By Polly Mikula The annual Killington kickoff for the winter season is usually held with fanfare. Hundreds gather in Killington Resort’s Grand Hotel and complimentary food and drinks are served creating a party-like atmosphere. The purpose is to provide an update for the community — highlighting successes from the past year and providing insights for the…

All adults and children are encouraged to get the vaccination “It’s incredibly important that people get flu vaccines this year,” said Community Health’s Director of Quality Tracy Upton, RN. In the Rutland area, Community Health has arranged weekday and Saturday clinics for adults and children, and offers an online appointment schedule for current Community Health…

Rutland family moves into new Habitat for Humanity house By Katy Savage After 9 years of shuffling between different housing situations since fleeing their home country during the Syrian Civil War, Hassam Alhallak and his wife Hazar Mansour finally have a place to call home again. With the help of about 200 volunteers, the family…

By Brooke Geery High in the hills above Ludlow, after the paved road turns to dirt, sits Barker Farm, a massive 155-acre property dotted with giant maple trees and buildings in various states of disrepair. On the right  side of the street is a reminder that it’s 2020—the Coolidge Solar Project, with rows of massive…

By Kit Norton and Xander Landen/VTDigger The Vermont Senate voted Tuesday to override Gov. Phil Scott’s veto of the Global Warming Solutions Act — legislation that legally requires the state to meet targets for reducing carbon emissions in the coming years. Since the House had already voted to override the veto, the measure is now law. Without…

By Erin Petenko/VTDigger The state’s K-12 schools can transition to “Step 3” of reopening this Saturday, allowing them to fully play fall sports, officials said at a press conference Tuesday, Sept. 22. Secretary of Education Dan French said the new rules “still require stringent measures” to limit the spread of Covid-19, but schools have more flexibility…

By Emma Cotton/VTDigger and Brooke Geery On the evening of Friday, Sept. 18, Killington Fire Department member Connor McGrath noticed smoke coming from the popular Deer Leap area of Sherburne Pass in Killington. Assuming it was people illegally camping, he took his dogs and hiked up to kick them out. After bushwhacking through the woods,…

By Katy Savage Business owners in the tourism and hospitality industry, the hardest hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, are desperately seeking more funding to stay afloat. Perry Armstrong, the owner of Rain or Shine Tent Company in Randolph, said he’s contacted just about everyone he can in the Legislature and he’s testified in front of…

Business owners navigate changes as lodge, bar restrictions are lifted By Katy Savage Gov. Phil Scott announced Friday, Sept. 18 that bars could reopen and lodges could operate at full capacity, but local business owners are wary of the details. “It is very misleading,” Trailside Inn owner Josh Eckler said, explaining that the state’s quarantine…

By Curt Peterson WINDSOR—Seventy-four-year-old Roger Book was very busy on Saturday, schmoozing among a sizeable crowd at the Windsor Welcome Center, all of whom had come to see his abstract art exhibit, “Crazy Heart.” A dozen of Book’s recent paintings were displayed inside the center. They are large pieces, about 4 or 5 feet square…

At about 6:30 p.m. on Sept. 18, fire crews responded to a call that the Deer Leap area of the Green Mountain National forest in Killington was on fire. Patty McGrath, owner of the Inn at Long Trail, essentially at the gateway of the popular hiking trail posted the news on Facebook on Sept. 19…

Chart courtesy dfr.vermont.gov By Mark Johnson/VTDigger Bars and restaurants with counter seating will be allowed to serve customers, under new guidelines announced Friday, Sept. 18, by Gov. Phil Scott, and lodging facilities can open to 100% capacity. Bars will be required to maintain a six-foot separation between customers and have barriers in place between servers and…

[YUMPU epaper_id="64235584" width="512" height="384"]

By Katy Savage Advance planning, masks and social distancing will be part of the new normal at Killington Resort this year. But no après drinks at the bar. The resort, nicknamed the Beast of the East, typically opens as soon as temperatures allow (often around Halloween) but opening day won’t start until Nov. 14 this…

Continued vigilance required By Polly Mikula National Health Advisor Dr. Anthony S. Fauci addressed Vermont by video Tuesday, Sept 15, at Gov. Phil Scott’s weekly news conference. “I’m a big fan,” said Scott of Fauci’s role guiding the nation through the coronavirus pandemic. “He tells it like it is. And in a way that most…