All Entries in the "Latest News" Category
Select Board awaits legal opinion before filling DRB slots
By Cynthia Prairie The Chester Select Board may have intended to appoint two members and one alternate to the Development Review Board at its Wednesday, May 2, regular meeting, but a filing by attorneys for the Zaremba Group, which wants to build a Dollar General on Main Street, thwarted the plan. Zaremba, through attorney David […]
Connecting the Dots at the Bartonsville Bridge
Author and activist Bill McKibben, center, in red T-shirt, joined a group of 35 people at the Bartonsville Bridge on Saturday April 28th to kick off a week of worldwide “Connect the Dots” activities. The idea is to connect extreme weather events such as the tropical storm that destroyed the historic covered bridge with global […]
Select Board appointment error throws Dollar General OK into question
By Cynthia Prairie Confusion on the part of the Select Board over when appointments to the Development Review Board are made could throw into question the DRB’s recent decision to allow a Dollar General store to be built, as well as other actions it may have taken since the beginning of March. (You can read […]
Bourque leaving GM School Board after 7 years
By Rebecca Salem After seven years serving as chair of the Green Mountain Union High School Board, Bill Bourque will be stepping down in July. He and his family are moving west – from Andover to Manchester, VT. Bourque became chairman of the school board shortly after joining in 2005. At that time, he was […]
DRB approves Dollar General proposal
By Cynthia Prairie The Chester Development Review Board has approved the proposal for a 9,100-square-foot Dollar General store on a 1.4-acre empty parcel southeast of Main Street Pizza, former home to Zachary’s Pizza House. The decision was 3 to 2, and voted on Monday night, April 16. The DRB did place 35 conditions upon the […]
Plan your Green Up Day, May 5th
Every spring, Green Up Vermont sponsors a day of road cleaning to sweep away the winter’s trash. This year, volunteers will be Greening Up on Saturday, May 5th. Anyone interested in helping with a section of one of Chester’s roads can contact the Town’s Green Up coordinator, Frank Kelley at fjmkelley@gmail.com. He will put you […]
Green Mountain Honor Roll announced for 3rd quarter
Green Mountain Union High School has announced its Honor Roll for the 3rd Quarter. Honors Middle School Honors are earned by those students with one off-setting grade not below a C-. (There must be an A+, A, or A- to offset the one grade of a C+, C or C-). High School Honors means that […]
15 from GMUHS named to National Honor Society
Fifteen students from Green Mountain Union High School have been named to the National Honor Society, Flamstead Chapter, announced Ally Oswald, NHS adviser and GMUHS guidance counselor. The 91-year-old National Honor Society, with chapters in all 50 states, honors students who have “demonstrated excellence in the areas of Scholarship, Leadership, Service and Character,” according to […]
To the Editor: An open letter to the Development Review Board
The process that began – for me at least – on July 25, 2011 with a hearing on subdividing the Zachary’s Pizza House property to build a 9,100-square-foot Dollar General is coming to a head. You, the members of Chester’s Development Review Board, will soon announce the results of your deliberations on the issue. Those […]
Jersey Girls to be featured at Beard Foundation Dinner in NYC
By Cynthia Prairie Chester’s own Jersey Girls Dairy will receive the honor of being featured by the James Beard Foundation at one of its rare Chef-Farmer Dinners, to be prepared by Chef Jason Tostrup of the Weathersfield Inn. The dinner, which will be held on June 4 at the foundation headquarters — the late James […]
Vermont ranks 6th in nation for women
By Cynthia Prairie Vermont is the sixth best state in the nation for women to live in, according to a new poll by iVillage.com, an online community for women. Vermont’s neighbor to the west, New York, came in 7th, and its neighbor to the east, New Hampshire was listed as 10th. The No. 1 spot […]
Green Mountain library poised for major renovation
By Rebecca Salem When students return to Green Mountain Union High School following Spring Break at the end of April, they’ll find a renovated, rehabbed and rewired library that Principal Tom Ferenc hopes will offer them a modern and comfortable learning environment that fosters interaction. The $100,000 renovation, which is expected to take two weeks […]
DRB member speaks against Dollar General
By Cynthia Prairie Navigating a bumpy sea of issues – from the placement of catch basins to water connections for a sprinkler system to expected noise levels – the Chester Development Review Board held what it promised would be its final meeting last night, Monday, March 12, on a proposed conditional use permit to allow […]
Incumbents Bock, Jonynas returned to selectboard; school budgets pass
Photo on the Homepage: Christine Balch, Muriel Briggs and Sindy Pisha hand out ballots at Chester Town Hall on Election Day, Tuesday, March 6, 2012. Photo by Cynthia Prairie By Cynthia Prairie With 638 Chester residents voting by the time polls closed at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Tom Bock and Arne Jonynas were returned to office […]
Town, school district funding, resolutions approved at Town Meeting
By Cynthia Prairie With about 160 voters in attendance, an early 6 p.m. start, several failed article amendments and some lively discussions, Chester’s Town Meeting went off relatively smoothly Monday night. Voters first passed the Chester Town School District budget of $227,657 for early childhood and special education for those not in kindergarten, then tackled […]
Proposed N. Springfield biomass plant draws concern, support
by Stephen Seitz As a 35-megawatt biomass electric plant proposed for North Springfield inches forward, some in Chester are raising questions about traffic while others are fully supporting the project. Years may pass before ground is broken: The Public Service Board has yet to issue a certificate authorizing the plant’s construction at the North Springfield Industrial […]
News in Brief: Citizens United, Food Sovereignty resolutions up for vote
Two non-budgetary resolutions that will be voted on Monday, March 5 are Articles 21 and 22. The first is U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders’ resolution urging the state Congressional delegation to propose a constitutional amendment to declare that money is not speech and that corporations are not people. This is an attempt to overturn the U.S. […]
2012 Chester budget calls for slight tax hike
Chester voters will address the town budget and a number of budget articles at Town Meeting, to begin at 6 p.m. Monday, March 5, in Town Hall, 556 Elm St. Elections will be from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 6, also at Town Hall. by Stephen Seitz Chester taxpayers will see a slight […]
Business in Brief: Dollar General hearing March 12
Next DRB Hearing on Dollar General Set for March 12 The Development Review Board will reconvene its hearing for a conditional use permit for the Zaremba Group to build a 9,100-square-foot Dollar General store next to the Zachary’s Pizza House building at 7 p.m. Monday March 12 at Town Hall, 556 Elm St. A […]