, the second Capitol Police officer to lie in state, descend from the Capitol steps, I wept — and wondered how much longer we would find ourselves living in a country that has become so violent. As I saw the photograph of the deceased Dwayne…

Do you have feral cats near your home or workplace? Do you see them when you’re out, especially at night? Are you currently feeding feral cats? If so, the Rutland County Humane Society (RCHS) can help. RCHS is working with citizens around the county where feral cats are living on a population control program called Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR),…

2-year-old. Neutered male. Hound mix. Tri-color. I just want to be everyone’s best friend.  Rutland County Humane Society, 765 Stevens Road, Pittsford, VT • (802) 483-6700 • Tues. – Sat. 12-5p.m. Closed Sun. & Mon. • www.rchsvt.org   I’m a 1-year-old Labrador mix. I came from another shelter. I have a sensitive side and take time…