The Citizen - 11-22-23

Beatrix Farrand

Leahy Law

Noted landscape architect made impressive mark

Senator says law applied ineffectively in Israel

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November 22, 2023

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Weekly news coverage for Charlotte and Hinesburg

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Sky painting

PHOTO BY LEE KROHN

As the sun sets, it paints the Champlain Valley and Adirondacks in color.

Hinesburg’s largest development in history heads to Act 250 COREY MCDONALD STAFF WRITER

The largest housing development in Hinesburg’s history, Haystack Crossing, is currently under Act 250 review, one year after being approved by the town’s development review board.

The proposal, eight years in the making, would create a new neighborhood in Hinesburg village. It would bring 176 housing units to a 76-acre property on the east side of Route 116 and to the north of Kinney Drugs. It would include 27,000 square feet of non-residential building space — including space for commercial and light industrial use — along with green space throughout the property.

Developers for the project, including BlackRock Construction and the Bissonette family, say in development documents that this would be the first phase of the overall master plan, which calls for building a total of 269 new homes, with a mix of single-family, townhouse, apartment and senior hous-

ing structures.

If fully occupied, phase 1 alone would bring in more than 500 residents into town. To alleviate new traffic on Route 116, a new road connection over Patrick Brook is part of the plan for the Haystack project and the Hinesburg Center II project.

The property has historically been zoned for agricultural use but has been left unused for many years — aside from a small, town recreation field off Shelburne Falls Road, a town well and a water and sewer line that runs north and south through the property.

It’s been a long road for the project. The original plan was first denied in August 2014 and, after several tweaks to the design, was denied again by the Hinesburg Development Review Board because the buildout required more wastewater treatment capacity than the town had available, according to town records.

Town officials at the time sought a more non-residential space that could incorporate some commer-

cial and light industrial space.

But the developer appealed the town’s denial to the state Supreme Court, which ultimately overturned the review board’s decision because the wastewater capacity issue was not raised in its first

denial so could not be the basis of the second denial, according to town records.

The current plan was approved in 2016. The town and developers later collaborated to drill a well to address the town’s municipal water

supply issues. Water and wastewater allocations were granted by the town based on available water from both an existing and proposed well.

See ACT 250 on page 13

Charlotte town garage is nearly complete LIBERTY DARR STAFF WRITER

After nearly eight months, Charlotte’s town garage is set to have its last loose bolts screwed in, just in time to welcome the community for next week’s ribbon-cutting ceremony.

The town garage has been two years in the making since the former garage on Church Hill Road that housed nearly all the equipment to maintain Charlotte’s roads burned down in a late-night fire in December 2021.

Charlotte has a unique arrangement with no municipal highway

department. Instead, the town contracts the service with a yearly elected road commissioner, Hugh Lewis Jr., who leases his building for the town’s use.

Lewis has been in control of Charlotte’s roads since 1976 and although he has no plans to retire, officials are aware of the potential for eventually being forced into creating a municipal road commission.

“The town will forever own this facility,” John Kerr, the project manager of the new building.

“That’s why we made the investment we made, so we would always have this infrastructure.

Because when Junior retires, we’ll have a place for the next one to hang their hat.”

The project, which has come in just slightly below $3 million, has been funded with a voter-approved $1.5 million bond, highway reserve funds of $500,000 and $1 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds.

Building the new 8,650-squarefoot, six-bay building has been relatively smooth sailing, according to Kerr, with the only major setback being the summer rainSee GARAGE on page 13

Page 2 • November 22, 2023 • The Citizen

Local senator wins award for leadership, service Vermont Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale of Shelburne is a 2023 recipient of the 20 Under 40 Leadership Award from the Council of State Governments.

The award annually recognizes the work of 20 young elected and appointed officials from across the country who not only exemplify strong leadership skills but have also demonstrated a true commitment to serving the citizens of their state.

“While the outstanding state officials recognized by Council of State Governments this year come from diverse backgrounds, different political parties, every branch of state government and every region of our country, they share the same commitment to serve others,” David Adkins, the council’s executive director and CEO, said. “They are hard-working, visionary leaders whose passion for public service is

producing results for their states.”

Ram Hinsdale was selected because of her commitment to public service, ability to engage with officials across party lines and leadership.

“Having served for over a decade in the state Legislature, this award means a lot to me, but particularly following a session where I legislated from a hospital bed before giving birth to my daughter,” Ram Hinsdale said. “Being under 40 and serving often means navigating a system that was not designed for people like me, and so I hope this serves as further inspiration for those thinking about running for office. People do take notice and appreciate your sacrifices.”

Ram Hinsdale will receive award at the 2023 Council of State Governments National Conference on Dec. 8 in Raleigh, N.C.

Local United Way launches 365 Small Business Circle United Way of Northwest Vermont has launched a new giving program to help small businesses make an impact in the communities where they live, work and play.

Starting at $1 a day, small businesses can improve lives in Northwest Vermont by joining United Way’s 365 Small Business Circle.

“Small businesses in Vermont are incredibly committed to their local communities, but it isn’t always easy to know how to make a big impact with limited resources. Our 365 Small Business Circle helps small businesses extend their reach by partnering with United Way to improve the lives of our families, friends, and neighbors,” United Way of Northwest Vermont corporate engagement manager

Erin Regan said.

The 365 Small Business Circle has three annual membership levels: 365 Partner at $1 a day, 365 Plus Partner at $3 a day, and 365 Leader at $5 a day. Each level has corresponding benefits and opportunities to promote your business and your partnership with United Way. The money raised through the 365 Small Business Circle will support local organizations and efforts supporting mental health, families, basic needs (housing, food and transportation), reducing substance abuse and financial stability.

For more information, contact Regan at 802-861-7832 or erin@ unitedwaynwvt.org, or go to unitedwaynwvt.org.

PHOTO BY OLIVIA WILSON

116 Fitness opened this year in Hinesburg.

116 Fitness now open, Hinesburg’s first gym OLIVIA WILSON COMMUNITY NEWS SERVICE

When Jake Middleton moved to Williston in 2018, he’d drive almost 40 minutes to Bristol every day for his job as a trainer at a gym.

During his daily route through rural Vermont, he’d notice how few gyms he saw in the towns on his commute and wondered whether that could change.

He answered his question earlier this year: Middleton opened 116 Fitness, Hinesburg’s first gym, in May, and he says business is booming.

Open 24 hours a day, the gym serves as a convenient place for locals to cultivate their fitness journey without the hassle of a commute or a time restriction.

The gym is membership only, and members monthly for full access to the space at any hour of day.

Laura Gurdak, a local of 12 years who works next door to the gym at Hinesburg Hair Studio, has been a member since the gym’s opening on May 1.

“Turns out the only reason I wasn’t going,” she said, “was

because there wasn’t one here.”

