By Lani Duke The start of school is around the corner Area teachers and students are looking forward to the beginning of the academic year.  In Castleton, fall registration is at 10 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 14, for kindergarteners through eighth grade, at Castleton Elementary. On Friday, Aug. 22, parents and students can meet principal Kathleen…

By Lani Duke Mailing alert Rutland’s Public Works Department is not responsible for any mailing from the “American Water Resources of Vermont” that offers “water and sewer line protection services.”  Although its website bears an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau, the company is engaging in suspicious business practices, especially with the “second notice”…

Cal Garrison (a.k.a Mother of the Skye) writes weekly horoscopes for The Mountain Times. If you would like the horoscopes to be emailed to you weekly, sign up for the newsletter, below. Horoscopes for August 6 - 13, 2014     Aries March 21 - April 20 The short fuse is all over the place.…

By Tom Brown, VTDigger.org Libertarian candidate for governor Dan Feliciano fell 220 signatures shy of qualifying to appear on the Republican ballot. Now he is appealing to GOP voters to write him in at the polls on primary election day. On Thursday Aug. 7, Feliciano criticized the Shumlin administration’s policies on several issues and faulted…

By Lee H. Hamilton As election season approaches, I’ve been pondering a crucial issue about the role of government in our society. It’s that our government often fails — and that we need to address this. There’s ample cause for concern — the VA appointments scandal; the botched launch of the Affordable Care Act; the 28…

By Robin Alberti Hemp has a rich history in our country and is one of the oldest cultivated plants in the world. Hemp can provide a sustainable agricultural system that can heal our farmland and economy. Cultivating this crop can provide desperately needed jobs in agriculture, manufacturing and retail. First, let’s get rid of a…

By Angelo S. Lynn Vermont is at it again: angling to be a national leader on yet another public policy issue. This time it’s the effort to reduce consumption of sugar-laden beverages. The angle? Pass a tax on sugar-sweetened beverages. The Legislature, however, isn’t in the driver’s seat. Rather, the Alliance for a Healthier Vermont…

PITTSFIELD — Come celebrate the end of summer at the annual Pittsfield’s Picnic held this year on Sunday, Aug. 24 from 12:30-4 p.m. This gathering on the town green originated from necessity immediately after Tropical Storm Irene, when local businesses had no power for refrigeration. One year later, an anniversary party called Pittsfield’s Town Shut…

SHARON — On Aug. 10, the Vermont State Police responded to I-89 northbound rest area in Sharon  for two cattle roaming around the grounds.  The State Police were called numerous times by concerned citizens at the rest area who reported that the cows were in the interstate and might cause an accident with a motor…

By Stephen Seitz KILLINGTON – Thanks to a rise in dog nuisance incidents, Killington’s board of selectmen spent most of their regular Aug. 5 meeting discussing what changes, if any, need to be made to the town’s current animal control ordinance. “We have seen an increase in the number of incidents with dogs since the…

KILLINGTON — On Friday, Aug. 8, at approximately 4:27 p.m., members of the Vermont State Police, Killington Fire & Rescue, and Regional Ambulance Service, responded to a one vehicle crash involving a pedestrian on Route 4 in the town of Killington. Loren D. Roth, age 71 from Rutland Town, was identified as the operator of the…

Photos by Rik Champine

By Robin Alberti RUTLAND — On Sunday, Aug. 10, citizens banded together for a second time to hold a protest in front of Mac’s convenience store and gas station on South Main Street in Rutland. The group is encouraging folks to not spend their money at Mac’s locations until owner Jennifer Allen changes her policies…

By Karen D. Lorentz Approximately 73 percent of the nation’s major winter resorts are open this summer, according to information provided to the National Ski Area’s Association (NSAA) in the Kottke National End of Season Survey for 2013/14. In the Northeast, 61 percent of the respondents offer lift rides, 45 percent offer zipline/canopy tours, and…

RUTLAND – Rutland’s growing collection of public murals blossomed again Friday, Aug. 8, as a mural highlighting Rutland Blooms was installed downtown. Artist Kathryn Wiegers painted the 19-foot-long mural in her Rutland studio this summer and installed it Friday on the second-floor north wall of the Green Mountain Power Energy Innovation Center on Merchants Row.…