All Entries in the "Latest News" Category
Chester board hears of Mesh Network, new grants, Yosemite request
By Shawn Cunningham © 2026 Telegraph Publishing LLC Chester resident Josh Johnson came before the Chester Select Board on Wednesday, Nov. 4 to address earlier queries that hikers had made to Town Hall concerning a mysterious device found mounted at the Lost Mine Hiking Trail. Turns out the device wasn’t a surveillance camera but a […]
Explainer: Education cuts needed to stay under penalty threshold in FY 28 State tightens spending through 2032
By Shawn Cunningham © 2026 Telegraph Publishing LLC At the Oct. 15 meeting of the board of the Green Mountain Unified School District, Superintendent Layne Millington laid out the obstacles the district faces in budgeting as the State of Vermont begins to turn the screws on schools to cut budgets using the “excess spending threshold” […]
Windsor Senate district again carried by three Democrats Rep. Burrows of West Windsor rounds out three-member district
By Shawn Cunningham © 2026 Telegraph Publishing LLC Democrats handily held on to the three Windsor District Senate seats again this election, with vote totals more than twice that of their Republican challengers. Democratic incumbents Becca White and Joe Major and state Rep. Elizabeth Burrows had close races with most of their Republican opponents in […]
First-term incumbent state Reps. Charlton, Coffin lose as blue wave hits Windsor County Hoser, Yuengling, Morrow all win State House seats
By Shawn Cunningham and Cynthia Prairie © 2026 Telegraph Publishing LLC The blue wave washing over the United States on Tuesday reached down into Vermont’s State House races, reversing gains that Republicans made 2024 in both the Windsor 2 and Windsor-Windham and districts, with both V.L. Coffin and Tom Charlton losing their seats in the […]
Enrollment period open for health plans through Vermont Health Connect
Vermont’s open enrollment period for 2027 plans started on Nov. 1 and runs through Monday, Dec. 28. During open enrollment, Vermonters can sign up for or change their qualified health and dental plans through Vermont Health Connect. While open enrollment ends on Dec. 28, be aware that but only Vermonters who enroll by Tuesday, Dec. […]
Halloween on the Chester Green lures goblins big and small
By Paul Wein ©2026 Telegraph Publishing LLC Something special and spooky was happening on the Chester Green on Saturday night. The air was brisk as the sun began to sink lower in the October sky; cold enough that this reporter almost decided to go back to his car for his winter coat. Seeing more rugged […]
Chester Water/Sewer Commissioners and Select Board agendas for Nov. 4
The Chester Select Board will hold two meetings on Wednesday Nov. 4. First they will meet in their capacity as the Water and Sewer Commission followed by a meeting as the select board. The meetings start at 6:30 p.m. at Town Hall, 556 Elm St., and remotely via Zoom. Below are their agendas Water and […]
Chester board re-approves new sidewalk lighting on Depot Street
By Shawn Cunningham © 2026 Telegraph Publishing LLC At its Oct. 21 meeting, the Chester Select Board took a second look at a decision it made two weeks before when it gave Town Manager Julie Hance the go ahead to have “pedestrian scale” lighting installed as part of the sidewalk project to be constructed next […]
Piri murder trial scheduled for five weeks beginning in March 2027
By Shawn Cunningham © 2026 Telegraph Publishing LLC The second-degree murder case against Florida doctor Jozsef Piri continues to move forward almost seven years to the day after Boston truck driver Roberto Fonseca-Rivera was found dead from bullet wounds in a produce delivery truck along Rt. 103 in Rockingham. Piri’s trial now is scheduled for […]
In race for Windsor 2, Yuengling, Coffin address today’s concerns
@2026 Telegraph Publishing LLC The race for the Vermont House Windsor 2 District — made up of Weathersfield, Baltimore and Cavendish — is between Republican incumbent V.L. Coffin, who was elected in 2024, and challenged by Democrat Mark Yuengling, who also ran in 2024. Ground Rules: Each election year, The Chester Telegraph asks our local […]
State seeks public input on Okemo Forest management plan Public meeting set for Nov. 9 in Ludlow; online feedback accepted