Middleton, a New York State native, has been a personal trainer for seven years. A graduate of the University of Alabama — where he studied exercise science, business, nutrition and disability sports — Middleton has trained clients from all walks of life: kids, people with disabilities, a 101-year-old.

Earlier this year, Middleton moved to Hinesburg when he heard that a commercial space had opened on Commerce Street right across from the new town gathering space.

On a recent afternoon, Middleton recalled the negative politics of the fitness industry during his time working in management positions at chain gyms such as LA Fitness and Crunch Fitness, which is why he opened 116 Fitness as an independent operation, not a franchise.

He said members have described the gym having a more friendly, laid-back feel than some big-name fitness centers.

To some extent, that dovetails with the recent goals of Hinesburg leaders, who’ve recently greenlighted the development of new

housing and public spaces.

Though 150 people belong to the gym, Middleton said there has never been more than eight people in the gym at once, and the space has never felt too crowded. Staff are on hand from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. for personal training and other needs.

So far, Middleton said, members have been picking up on the laidback feel and helping each other with workouts. Middleton said he’s super open to suggestions as well and has added five different pieces of equipment in the last few weeks upon request.

Middleton said many folks have approached him and talked about discussions in the community to pool funds for a local gym. But Middleton beat them to the punch, stepping in to fill the need.

Olivia Wilson reported this story on assignment for the Vermont Community News Group.

The Community News Service is a program in which University of Vermont students work with professional editors to provide content for local news outlets at no cost.

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The Citizen • November 22, 2023 • Page 3

Debates about short-term rentals regulations grow CARLY BERLIN VTDIGGER

A new data analysis by the Vermont Housing Finance Agency found the number of homes listed on platforms like Airbnb and VRBO has grown rapidly over the last several years, following a brief pandemic downturn.

In September, Vermont saw the highest number of active shortterm rentals out of any month on record: 11,747, a 16 percent increase relative to the same month last year, according to VHFA’s data analysis released in late October.

As the industry has boomed, more and more towns are grappling with short-term rentals’ impact on the availability of yearround housing — and debating approaches for how to track and regulate them. Meanwhile, shortterm rental industry advocates argue towns, and the state, should gather more data before imposing restrictions.

The finance agency’s analysis shows that the number of active short-term rentals statewide has increased markedly over the last three years. The agency purchases private data from AirDNA, a site that aggregates rental listings from platforms like Airbnb and VRBO, and looks only at full-unit rentals, rather than partial-units such as a bedroom in a home.

Ski towns have the highest number of these rentals, according to VHFA’s analysis: Stowe, Killington, Ludlow, Dover, and Warren were the top five. Stowe, a town of a little over 5,000, had close to 1,000 active short-term rentals as of September.

The amount of Vermont’s housing stock used for short-term rentals is relatively small. According to VHFA, these rentals account for about 3.6 percent of the state’s total housing stock. About 16 percent of Vermont homes are seasonal or vacation homes, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Because data on short-term rentals and information on seasonal and vacation homes come from different sources, it’s difficult to deduce how they map onto each other, said Nate Lantieri, research coordinator at VHFA. The agency also lacks data on how properties have historically been used, making it hard to track how many long-term units might be flipping to vacation use, and how the increasing number of short-term rentals might impact the yearround rental market.

But even slight shifts can have

an outsized effect when the year- rules. The guidance summarized round rental market is extremely the array of options available tight, Lantieri said.

– from registries to residency “When we’re looking at these requirements to limiting where really small vacancy rates across such rentals can be located – but it the state, any one unit that’s being refrained from giving more speciftaken out of year-round rental for ics on how to regulate the industry. Brady said the potential short-term organization will rental – it creates In September, wait to see what more pressure on further questions the low vacanVermont saw the town governments cy rates already,” Lantieri said. highest number of have.

At a shortAs the number term rental indusof short-term rentactive short-term try expo held this als has shot up, week in South so has the reverentals out of any Burlington, Julie nue they bring Marks, founder month on record: in, according to and director of VHFA’s analysis. In the Vermont Short 11,747.

February, average Term Rental Allimonthly revenue ance, expressed concern that the for these units surpassed $5,000 for the first time. As of September, town-by-town patchwork of rules average revenue had dipped to a lacked coordination and could take a toll on Vermont’s “visitor econlittle over $4,000 a month.

While the majority of short- omy,” lowering tourist spending term rental owners are Vermont and state revenue via the meals residents – and have just one unit and rooms tax.

The group has advocated for a – some might see the industry as statewide short-term rental regisan investment opportunity, Lanttry to gather more data before ieri said.

“There are also people that see enacting additional regulations. the numbers and say – that’s the State lawmakers have previousmarket that’s potentially really ly pushed to require short-term rentals to register with the state as lucrative,” Lantieri said. part of a broader rental registry, Towns consider regulations but Gov. Phil Scott opposed the “It’s basic math – there are measure.

Marks argued that short-term units of housing that people are rentals should not be “scapegoatliving in for weekends instead of ed” for Vermont’s housing shortfor the year,” Brady said. age.

Many towns are in the midst “The only thing that is going to of updating their zoning bylaws really make a dent in our housing and town plans to comply with situation right now is if we build recent changes in state law aimed more housing,” Marks said. “The at encouraging denser hous- only thing that’s really going to ing development. And for some take away the focus on short-term towns, debates around approaches rentals – and wasting all of these to short-term rentals have cropped resources focusing on an aspect of up during that process. the housing and tourism economy After a local report that found that just won’t move the needle — short-term rentals contributed to is for there to be a fix and a correcrising housing costs and declining tion to the housing market.” availability of year-round rental Lantieri, from VHFA, housing, Londonderry’s select- acknowledged that short-term board is considering limiting the rentals are likely not the biggest number of these rentals a prop- factor squeezing Vermont’s houserty owner can have. Chester has ing market, but said shifting units placed a six-month moratorium on away from long-term use could all new short-term rentals where add continued stress. the host does not live onsite, as the “Any additional pressure that town develops new rules. Dover is taking units out of that market is has discussed contracting with a going to feel like additional downthird-party registration company ward pressure on people trying to that could help manage complaints find housing,” he said. about noise or overcrowding, said Eric Durocher, the town’s economThis story, by Report for Americ development director. ica corps member Carly Berlin, The league recently issued was produced through a partsome basic information to towns nership between VTDigger and considering short-term rental Vermont Public.

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Page 4 • November 22, 2023 • The Citizen

Hinesburg Police Blotter: Nov. 6-20 Total incidents: 93 Traffic Stops: 23 Incidents: Nov. 7 at 1:22 p., officers investigated a motor vehicle complaint on Commerce Street.

Nov. 7 at 5:44 p.m., officers assisted EMS with a medical emergency on Hillview Terrace.

