Interview: Connecticut River cleanup
The call is going out to anyone willing to get a little dirty in the name of cleanliness. The Connecticut River Watershed Council is recruiting volunteers for its eighth annual “Source to the Sea Clean-up” on October 2, an effort to clean away trash from the Connecticut River all the way from the Connecticut Lakes to Long Island Sound. (VPR)
Rockingham faces deadline for hydro-dam purchase
Time is running out for the town of Rockingham to put together financing to buy the Bellows Falls hydroelectric dam. Under an agreement with the dam’s owners, U.S. Gen New England, Rockingham has until December 1 to buy the generating facility. (VPR)
Disaster assistance denied
Vermont Emergency Management officials want to know why the federal government denied a request to provide disaster assistance to private homeowners. A presidential disaster declaration authorized federal aid to help local governments repair flood damage. (AP)
Kentucky prison investigation
Corrections Commissioner Steve Gold says his department is planning to conduct a full investigation into a September 14 riot at a private Kentucky prison that houses about 400 Vermonters. And Gold wants to have an employee stationed at the Kentucky jail. (AP)
Sex offender registry
Vermont’s online sex-offender registry with information about 135 individuals will be ready by October 1. The Department of Public Safety is using emergency rule-making power to have the Web site up and running by the date mandated by the Legislature. (AP)
Peeping Tom bill
A U-32 High School ninth grader is hoping Vermont lawmakers will pass a law to make it illegal for people to record images of people in their homes. Samantha Bubar, of Berlin, acted after a man was allegedly caught in Montpelier taking photos of a teenage girl through her bedroom window. (AP)
Inaccurate Ready resume
For the past decade state directories have contained inaccurate information on the educational background of state Auditor Elizabeth Ready. The 1995-1996 directory inaccurately stated that Ready graduated from the University of Vermont. And every edition of the directory published since 1997 has said Ready had a master of arts from Norwich University, which she doesn’t. Ready says she doesn’t know how the misinformation got into her listings. The secretary of state’s office says the information for the bios comes from the individuals. (AP)
New hotel approved for Rutland town
A new, 88-room hotel proposed for U.S. Route 7 in Rutland town has won its regulatory permits. But developers of the Hampton Inn say they’ll wait to break ground until appeals periods have passed. The hotel is planned for a parcel of land between the Holiday Inn and the Green Mountain Shopping Plaza south of Rutland. (AP)
Dorset bat cave
There’s a new gate across the entrance to the Dorset Cave where up to 20,000 bats hibernate each winter. The gate is designed to keep people out during the cold weather months when bats will be using it for protection. (AP)
Coventry landfill
Plans to build a methane-powered electric generator at the Coventry landfill is being delayed by concerns of officials in Quebec. The East Montpelier-based Washington Electric Cooperative had hoped to start construction on the installation by now. But Canadian residents and government officials have expressed concerns over potential contamination of nearby Lake Memphremagog by runoff from the landfill. If the power project is canceled it could cost Washington Electric $1.35 million. (AP)
Rutland parking garage
Developers plan to demolish an aging and little-used parking deck in downtown Rutland and replace it with a store. Consultants and lawyers for Boston-based Heritage Realty presented their plans to a District One Environmental Commission last week. They say the three-story parking deck would be replaced with a 13,500-square foot retail building. (AP)
War of 1812 remains
Another skeleton from the War of 1812 has been uncovered at a construction site in Burlington. The latest skeleton, found Wednesday, brings to eight the number of skeletons uncovered during the current construction project on North Street. (AP)
Dean book signing
Howard Dean is back home promoting his new book and the campaign of his former rival, John Kerry. Dean signed copies of his new book, “You Have the Power,” this past weekend at a bookstore in downtown Burlington. Managers of the Borders bookstore say about 200 people lined up to get Dean’s autograph. (AP)
UVM rugby players arrested
Ten members of the University of Vermont rugby team face alcohol charges in New Hampshire. State police arrested seven team members Saturday night and gave summons to three others after stopping them on Interstate 89 in Warner. Police said they seized over 100 cans of beer, 12 40-ounce beer bottles and a bottle of liquor. The underage suspects were released to their parents. University officials also were notified. (AP)