The Vermont Agency of Natural Resources is seeking public input on a draft Long-Range Management Plan for Okemo State Forest. The plan will guide future decisions about forest management, wildlife habitat, recreation, and conservation across nearly 8,000 acres of public land. Vermonters are invited to review the proposed management activities in the draft plan and […]
Meet the six candidates for three Senate Windsor District seats
@2026 Telegraph Publishing LLC Six candidates are running for three spots in the Vermont Senate representing the Windsor District, which is made up of 23 towns in Windsor County (except for Rochester) plus Pittsfield in Rutland County and Thetford in Orange. Three are Republicans and three are Democrats, two of whom are incumbents. Election Day […]
Hoser & Charlton address four pressing issues Candidates for Windsor-Windham House district
© 2026 Telegraph Publishing LLC Two Chester residents are facing off to represent the Windsor-Windham District, consisting of Athens, Chester, Grafton and Windham, in the Vermont House. Incumbent Tom Charlton, a Republican, is being challenged by Democrat Will Hoser. Ground Rules: Now, each election year, The Chester Telegraph asks our local candidates specific questions about […]
Act 170 merger study group holds first meeting
By Shawn Cunningham © 2026 Telegraph Publishing LLC BELLOWS FALLS For the schools of the Group 7 merger study committee, the work mandated by the Act 170 public school transformation law began Oct. 13 at Bellows Falls High School. Representatives of the Green Mountain, Springfield, Rockingham, Bellows Falls High, Westminster and Athens/Grafton school districts were […]
No Kings/Vote Early rally brings 180+ to Chester Green
By Shawn Cunningham © 2026 Telegraph Publishing LLC Nearly 200 people gathered from throughout the area last Saturday afternoon for a get-out-the-vote rally on the Chester Green, just three weeks before Nov. 3 voting and amid early voting. While the fall day was brisk and breezy, bright sunshine cheered those protesting the Trump administration in […]
With razing of Mill Tavern set, a look back at the many lives of an iconic Londonderry building
By the Londonderry Arts and Historical Society ©2026 Telegraph Publishing LLC In the coming weeks, a familiar chapter in North Londonderry’s built landscape will draw to a close, when the massive timber-framed building at 2242 N. Main St. — known for the past half-century as The Mill Tavern — is razed. To passersby, the quiet […]
Charlton, Hoser square off in Chester forum
By Nicholas Boke and Cynthia Prairie © 2026 Telegraph Publishing LLC Around 75 people attended last Tuesday’s forum for Vermont House candidates for the Windsor-Windham District, pitting incumbent Tom Charlton, a Republican, against Democratic challenger Will Hoser. Both are Chester residents seeking to represent the towns of Athens, Chester, Grafton and Windham in the Vermont […]
Balint among dozens in Congress targeted with suspicious letters
©2026 Telegraph Publishing LLC U.S. Rep. Becca Balint of Vermont was notified by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service of a suspicious letter intended for her office that is being handled by authorities. On Friday afternoon, Maryland Rep. Sarah Elfreth’s district office in Howard County “was evacuated after a suspicious letter and substance were delivered by […]
Chester Select Board agenda for Oct. 21
The Chester Select Board will hold its regular meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday Oct. 21, 2026 at Town Hall, 556 Elm Street and remotely via Zoom. 1. Approval of Minutes of October 7, 2026 Select board Meeting 2. Citizen’s Comments 3. Old Business 4. Snowmobile Club Use of Roads Approval 5. Memo of Understanding; […]
Chester board hears reaction to draft ‘Town Green Use Ordinance’ Sidewalk news and recap of busy festival weekends
By Shawn Cunningham © 2026 Telegraph Publishing LLC It was looking like the Chester Select Board meeting last Wednesday would be contentious because a draft document for regulating the use of the Chester Green had been circulating in town. For more than a year, the Chester Green has been the venue for a number of […]