Nov. 8 at 4:32 p.m., officers responded to a domestic dispute on Buck Hill Road East.

Nov. 10 at 5:35 p.m., police investigated suspicious activity on Black Dog Lane.

Nov. 10 at 6:06 p.m., officers responded to a two-vehicle crash on Route 116.

Nov. 12 at 10:35 a.m., someone reported vandalism to property on Mountain Spring Court.

Police investigated.

Nov. 13 at 9:45 a.m., officers investigated a motor vehicle complaint on Route 116.

Nov. 13 at 11:51 a.m., an alarm activated on Baldwin Road.

Nov. 13 at 11:05 p.m., a resident on Hollow Road was served a

relief from abuse order.

Nov. 14 at 9:55 a.m., police investigated a report of loose dogs chasing wildlife on Silver Street.

Nov. 15 at 2:48 p.m., an officer investigated the report of property damage on Kelley’s Field.

Nov. 16 at 1:35 p.m., an officer responded to Hayden Hill West for the report of loose dogs attacking livestock.

Nov. 16 at 4:33 p.m., an officer responded to North Road for the report of loose dogs attacking livestock.

Nov. 17 at 7:40 a.m., police investigated a larceny from a motor vehicle on Village Heights.

Nov. 17 at 8:08 a.m., police investigated a larceny from a motor vehicle on Village Heights.

Nov. 17 at 3:50 p.m., police investigated a larceny from a motor vehicle on Village Heights.

Nov. 18 at 9:21 a.m., an officer responded to a car vs. deer crash on North Road.

Nov. 19 at 8:06 a.m., an officer assisted a citizen with locating three lost donkeys on Gilman Road.

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Lawyer named state committee chair of American College of Trial Lawyers Michael L. Desautels of South Burlington, a fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers, has been named the chair of the Vermont State Committee.

Desautels has served as the Chief Federal Defender in Vermont since 2006, and before that was in private practice in New York State for many years.

“I look forward to leading in this role,” Desautels said.

The American College of Trial Lawyers is a professional association of lawyers and judges dedicated to maintaining and improving the standards of trial practice, the administration of justice, and the ethics of the profession.

Membership in the college is by invitation, and admission is limit-

Michael L. Desautels

ed to not more than 1 percent of the attorneys in the state.

The college’s many missions

include working to preserve the independence of state and federal judges, including from recent verbal attacks from politicians regarding court decisions. Judges are often constrained from responding to such attacks themselves.

In another initiative, the college has partnered with the American Constitution Society to teach about the role that the U.S. Constitution plays in the lives of individuals and society — by having college fellows meet with school groups and other civic groups.

Desautels said, “I believe that fellows in the college play a vital role in upholding the rule of law in our country.”

Exhibit explores Vermont’s many lost ski areas Have you ever heard of Hedgehog Hovel, Buckturd Basin or Freak Peak?

All are part of the Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum’s newest exhibit, “Searching for Vermont’s Lost Ski Areas.”

Take a schuss down memory lane on Friday, Dec. 1, 5-8 p.m., for an exhibit opening party.

Admission is free but donations, at the door or in advance, are greatly appreciated. Beer and cider will be served.

The museum’s search for information about Vermont’s lost ski areas, those that at one time operated a mechanical tow, has been a more than 20-year endeav-

or. From Vernon to Newport, 175 lost ski areas have been identified and located on a large format map created for the exhibit. Lost and found ski areas — 20 areas still in operation today — are also identified.

Drawing from information, photographs and memorabilia in the museum’s collection, and with help from local historical societies, part one of “Searching for Vermont’s Lost Ski Areas” features the unique character of 70 lost areas between the Massachusetts border and Route 4, from small community tows to bigger areas with multiple lifts.

Of those 70, Woodstock,

Snow Valley, Dutch Hill, Hogback and Mt. Ascutney are highlighted with even more detail and colorful information.

Visitors will learn about the installation of the first rope tow in the United States, snow trains and the beginnings of ski tourism, the first snowmaking system in the state and Vermont’s first Sno-Cat skiing operation.

The search for more information about Vermont’s lost ski areas is ongoing and the museum welcomes input from those who have memories and photos to share. Part twoI of the exhibit will push further north and will open next season.

Obituary Ashley L. Pilla Ashley Lynne Pilla died unexpectedly on Wednesday, Oct. 25, 2023, in Queens, N.Y. She was born on July 21, 1987, in Burlington.

She was an energetic child with a love for drawing and painting and the outdoors. She was extremely talented in competitive sports, including skiing and soccer. After living out her early years in Shelburne and Charlotte, she moved to New York City to pursue her dreams and make her mark on the world.

Ashley was a gifted artist and her creativity thrived in Astoria and Brooklyn where she lived.

She developed a deep passion for entrepreneurship and restoring antique furniture and was even featured on an episode of “Flea Market Flip.”

Ashley L. Pilla

She also worked as a bartender for many years, forging long-lasting relationships and creating unforgettable memories. While pursuing her degree in interior design, she flexed her seemingly natural ability to envision an inviting yet innova-

tive space. Everyone who knew Ashley described her as a spitfire with a big heart. She had a passion for helping animals in need, having rescued three cats, and caring for them devotedly.

Ashley was ambitious, passionate, and fiercely determined. She will always be loved, and missed by many, and her legacy will not soon be forgotten.

She is survived by her mother, Kathleen, and stepfather, Doug Grant; her father, Jack Pilla, and stepmother, Kristin Lundy; her sister, Kaitlyn Pilla; her brother, Nick Pilla; and her paternal grandmother, Dorothy Pilla.

Those who would like to honor her memory with a contribution may do so at Free Arts NYC (bit.ly/47sQqfg) and Meow Parlour (meowparlour.com/ donate), also in New York City.

The Citizen • November 22, 2023 • Page 5

OPINION University abrogates its mission by cancelling Palestinian speaker Guest Perspective Bill Schubart The University of Vermont’s recent decision to cancel an appearance by Palestinian poet and journalist Mohammed El-Kurd from Israel was a poor choice. It was reportedly based on the assumption that the educational mission of a college or university and the safety of its students can be at odds. One can adhere to mission and use their best efforts to ensure safety, even as we know that absolute safety is impossible in our fractious world.

We know, for example, from our failure to regulate firearms that school safety is relative. Were we to lock down schools entirely, how would they deliver on educational mission while wholly isolated from the cultural and intellectual communities they serve? Is safety about preventing potential violence at the expense of students’ intellectual and emotional growth?

The mission of education is not only to train learners in the basic skills they need to learn and communicate, like reading, writing, scientific inquiry, debate and physical education, but it’s also to expose them to the expanding world of ideas, cultures and ethics, and to stimulate new emotions. This

can only be done in a school or campus where all ideas are welcome all the time.

