By Lani Duke RRA eyes Strongs Ave. improvements RUTLAND—Rutland Redevelopment Authority executive director Brennan Duffy hopes to bring beautification and safety improvements to Strongs Avenue, bringing it up to the standard for Downtown. He plans to urge the city’s Community and Economic Development Committee to apply for construction grant funds to be used for sidewalks…

By Dom Cioffi I was in Copenhagen, Denmark, on business this past week. It’s a bustling city, but not in the way Americans think of bustling cities. First of all, because of the economic system that’s in place in Denmark, it’s extremely expensive to own a car (taxes on car purchases and gasoline are outrageous).…

By Governor Peter Shumlin Pursuing clean energy policies in Vermont isn’t just about doing what is right for our environment and protecting our unrivaled quality of life. A thriving clean energy sector is also integral to our economy, keeping young people in Vermont, and making the state a more affordable place to live. That is…

Feb. 20 - 21 — QUECHEE — Join the Vermont Institute of Natural Science (VINS) for its annual Owl Festival on Saturday, Feb. 21, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. to celebrate all things owls! They will have a live bird program focusing on owls and their calls and adaptations, as well as an owl movie, crafts, science experiments…

CSJ tuition grants available for 2015 RUTLAND—Mount St. Joseph Academy and College of St. Joseph have formed a partnership to provide up to five full-tuition grants to attend CSJ for seniors graduating from the high school in 2015. The Sisters of St. Joseph Unity Grant, which was created to recognize the rich legacy of the…

By Morgan True, VTDigger.org A public hearing on proposed firearms legislation before the Senate Judiciary and the Senate Health and Welfare committees drew several hundred people to Montpelier Tuesday, Feb. 10. Supporters wearing green Gunsense Vermont T-shirts were outnumbered by opponents wearing blaze orange clothing. S.31 would make it a crime to sell a gun…

Saturday, Feb. 21 at 7:30 p.m. — BRANDON — Join Brandon Music on Saturday, Feb. 21 at 7:30 p.m. for a concert of “stop-in-your-tracks” music. Zack and Sam DuPont have been described by Fay Grant of The Mountaineer as “deeply passionate old souls with a new and refreshing take on contemporary folk-pop music.” Lush finger-style guitar work is…

By Cristina Kumka Castleton’s new Town Manager Mark Shea presented a final budget to the Castleton Select Board Jan. 26 that showed a general fund increase of 3.5 percent over the prior year, for a total budget of $2,935,318 for fiscal year 2015-2016. That increase boils down to $102,416 more spending than the prior year. But…

Saturday, Feb. 21 at 8 p.m. — The Irish Comedy Tour takes the party atmosphere of a Dublin pub and combines it with a boisterous, belly-laugh band of hooligans. The clover — make that clever — comedians, whose ancestors hail from the Emerald Isle, include Detroit native Derek Richards; Boston-born Mike McCarthy; Nova Scotia’s Damon Leibert;…

Decision expected to delay timeline for natural gas to reach Rutland By John Herrick Vermont Gas Systems has abandoned its plan to bring natural gas under Lake Champlain to a New York paper mill after the plant withdrew its financial support. Vermont Gas had proposed building a pipeline from Middlebury to the International Paper facility…

Friday, Feb. 20 at 7 a.m. — RUTLAND — The Rutland Region Chamber of Commerce and Rutland Economic Development Corp. will hold their annual Legislative Bus Trip to the State House in Montpelier, sponsored by Omya, Inc. This is a great opportunity to meet with the Rutland County Delegation, Governor, Lt. Governor and other state leaders or watch…

By Justin Lemanski, sports reporter After posting a strong 16-2 fall record, the Fighting Saints baseball team headed south on Saturday, Feb. 14, 2015, to kick off spring play. They will begin in Mississippi for spring training before traveling to Louisiana to begin their season against William Carey University, Loyola University, and Delgado Community College. William Carrey…

Sunday, Feb. 22 at 8 p.m. — KILLINGTON — Country music artist Frankie Ballard will appear in concert on Sunday, Feb. 22 at the Pickle Barrel Nightclub in Killington. The show is open to anyone 18 years of age and older; those under 18 admitted with parent or guardian. A multi-instrumentalist who doubles as his band’s lead…

Friday, Feb. 20 at 2:30 p.m. — RUTLAND — Join the Chaffee Art Center as it kicks off its 2015 poster campaign, “A Love of Community Action.” Children’s of all ages are welcome to come create inspirational posters depicting what they love about their community or how we can change our community for the better. The event is Friday,…

Monday, Feb. 23 — CASTLETON — The Christine Price Gallery at Castleton College will feature the works of local artist Russell Serrianne, Feb. 23 through March 27, with an artist reception scheduled for Tuesday, March 10 at 12:30 p.m. Entitled “Natural Line” the exhibit will feature various art designs and individual pieces from the artist, using simply…