Late change affects formulas for all school district budgets, rates By Habib Sabet/VTDigger Lawmakers are fast-tracking a bill that would replace a controversial 5% cap on homestead property tax rates with a new tax “discount” on those rates for certain school districts. The bill, H.850, would scrap the blanket 5% property tax cap originally included in Act…

By Karen D. Lorentz Lloyd Lambert (1901-1997) was a successful businessman, eminent ski journalist, and passionate skier who founded the 70+ Ski Club in 1977.  “This club for seniors, which continues to thrive today, is really a culmination of a life spent promoting a sport my grandfather loved,” Richard Lambert, Jr. told the Mountain Times. …

By Ethan Weinstein/VTDigger A long-awaited report on how Vermont should address its billions of dollars in school construction needs arrived in the Legislature on Thursday, Feb. 1. In short, the report suggests the state should consider incentivizing districts to build in ways that align with the state’s goals. That could mean a “newer and fewer” approach,…

Submitted   School Board decreases budget in anticipation of Act 127 reforms By Polly Mikula At an emergency meeting Friday, Feb. 2, the Mountain Views Supervisory Union (MVSU) district board voted to amend two Town Meeting Day (TMD) articles related to the proposed district budget and bond for a new school. The decision came after…

By Polly Mikula Construction has begun with an access road from East Mountain Road up to the water storage tank and is about half completed. Casella Construction Inc. with subcontractor Maine Drilling & Blasting has been working on the first section of its Contract 1-3A for the town of Killington since early December. The section,…

  (DHCD) recently awarded $10,377 to the town of Poultney in state municipal planning grant funds for a municipal merger feasibility study, the town announced in a news release Jan. 26. Poultney currently has two municipalities that govern the community: the town of Poultney and the village of Poultney. As the community continues its recovery…

By Ethan Weinstein/VTDigger Conversations around education finance — often lamented as one of Montpelier’s most complicated and least understood policy sectors — have taken on an alarmed tenor as lawmakers and Gov. Phil Scott’s administration fear the latest changes to the system might be driving up education spending in unexpected ways. Now, lawmakers must grapple with…

  By Victoria Gaither A residential structure fire decimated one of the oldest houses in Killington last week.    By Polly Mikula A fast-burning fire rendered one of the oldest houses in Killington a total loss early Wednesday morning, Jan. 24. The Neil family lived at 202 Old Route 4, just east of Killington Road.…

By Polly Mikula KILLINGTON — A fast-burning fire rendered one of the oldest houses in Killington a total loss early Wednesday morning, Jan. 24. The Neil family lived at 202 Old Route 4, tucked away above Kent Pond on a remnant of the old two-lane road over Sherburne Pass that preceded the 1960s highway improvements…

  A new, interactive exhibit depicting Killington Resort at the Wonderfeet Kids’ Museum in Rutland opened on Friday, Jan. 19.   The Killington Resort Mountain Playground exhibit is the largest in the museum’s new space on Merchants Row and spans all four seasons of mountain adventure.  “Children will be fully immersed in all the activities Killington has to…

Submitted By Polly Mikula Ben Ford, vice chair of the Mountain Views Supervisory Union (MVSU) board, and other leaders from MVSU presented plans for the proposed $99 million bond at the Killington Select Board meeting Monday night, as they have done and will continue to do in all seven district towns leading up to the…

By Bob Giolito Volunteers search for missing skiers/riders via the Bucklin Trail in Mendon. By Victoria Gaither and Polly Mikula On Saturday, Jan. 20, multiple groups of skiers and snowboarders, including six juveniles (two of whom were 5 years old), ventured past Killington Ski Resort boundaries and ended up lost in the backcountry, in an…

By Alissa Frame, UVM Community News Service Editor’s note: The Community News Service is a program in which University of Vermont students work with professional editors to provide content for local news outlets at no cost. For RJ Thompson, the seed of outdoor recreation started sprouting early on. He grew up camping with family and…

By Katy Savage Courtesy Pittsford Village Farm| Architectural renderings of the planned renovation at Pittsford Village Farm, located in the center of  Pittsford. Plans include a child care center in a portion of the 19th-century farmhouse. Baird Morgan has been interested in the farmhouse in the center of Pittsford for the past 30 years. His…

Program supports relocation, recruitment, and retention of residents in Vermont On Wednesday, Jan. 10, the Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing (VDTM) announced that 12 partner organizations were approved for grant funding from the inaugural Grants for Relocation Outreach Work (GROW) program. The grants support local, regional, county-wide, or state-wide organizations conducting new resident relocation, recruitment,…