I went from a solid educational foundation in the Morristown public schools to Phillips Exeter Academy, not because I was an exceptional student but because I was a legacy. Attending an all-male boarding school established to educate but also to sustain class privilege far away from family and friends was a painful transition.

There was very little racial or economic diversity. But having said that, I was exposed to a diversity of ideas, experiences and people I might never have met at home.

There were no limits on our exposure to art, the humanities or science. We read “dangerous” books like Huxley’s “Brave New World,” Orwell’s “1984,” Salinger’s “Catcher in the Rye,” Dostoyevsky’s “The Idiot,” Golding’s “Lord of the Flies,” Eliot’s “The Wasteland,” Camus’ “The Stranger,” Dante’s “Inferno” and other books I’d never have come across. (Moms for Liberty was not yet rampaging through our libraries or reading lists removing books).

We were encouraged to read and absorb a world of new, alien and often scary ideas.

Every Saturday night, the school gym was converted to a movie theater. After the ever-popular Roadrunner cartoon, we watched movies we would never have seen

in our local Bijou theater in Morrisville.

— or not — the great spectrum of ideas The foreign films that have stayed with me is necessary to succeed. When we restrict, forever were often terrifying: Alain Resnais’ censor or bowdlerize ideas and opinions, we “Night and Fog,” and compromise the mission “Hiroshima, Mon Amour,” The mission of higher of a university. This is Marcel Carne’s “Children happening more and more of Paradise,” Bergman’s in our public schools, education must be “The Seventh Seal,” Fellicolleges and universities sacrosanct. If we try ni’s “La Strada,” De Sica’s to their detriment. There is “The Bicycle Thief,” Frank such a thing as age-approto protect children Perry’s “David and Lisa,” priate learning, but we do and many others. I had no not want to dumb-down from a world they’ve teaching. Young people idea this world existed. This was the value of an uncomtoday are not as naïve as already begun to promising education and, adults seem to think they later, of my time at Kenyon are. experience, we do and UVM. Having said this, any The mission of higher threatening or violent so at our peril and education must be sacroracist, gender-specific, or sanct. If we try to protect anti-religious intimidation, theirs. children from a world harassment, hate speech they’ve already begun to or activity must result in a experience, we do so at our peril and theirs. due-process expulsion of that student, teachThe very idea of a university is to bring er or administrator. I say due process only together learners and the learned to inspire because, on rare occasions, such discussions our rational faculties. Having been both, I can be nuanced. valued my time as a teacher largely because The conflict in the Middle East has polarI learned that learning ized what should be open and rational debate was reciprocal.

In the marketplace of ideas, the freedom to learn, articulate, discuss and validate See SCHUBART on page 6

Page 6 • November 22, 2023 • The Citizen

Vermont creates ‘culture of silence’ as it claims to be tackling racism A MAGICAL WORLD MARKETPLACE

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Guest Perspective Aaliyah Wilburn Racism is like a dark gray cloud that hangs over our world, covering the sun with inequality and injustice. Imagine a canvas tainted with prejudice, where some colors benefit through the exclusion of others. It is a toxic ideology designed to judge people based on their features and skin complexion, allowing stereotypes and discrimination to continue.

Racism is a divider of people and a divider of joy and prevents the beautiful canvas of humanity from shining through.

Racism is like spilled coffee on paper, or like the sticker you forgot to take off your clothes before washing them. It is so embedded in society that it will take everyone to collectively help to get to that canvas of equality, unity and inclusion. In Vermont schools there is a lack of action. People will say this reality is “horrible” and “upsetting” but that is as far as they go to show they care.

We’ve created a culture of silence, and it is a direct result from the lack of action, support and education. People of color fall victim to harm too often but we can’t talk about the harm that has been done because we are told that “a classroom is not the place for this type of discussion” and our pain is “too political.” Students of color are tired of having to keep quiet because that’s considered more tolerable than hearing the truth.

But truth cannot be ignored.

Students of color are drowning in a sea filled with slurs, stereotypes, biases and microaggressions.

We gasp and wait for educators,

administrators and policy makers to care and help us.

The helicopter might be in the sky but there is no ladder being put down to save us. You say you’re here to help, but actions speak louder than words. Where is the action?

We live in a state where racial diversity is merely a concept, where the population is over 90 percent white. We live in a state where oppression is real and not just a thing of the past like everyone says it is. We live in a state where people of color, through there simple existence, are a political statement. Words and assumptions imprinted on our skin cannot be erased like footprints in now-dry cement.

Yet hope remains. We can create change, but it must be us.

Some of us have been and are still currently fighting for a more diverse, equitable and inclusive education, but it needs to be all of us.

Angela Davis once said, “I am no longer accepting the things I cannot change. I am changing the things I cannot accept.” So here we are, activating toward change.

Folks of color, let this drive you to speak up and share your experiences no matter how loud or quiet your voice is.

White folks, allow yourself to use this opportunity to commit to doing the work of being an antiracist.

Educators and administrators, put the ladder down and help us.

Nelson Mandela said it best, “We can change the world and make it a better place. It is in our hands to make a difference.” With this, we encourage you to join us in the Let Me Be Great campaign and make that difference.

This campaign is a collaboration between the Vermont Student Anti-Racism Network, the Rutland NAACP, Building Fearless Futures and the Vermont Racial Justice Alliance, as well as multiple students, equity directors and school staff. This campaign came about because anti-racism network and the NAACP sent out a survey last school year asking about racism in schools, and topics such as diversity in curriculum, racial slurs and diversity, equity and inclusion coordinators. We got alarming results.

Through this campaign, we are touring Vermont schools and presenting the survey results to school boards, administration and staff, discussing the findings from the student perspective and what can be done to foster a more inclusive environment. Whether you want to be more involved in building the campaign, or you just want to receive resources, we would love you to join. Sign up for any aspect of the campaign at bit.ly/47fG8iq. We hope you will be part of our collective movement.

is not a lobby.”

In essence, the Kalven Report endorsed the idea of free speech but said that the colleges and universities themselves should not take political positions on matters of current interest as it inhibits free speech itself by declaring the “right position” to take. The violation of this principle has led to many campus riots and rebellions by students, administrators and alumni.

If we are to maintain the integrity of our colleges and universities, we must insist on open and free expression, and transparency of sources, given the capacity of flamethrowers to hide in social media. What’s more, we must

insist that donors donate only to mission and not to further their agenda.

I do hope the University of Vermont learns from its recent misadventure. Allowing the campus appearance of a Palestinian poet and journalist from Israel while allowing peaceful demonstration by those who strongly support Israel’s self-defense should be a manageable security challenge. Citing security is an easy out.

