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Select Board meeting: Hudkins resigns DRB, Biomass concerns voiced, tax rates set

Select Board meeting: Hudkins resigns DRB, Biomass concerns voiced, tax rates set

By Shawn Cunningham On a sticky early July evening when electric fans on the second floor of Town Hall had to be shut off for the gathering to hear, the Select Board’s special meeting was meant to set the town’s tax rate but included the resignation of Development Review Board chair Peter Hudkins. Just before […]

E. coli at two Williams River spots 10 times above acceptable level

E. coli at two Williams River spots 10 times above acceptable level

By Shawn Cunningham and Cynthia Prairie E. coli levels at two spots in the Williams River in and near Chester were 10 times higher than acceptable levels for swimming, according to samples taken at those sites Wednesday morning, June 27. Those spots are below the Waste Water Treatment Plant and at the Bartonsville Bridge. “The […]

Sports: Cote, Chester dominate Westminster for Majors championship

Sports: Cote, Chester dominate Westminster for Majors championship

By Greg Hart Chester 5th Grader Dan Cote pitched a masterful one-hitter, with the Chester Reds winning by a score of 6-0 during the Valley Youth Baseball Majors Championship on Wednesday, June 27 at Greven Field in Cavendish. Cote took a no-hitter two outs into the the sixth and final inning, when it was broken […]

63 in Class of 2012 graduate from GMUHS

63 in Class of 2012 graduate from GMUHS

By Cynthia Prairie With all the anticipation that befits a coming adventure and the sadness of leaving a place of comfort, Green Mountain High School’s Class of 2012 graduated Friday, June 15, as the sun set behind the school. Graduation ceremonies took place on the front lawn, on a cooling evening warmed by friends and […]

Family Center gets DRB OK for move to larger digs

Family Center gets DRB OK for move to larger digs

By Cynthia Prairie  The Chester-Andover Family Center has been approved for a conditional use permit by the Development Review Board so that it can move into the former Curtis’ Bar-B-Q restaurant building at 908 VT Rt. 103 S. to set up its thrift shop and first-floor food pantry. The permit still needs to be formalized […]

Alumni Parade draws Super Heroes to Chester

Alumni Parade draws Super Heroes to Chester

Chester was filled with Super Heroes under warm blue skies on Saturday, June 9, as the annual Alumni Day Parade made its way through town, up from Town Hall, past the Jiffy Mart and the Green, which was filled four-deep with onlookers. An estimated 2,000 people enjoyed the 30-minute parade, filled with floats, music from […]

Wunderle out at DRB; O'Neil, Westine to fill openings

Wunderle out at DRB; O’Neil, Westine to fill openings

By Cynthia Prairie As many expected, the Chester Select Board did not reappoint long-time Development Review Board member Scott Wunderle to another three-year term. Instead, the board on Wednesday, June 6 appointed Amy O’Neil and Carla Westine to three-year terms. The board also declined to fill  a second alternate position, after Select Board member Derek […]

Bittersweet Family Day as CAES bids farewell to Plunkard

Bittersweet Family Day as CAES bids farewell to Plunkard

Becky Plunkard has been with Chester-Andover Elementary School for 19 years — it’s been so long that she had to look back in her records to check, she said. Secretary, paraprofessional, special education teacher, substitute teacher, mentor, Respect Club adviser, special events  and after school activities coordinator. “I have kids that I remember when they […]

A Day of Remembrance: Chester's Memorial Day 2012

A Day of Remembrance: Chester’s Memorial Day 2012

Traffic came to a standstill for a short time on Routes 103 and 11 on Wednesday as Chester once again observed Memorial Day on its traditional May 30th date. Hundreds of residents including students from Chester Andover Elementary and Green Mountain Union High School took part. The annual parade kicked off at 9 a.m. with […]

Family Center hopes to buy Putney Pasta building

Family Center hopes to buy Putney Pasta building

By Stephen Seitz Should the remaining cards fall properly, the Chester-Andover Family Center may soon find itself in a new and much larger home. “Even if we close in July, we won’t be able to move until September,” said Sherry Willumitis, the thrift shop manager. “There’s a lot of work to be done.” The 27-year-old […]

2012 Rotary Golf Tourney to aid Chester Emergency Services

2012 Rotary Golf Tourney to aid Chester Emergency Services

by Stephen Seitz Time to start polishing the clubs for the 2nd Annual Chester Rotary Charitable Golf Tournament, to be held at the Tater Hill Golf Course on Sunday, June 3. Click here for a registration form. Proceeds from this year’s tournament will go to benefit Chester Emergency Services, according to tournament organizer Ron Theissen. […]

Alumni weekend schedule of events

Alumni weekend schedule of events

The CHS/GMUHS Alumni Association has been hard at work preparing for the 2012 alumni weekend. Below is the list of events from the association.  But for much more information, go to the association’s website. Friday, June 8th Noon:  Golf Tournament at Tater Hill Country Club.  Sign up for the tournament with the registration form or […]

Select Board awaits legal opinion before filling DRB slots

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 […]

Fire leaves family of five searching for a new home

Fire leaves family of five searching for a new home

By Cynthia Prairie It was dinner time at the Picz home, a chilly April Saturday good for grilling out but eating in. At the grill,  Greg Picz was the first to see the smoke crawling from the basement stairs. He yelled for his wife Angie and their three children to get out of the house – […]

VTica opens Carbonetti exhibit

VTica opens Carbonetti exhibit

The gallery at the Vermont Institute of Contemporary Art was wall-to-wall with visitors on Saturday evening, May 5, for the opening of a month long display of the works of Jeanne Carbonetti, an internationally known water colorist who lives in Chester.  VTica, at 15 Depot St. in Chester, is open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. […]

GM's Ferenc named VT Principal of the Year

GM’s Ferenc named VT Principal of the Year

By Shawn Cunningham Green Mountain Union High School Principal Tom Ferenc has been named MetLife/NASSP High School Principal of the Year for Vermont. It was just last week that another Chester educator, Frank Kelley, was recognized statewide for his history teaching chops. The award – which is underwritten by MetLife on behalf of the National […]

Select Board appointment error throws Dollar General OK into question

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 […]

Kelley named Vermont History Teacher of the Year

Kelley named Vermont History Teacher of the Year

By Stephen Seitz The spotlight of recognition shone on Chester-Andover Elementary School teacher Frank Kelley recently, as he was named Gilder Lehrman Vermont History Teacher of the Year for 2011-2012. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History is a nonprofit organization that promotes the study of American history and provides resources to help teachers. Each […]

Bourque leaving GM School Board after 7 years

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

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 […]