A
hand count of Town Meeting Day ballots for a St. Albans City Council seat showed
incumbent Joe Luneau lost to Ryan Doyle by just two votes. A judge threw out those results last month, and now voters
will try to resolve the election Tuesday.
Funding levels for the federal low income heating assistance program, commonly known as
LIHEAP, are
below what they were last year, even though the state’s congressional
delegation was able to pump another $5 million into the program.
Cities and towns across the state are coping with dwindling tax
revenue, and they’re trying to do more with less. In Franklin County,
the City and Town of St. Albans are exploring whether they can
effectively merge the two communities into one in an effort to more
efficiently provide services.
Vermont’s Supreme Court has cleared the way for construction
of a Wal-Mart store in St.
Albans, in a decision that
puts an end to a contentious legal battle.
The town of St. Albans could repeal a program that was designed to speed up repairs to flood-damaged homes and businesses. The Franklin County town’s select board is scheduled to vote on the repeal Monday night, just two weeks after it was adopted.
While a handful of towns in Vermont are considering creating a joint police force to cut costs, a similar arrangement in Franklin County has led to a legal challenge that’s headed to the state’s highest court.
A Quebec company that makes electrical transformers will open
a factory in St. Albans and hire at least 45 people within three years. As
VPR’s Ross Sneyd reports, Franklin County has fared pretty well in the current recession.
St. Albans officials say a $380,000 federal grant will give their downtown a
much-needed face lift. And
that, they hope, will spark an economic revitalization for the northern Vermont city. VPR’s
Ross Sneyd visited St. Albans and has this report.