Aaliyah Wilburn is a senior at North Country Union High School in Newport. Originally from the South, she moved to Vermont two years ago to be closer to family in Canada. Wilburn has been battling racial discrimination since the day she stepped foot in Vermont but instead of giving up, she decided to try and make change. She is now the coordinator of culture for an organization called Vermont Students Anti-Racism Network and has recently been appointed to the Newport Recreation Committee and the Vermont State Board of Education.

SCHUBART

continued from page 5 at our universities. On the night of the Hamas attack, a coalition of some 30 student groups at Harvard posted an open letter blaming Israel for the violence that killed some 1,400 people. The students were broadly doxed and attacked online and at home in an effort by a conservative media watchdog group called Accuracy in Media to punish their beliefs by buying domain names for signatories and setting up websites in their names calling for Harvard to punish them.

In 1967, universities and colleges adopted the Kalven principles, which states: “The University is the home and sponsor of critics; it is not itself the critic ... it is not a club, it is not a trade association, it

Bill Schubart grew up in Lamoille County, and now lives in Hinesburg. He writes about Vermont in fiction, humor and opinion pieces.

The Citizen • November 22, 2023 • Page 7

South Burlington Rotary’s

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December 10, 2023

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Local artist explores dragonflies, and their habitat in Pierson show The work of artist Landa Townsend is on display at Shelburne’s Pierson Library through November in a show entitled, “Dragonfly Habitat at the Edges of Weatherhead Hollow Pond: 20212023.”

Townsend will give a free artist talk will be given on Thursday, Nov. 30, 6-7 p.m., 5376 Shelburne Road.

Townsend explores the world of dragonflies in the show, a collec-

tion of prints from two summers of dedicated research and observations of dragonfly flight patterns and behaviors, focusing on the Libellula lydia, Libellula luctuosa and Libellula putchella populations at Weatherhead Hollow Pond in Guilford.

Fueled by a passion for the environment and a dedication to sustainable artistry, Townsend says she embarked on a creative expedition to encapsulate the essence of

this ecosystem.

“The resulting series of woodblock prints offers a vibrant portrayal of dragonfly behaviors and their delicate surroundings, employing abstract images that intricately reflect the vitality and fragility of this unique environment,” she said.

Townsend’s employs Japanese woodblock techniques that prioritize non-toxic and sustainable methods, mirroring the delicate balance of the ecosystem being depicted.

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Page 8 • November 22, 2023 • The Citizen

Pioneer in American landscape design University’s School of Mines.

In 1893, she studied horticulture and garden design as an A prominent figure in the apprentice of Charles Sprague history of American landscape Sargent, then director of the design, Beatrix Farrand née Jones Arnold Arboretum at Harvard (1872-1959) was the mastermind University.

She undertook a grand tour of behind the idyllic grounds of the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Garden European gardens in 1895, further on Mount Desert Island in Maine soaking up valuable information. and Dumbarton Oaks Gardens in There, she met with renowned Washington, D.C., among numer- landscape designers, including William Robinson and Gertrude ous others.

Farrand was born into a Jekyll, leading advocates for wild gardenwealthy, well-coning and cottage nected family of Recognized as gardens.

She the Gilded Age returned home society of New America’s first at the age of 23 York City. She female landscape emboldened and was close to her opened her own paternal aunt, the architect, Beatrix practice as a famous novelself-titled “landist Edith WharFarrand’s prolific scape gardener,” ton, and grew up which she ran exposed to her 50-year career led from a room in mother’s elite her mother’s social circle, to more than 200 house in New which included York City.

Henry James, a commissions.

By 1899, her wealthy Ameripractice was flourishing and her can-British writer.

As a child, Farrand enjoyed social connections with the elite gardening alongside her mother at led to commissions for major Reef Point, the family’s summer luxury estates such as that of home in Bar Harbor, Maine. Her the Rockefellers. Her style was interest in gardening grew, and described as elegant and restrained despite the lack of formal training with rich architectural details.

That same year, at the age of in landscape architecture in the 1890s, she forged ahead on her 27, decades before women gained own, enrolling in a drafting course the right to vote, Farrand was the with a private tutor at Columbia only woman among 11 profesNADIE VANZANDT UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT EXTENSION

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Noted landscape architect Beatrix Farrand designed an English-style garden for the Rockefellers at their summer home on Mount Desert Island in Maine, adding many stunning architectural features such as the undulating stone wall that surrounds the perennial gardens.

sionals who founded the American Society of Landscape Architects.

At the turn of the 20th century, landscape architecture was a field long dominated by men, especially in the design of public places.

Self-trained, yet equally competent, Farrand defied the odds and was hired as the first consulting landscape architect at Princeton University (1912-1943), hired to design the campus’s landscape.

Other prestigious institutions, namely Yale, Harvard, Oberlin College and the University of Chicago, followed suit, hiring her to design their grounds.

If you visit the Ivy Leagues, look for Farrand’s legacy in the form of vine-covered wall gardens and native plants and

trees that bloom in spring or fall when the university is in session.

She favored sugar maples, sweet gums, beech and tulip poplars, seamlessly blending the elements of European formal gardens with the naturalistic beauty of the American landscape. Her goal was to offer an aesthetically pleasing environment for students to thrive.

In 1913, she met her husband, Max Farrand, at a dinner engagement with the Yale University president. A graduate of Princeton’s Class of 1892, he was then chairman of Yale’s history department.

The couple moved to California in 1927 when her husband was appointed director of the

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There, Farrand expanded her client-base, taking on new design projects, such as the courtyard of Dabney Hall at the California Institute of Technology, parts of Occidental College and the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden, among others.

Meanwhile, she commuted to the East coast to attend to her existing clients.

Recognized as America’s first female landscape architect, her prolific 50-year career led to more than 200 commissions. Her iconic and artful landscapes inspired future generations of women to pursue studies in the field of landscape architecture and design.

Her most famous design is reflected in the Dumbarton Oaks gardens where she transformed, and spent 30 perfecting, the grounds of a Georgian Revival mansion in Washington, D.C. Some say that her most significant project was the preservation and beautification of the carriage roads in Acadia National Park, commissioned by John D. Rockefeller Jr. However, the extensive and exquisite Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Garden on Mount Desert Island, an English-style garden with an Asian-inspired landscape designed for the Rockefellers, could certainly rival that as her masterpiece.

Farrand drew inspiration from visiting numerous gardens.

Gardeners can do the same by visiting University of Vermont Extension Master Gardener Program demonstration gardens throughout the state. More at go.uvm.edu/emgprojects.

Nadie VanZandt is a UVM Extension master gardener.

The Citizen • November 22, 2023 • Page 9

School district drafts policy for transgender students Uniquely, South Burlington’s policy has special designations for curriculum implementation, professional developA new draft South Burlington School ment and annual monitoring that supports District policy affirms the rights of trans- staff in the inclusion of LGBTQ curriculum and training for all staff members and gender and non-binary students.

The district’s director of diversity, administration.

