August 29 2016

Page 1

MONDAY EDITION

ADDISON COUNTY

INDEPENDENT

Vol. 28 No. 21

Hot Latin & cool jazz • Mogani will bring its funky fusion music to Lincoln Peak Winery this Friday. Read Arts Beat on Pages 10-13.

A higher power • See our listing of religious services at more than 75 local houses of worship or organizations. See Pages 22-23.

Football, cheering on VPA’s plate • A site has been picked for football finals, and a new cheerleading championship is set. See Sports, Page 16.

New structures go up in Monkton • A new Park and Ride bus shelter, park pavilion and firehouse addition are in the works. See Page 2.

Middlebury, Vermont

Monday, August 29, 2016

32 Pages

$1.00

Bristol clinic navigates a changing landscape Mtn. Health offers diverse services By GAEN MURPHREE BRISTOL — At a time of rapid change in health care throughout the state and nation, Mountain Health Center is thriving. In just under three years, the Bristol-based doctors’ office has doubled its employees, increased its total patient load by close to 1,000, and doubled the number of office visits it can handle yearly. Mountain Health’s expansion goes hand in hand with its designation in November 2013 as a Federally Qualified Health Center, or FQHC. Since winning that designation, Mountain Health has continued its transition from what had been a small but dedicated bunch of MDs (See Mountain Health, Page 7)

Addison to launch solar siting rules By ANDY KIRKALDY ADDISON — Interim regulations governing the siting and screening of solar arrays in Addison will take effect during the first full week of September. The Addison selectboard adopted the regulations on July 5, with a 60day lag before they became law. Planning commission chairman Frank Galgano said last week the selectboard wanted to get something in place to guide potential applicants while planners are working on a new (See Solar arrays, Page 31)

Hopping hopper A GRASSHOPPER APPEARS to be caught mid-hop over a grass field in Shoreham last Tuesday afternoon. Independent photo/Trent Campbell

Nursing home part of Porter affiliation debate Facility continuing to run at a deficit By JOHN FLOWERS MIDDLEBURY — At its first public meeting to discuss a possible affiliation with a bigger health care provider, Porter Medical Center officials last Wednesday answered serious questions about the future of the

Helen Porter nursing home, as well as about other aspects of the partnership. On Aug. 24, the public got its first chance to hear and react to a potential Porter affiliation with the University of Vermont Health Network

(UVMHN). It was the first of what figures to be several discussions on how such a partnership might affect Porter’s finances, amenities, employment and long-term future. As previously reported by the Addison Independent, the Porter board has selected UVMHN from among four organizations that had

expressed a willingness to partner with Addison County’s health care hub. PMC includes Porter Hospital, Helen Porter Healthcare & Rehabilitation (nursing home) and 12 physicians’ offices throughout the county. The PMC board during the next few months will gather more input (See Porter, Page 18)


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