“I really love ours because it includes equity, inclusion, anti-racism and social emotional learning, Monica Desrochers, curriculum and annual monitoring,” Desrochers said. “So, alongside four students, for me, those are two unveiled the draft policy “I think if we are huge pieces that I think at last Wednesday’s board sometimes get left out. meeting. asking teachers I think if we are asking The six-page policy teachers to create was modeled mostly after to create inclusive inclusive variances in 2017 Vermont Agency of their daily lessons for Education guidelines that variances in their students, in today’s outline how to support political climate, it’s students whose gender daily lessons for really important to identity is different than have the protection of their assigned sex at birth students, in today’s a policy to support our or who do not identify as teachers in taking risks male or female. political climate, it’s and feeling comfortable She said the policy was in doing the work best initially vetted by both the really important to for our students.” high school’s Gender and Desrochers said that Sexuality Alliance and the have the protection a policy like this helps Queer Straight Alliance in students to understand, the middle school before of a policy to support on a more tangible heading to counseling staff and administration for our teachers in taking level, the implications of how other states and feedback. risks and feeling school districts are deal“What I didn’t want to ing with transgender do is move a policy forward comfortable in doing students and policies. that is most impacting According to the transgender students withthe work best for our New York Times, nine out their voice or even states have banned motivation for wanting it,” students.” transgender students Desrochers said. “So that from using bathrooms feedback from the (Gender and Sexuality Alliance) in — Monica Desrochers and locker rooms consistent with their the high school was strong gender identity and 17 states have enactin terms of, ‘Yes, we need this.’”

The policy outlines students’ right ed bans or significant new restrictions to privacy and if adopted would require on some or all gender-affirming care for district staff and school records to use a minors.

“We actually have transgender youth student’s preferred pronouns and name.

The policy also states that a student — or in our districts who have left states who parent or legal caregiver in the case of a have anti-trans laws,” Desrochers said. “It minor student — who is currently enrolled is really powerful for students, Vermontmay request retroactive changes to school ers, to be in the same classroom as someone who has recently come to the state records, including name and gender.

Although other districts have adopted because of homophobia.”

“One student told a story about how similar policies, South Burlington’s draft policy closely follows the Champlain they had a teacher who used to put trans Valley School District’s newly approved inclusive books in their backpack in policy that uses more affirmative the state that they were in because they language beyond what was suggested by couldn’t have them in their library and the Agency of Education when it comes they couldn’t read them in class,” she to a student’s use of facilities like locker said.

The draft must undergo two more rooms and restrooms.

The state says a transgender student public readings at school board meetings, “should not have to” use a locker room or which will take place on Dec. 6 and Dec. bathroom that conflicts with their gender 20, before it can be officially enacted into identity, but the draft policy states that policy.

Desrochers said that the district will a student “must be permitted to” use the then turn its attention to drafting a policy aligned facility.

“We’re not just saying ‘should be protecting the rights of transgender and allowed,’ which was the guidance from non-binary staff.

“We actually first played with the idea the Agency of Education,” Angela Arsenault, chair of the Champlain Valley of having one policy to protect both transSchool Board, said in September. “We’re gender and non-binary staff and students,” saying, in policy, that students must be she said. “But we are advised to stick to permitted to use a locker room, a restroom one party per policy. That is definitely something that is on the horizon for us.” that aligns with their gender identity.”

LIBERTY DARR STAFF WRITER

Page 10 • November 22, 2023 • The Citizen

Senator says Leahy Law not being used effectively in Israel AARON CALVIN STAFF WRITER

During the opening stages of the current Israel-Gaza conflict, Josh Paul, an employee at the U.S. Department of State who helped oversee transfers of weapons and military aid to the country’s allies, resigned, calling the transfer of weapons to Israel “shortsighted, destructive and unjust.”

In an interview with PBS, Paul alleged that the Biden administration has been arming its Israeli ally in a perfunctory manner, leading to “massive civilian casualties” among Palestinians.

“There’s been a rush to provide arms, where, normally, there is discussion, consideration and thought,” Paul said.

According to Paul, the codified process through which the state department determines whether to supply arms and military aid and can withhold military aid from certain military units if they are credibly accused of violating human rights — the so-called Leahy law, named after the legislator who championed the amendment to the Foreign Assistance Act — has not been adequately applied to Israel.

The Leahy law ostensibly allows the United States the ability to use the military funding it provides as leverage to ensure adherence to human rights law, but according to Paul and the law’s author himself, it has never been properly applied to Israel.

“In the case of Egypt, of course, we have Leahy vetting, where units that are identified to be involved in gross violation of human rights are not eligible to receive U.S. weapons,” Paul said. “There is a Leahy vetting process for Israel. It has never found an Israeli unit to be guilty of a gross violation of human rights. It’s a broken system.”

On Oct. 7, Hamas, the Islamist terrorist group that has controlled Gaza since 2007, broke out of the Israeli-instituted blockade of the area, launching a shocking campaign into Israel that resulted in the deaths of approximately 1,400 people and the taking of 240 hostages, according to Israeli authorities.

In response, Israel began a sustained siege of Gaza, including nearly non-stop bombing. Gaza is one of the most densely populated areas on Earth, with a population of about 2.5 million living within about 139 square miles. The tightly controlled blockade has turned Gaza into what Human Rights Watch has called “an open-air prison.”

The onslaught has resulted in 11,100 dead, or one out of every 200 Gaza residents, according to the Washington Post, with more

VTDIGGER

Sen. Patrick Leahy

than 4,600 of the dead being children. Israel has targeted refugee camps, destroyed ambulances and besieged hospitals, alleging that Hamas has been making use of such infrastructure.

Throughout the conflict, Israel has faced accusations of human rights violations. White phosphorus, a dangerous chemical weapon that can cause indiscriminate injury, has been deployed by Israel, according to Reuters. Israel has also cut off the entire Gaza region from water, food, electricity and other essentials.

According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, at least 40 journalists and media workers have been killed since the conflict began, and the Reporters Without Borders said that at least one journalist was deliberately targeted by an Israeli missile strike.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Nov. 9 that the country’s major goal was to “destroy Hamas so it cannot carry out attacks like Oct. 7 again” and implement “an overriding and overreaching Israeli military envelope” to ensure that “terrorism” does not resurge in Gaza post-war.

According to the United Nations, 1.5 million have already been displaced in just over one month of fighting in Gaza, indicating the conflict may be the largest displacement of Palestinians since the founding of the modern Israeli state in 1948, an event Palestinians refer to as the Nakba, or catastrophe.

Paul isn’t the first to suggest that the United States, which has contributed $130 billion in aid to the country since its founding, should perform more due diligence about how its military aid

is being deployed.

Since the Leahy vetting process was introduced in 1997 by its namesake, former Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy, the law has been amended several times and successfully prevented the United States from arming groups or individual military units facing credible accusations of violating human rights law, but he’s always had some concern about its lack of application in Israel.

“Over the years, I’ve complained, to both Republican and Democratic administrations about the need to apply the law in Israel,” Leahy said. “These administrations have argued that Israel has an independent judiciary, so it doesn’t really need to. We’ve seen the efforts recently to make the judiciary even less independent than it had been, and it was losing independence anyway.”

Leahy, 84, offered the caveat that, since his retirement in January after 48 years in the Senate, as he is no longer privileged with the kind of security reports he once received — which, when he was Senate Pro Tempore, were of the same security clearance as the president — he only knows what he’s read about the conflict in newspapers.

“It appears to me that shooting civilians and targeting civilian infrastructure, when you can’t prove it is being used by Hamas, would be a violation of human rights,” Leahy said. “The United States is urging the Israelis to protect civilians, and, of course, the Israelis faced a terrible terrorist attack by Hamas, who murdered children in front of the parents then murdered the parents, which is in violation of every norm of international law.

“What is being done to apply the Leahy law now? I don’t know.

I know past administrations have been too concerned to do it. It should apply to the Israeli Defense Forces, unless the administration, as many have, has waived it.”

According to a spokesperson for the state department, the Leahy law applies to all countries, including Israel, and the department is “fully committed to fulfill its obligations under the law” and “conducts Leahy vetting for Israeli units nominated for security assistance.”

The spokesperson also noted that the Leahy law was amended in 2022 with requirements concerning assistance to a foreign security force when the recipient units cannot be identified in advance, and in such cases the United States requires the foreign government to attest in written agreement that the Leahy law will be followed.

Leahy’s law Section 620m, an amendment to the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 passed in 1997, mandates that “no assistance shall be furnished under this Act or the Arms Export Control Act to any unit of the security forces of a foreign country if the Secretary of State has credible information that such unit has committed a gross violation of human rights.”

Leahy pushed for the initial legislation out of concern for some of the counter-narcotics assistance that was being provided by the United States, particularly in South American countries, and the kind of violence and anti-democratic activities that funding enabled.

The law has been particularly successful in countries like

Colombia. Leahy pointed to former joint chiefs of staff Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., who, in his 2017 commencement address at St. Michael’s College in Colchester, singled out the Leahy law as an effective tool that helped the U.S. ensure allies complied with its human rights goals.

Leahy argued that the law has been effectively applied with other regional Middle East allies like Egypt, though a 2016 report from the Government Accountability Office said the state department failed to apply the Leahy law and to consistently conduct reviews of the Egyptian units that are supplied and trained by the United States.

While Leahy believes that allowing the Oct. 7 Hamas attack to occur represented an incredible security failure on the part of the Israelis, he emphasized the horrific nature of the attack by Hamas and reiterated that the group needed to be stopped.

He also said that Israel needed to be “far more selective in how they go after Hamas.”

Ultimately, he blamed the unwillingness of both Hamas leaders and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu for being unwilling to compromise, and the ongoing Israeli Defense Forcebacked settlement in other Palestinian territory, like those in the West Bank, where Hamas has no presence at all, for creating such a volatile situation.

He looked back fondly on the Israel-Jordan peace treaty of 1994, when Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and the Jordanian King Husssein ended hostilities between the two countries with a compromise agreement. Rabin was assassinated by Israeli right-wing extremists a year later.

Congressional reaction None of Vermont’s current congressional delegation responded to multiple requests to discuss the application of the Leahy law and its application in the ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict.

Despite national protests demanding a ceasefire in Gaza, including multiple events staged in Burlington and Washington, D.C., and polling that shows a strong majority of Democratic voters support it, only Rep. Becca Balint has joined the small minority of Congress willing to do so.

Biden recently said that there was “no possibility” of a ceasefire occurring in the conflict.

Both senators — Bernie Sanders and Peter Welch, Leahy’s replacement — have instead repeatedly called on Israel to attempt to limit civilian casualties in the conflict See LEAHY on page 12

The Citizen • November 22, 2023 • Page 11

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Chabad Vermont hosts a menorah lighting on the Shelburne town green, corner of Falls and Shelburne roads, on Monday, Dec. 11, at 5 p.m, with latkes, doughnuts and fun for all.

Community Notes SCHIP awards $40K in fall round of grants The Shelburne, Charlotte, Hinesburg Interfaith Project has announced its autumn 2023 grant awards.

A total of $39,188 was awarded to 16 nonprofits that met the criteria of serving people in a variety of ways.

The recipients included: Age Well, Carpenter-Carse Library, Champlain Housing Trust, Community Cares for Champlain Valley Union High School, CVU Mongolia Educational, Hinesburg Community Resource Center, Hinesburg Community School, Hyperbaric Vermont, Joint Urban Ministry Project (JUMP), New Village, Prevent Child Abuse, ReSOURCE, Shelburne Community School Parent-Teacher Organization, Shelburne Rescue, Sustainable Charlotte and Vermont Association for the Blind.

The award to Shelburne Rescue was the first in the newly established major grants category. Grants funded in this category can range up to $15,000 and are designed to provide seed money to be used for future self-sustaining projects.

These awards are made possible as a result of the interfaith project’s mission to raise funds through the sale of donated, gently used clothing, household items, accessories, art and collectibles at its resale shop in the yellow building on Route 7, next to the town offices. More than $867,600 has been distributed since 2015.

SCHIP accepts grant applications twice a year. The deadlines are March 15 and Sept. 15. The maximum grant size is $3,000

for routine grants and $15,000 for major ones. Application forms are available at theschip.org. To volunteer or donate, call 802-985-3595.

Tortolano offers annual organ concert at St. Mike’s William Tortolano will present his 67th annual organ concert at the Chapel of Saint Michael the Archangel at Saint Michael’s College on Sunday, Nov. 26, 2023, at 2:00 pm.

The concert will be free and open to the public, and a free will offering will be available.

The chapel’s organ is a two-manual, 14stop instrument built by Casavant Freres of Canada in 1966, with additional work

by David Moore Organs. The organ was designed by Tortolano, professor emeritus, and is dedicated to him.

The program begins with the festive “Fanfare” from the “Sinfonietta” by Janacek.

African-English composer, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, who has recently received renewed notoriety, is represented by three organ solos, and three compositions by Reuven Kosakoff will be performed, which are based on Jewish religious themes. The “Mariales Suite” by Lebanese Naji Hakim, combines Gregorian chant and Near Eastern sounds.

The concert ends with American folk melodies, “Simple Gifts” by Andrew Clarke and “There Is a Happy Land” by jazz great George Shearing. Tortolano will also play two compositions, as a surprise, to be announced at the concert.

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Page 12 • November 22, 2023 • The Citizen

American marten reappears in Vermont, intriguing researchers PAIGE FISHER VTDIGGER

Elusive, beady-eyed and adorable, the American marten, colloquially known as a pine marten, has a long, tumultuous history. After being practically wiped from Vermont’s landscape in the 1800s, reintroduced in the 1990s and disappearing again, these mammals now scurry among the Green Mountains, intriguing and puzzling researchers.

Martens are medium-sized carnivorous animals in the weasel family. In direct competition with fishers, they mostly snack on small mammals like red squirrels. But, if enticed by denser calories, they can take down something as large as a snowshoe hare, Jill Kilborn, biologist for New Hampshire Fish and Game, said.

Native to Vermont and typically residing in high elevations, marten populations suffered when colonizers clear cut the old-growth forests that martens depended on for hunting. They were also major targets for trapping during the fur trade because of their coats, Kilborn said.

By the 1800s, the species was considered to be extirpated in Vermont and there was just a scattering of observations in the 1920s through the 1950s, said Bree Furfey, wildlife biologist and furbearer project leader at Vermont Fish & Wildlife.

The Endangered Species Act was legislated in 1973 and martens were listed as endangered in Vermont and New Hampshire, Paul Hapeman, a specialist in small

carnivore conservation at Central Connecticut State University, said.

Still, it wasn’t until the 1990s that the U.S. Forest Service and Vermont Fish & Wildlife tried to reintroduce the species to southern Vermont, relocating 115 martens from Maine and New York, according to Furfey.

The effort was a major one, but the followup was disappointing. Researchers couldn’t even detect them until the mid-2000s, when people started noticing hints of the sneaky creatures. Even then, the traces were scarce: a few pawprints in the snow, an offhand sighting.

The researchers finally confirmed a few sightings of martens in Green Mountain National Forest when three were caught in traps in the early 2010s, Furfey said.

That excitement prompted Fish & Wildlife to launch more robust research into the animals.

Now, a decade after those first sightings, researchers have determined two pools of marten populations, one in the Northeast Kingdom and another in the southern part of the state, Hapeman said. But they still have a lot of questions.

“Where did they come from? Were they left over, and did we just not detect them after the reintroduction?” he said. “Or are these new marten that have come from somewhere else and have now made their way to the southern Green Mountains?”

Because Vermont is the southernmost region of marten territory, there’s a good chance the martens that reside in the north

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE VERMONT DEPARTMENT OF FISH & WILDLIFE

A brown American marten sits among tree branches against a blue sky.

are from neighboring states or Canada. And in southern Vermont, there’s a good chance they came from the reintroduction 30 years ago. And sightings of the mammals in the middle area of the state remain a puzzle, he said.

His team is working to unravel the mystery by looking at the populations’ genetics, Hapeman said.

Depending on those results, that initial reintroduction effort could be a huge victory for conservationists.

“When you look at all the reintroductions of different species that have gone on in history in the U.S., you’ll see that a lot of the fur bearers like marten and fisher are really way up there in the number of reintroductions that have taken place,” Hapeman said.

Further research is also important for determining the future of the hard-to-find

mammals, whose biggest threats are habitat loss and climate change, Furfey said.

Because martens are in direct competition with fishers, their only advantage is their ability to burrow through snow. Fishers have much bigger bodies and carry more weight.

With smaller feet, they suffer in deep snow conditions, whereas martens are built for snow, Kilborn said.

Martens also need unfragmented land for their population to survive. If the species’ males can move freely, they can breed with other marten populations and make it more robust, Furfey said.

To protect their habitats, Vermont Fish & Wildlife is working with private landowners to provide technical assistance on habitat conservation. It is an important consideration for timber management, particularly over 2,500 feet in elevation, Furfey said.

LEAHY

continued from page 10 and supported a “humanitarian pause,” a limited version of which was recently agreed to by the Netanyahu government.

In letters to constituents responding to their concerns regarding the humanitarian crisis in Gaza prior to her call for a ceasefire, Balint called for a “cessation of hostilities,” and was recently quoted in The New Republic magazine accusing some of her colleagues of reacting too emotionally to the issue while she called for thinking “strategically about this entire region.”

While over 300 former staffers for his presidential campaigns have called for him to support a ceasefire and he himself called for one during an outbreak of violence in Gaza in 2021, Sanders has consistently reaffirmed Israel’s “right to defend itself” in the wake of the Oct. 7 attack.

Sanders and Welch met with United Nations leadership Nov. 13 to express their condolences over the 100 relief workers who have been killed in the conflict.

In a joint statement the senators affirmed

that they’re committed to doing “everything we can to stop the indiscriminate bombing which has caused massive civilian casualties, bring in desperately needed humanitarian aid, and protect innocent people in Gaza.

“This is a humanitarian catastrophe, and we need action now,” though they declined to articulate what that action might be.

On Thursday, Nov. 9, hundreds of pro-ceasefire protesters interrupted a private dinner for Balint donors in Burlington, to which she responded with pleas for pragmatism.

“My heart is with you, but I am not elected as an activist or a member of the (Israeli legislature),” Balint said, according to VTDigger. “I am a member of the U.S. Congress and I have to make decisions that will actually make it better.”

A few days later, Balint called for an “immediate break in violence to allow for a true negotiated ceasefire” in an editorial for VTDigger, making her the first member of Vermont’s federal delegation to do so.

The Citizen • November 22, 2023 • Page 13

GARAGE

continued from page 1 storm in July that knocked the roof trusses down.

“We had to have some remade.

That delayed us about three weeks, but it hasn’t hurt the end date,” he said. “This has been about when we thought we would finish. We had set a target of mid-October.”

The six parking bays will act as parking areas for equipment, working areas for machines that need maintenance, and storage spaces for different seasonal tools not in use. The building itself will sit at around 60 degrees to ensure all the snow and ice melts off the plows during the winter, making them optimal for use.

“The four bays for most of the bigger equipment will be where things get worked on,” he said, noting the ceiling exhaust and air drops meant to pump exhaust from the machines out of the building.

“The first two are parking bays for equipment.”

While the bays provide a working and storage area for equipment, a separate area offers the crew a place to eat lunch and “hang their hat” at the end of the day, Kerr

said. over there,” he said, standing in “Eventually we’d like to build a the four-bay area. “So, the fire wall kitchen here. They’ll have a refrig- would isolate this side of the room. erator and microwave. We’ve got It’ll close the door automaticalthe plumbing in for a sink and all ly, there’s no human intervention. that good stuff,” said Kerr, noting So, if there was ever a fire, God the tough working forbid, it would conditions in the be isolated over “This will be the best here.” salt shed where Lewis’ operation Due to the state-of-the-art kind has run since the nature of the fire. “Just picture machine’s interof facility we can those guys today nal combustions sitting in that shed engines, the give them to work across the street building is also at lunchtime, equipped with and we feel very in a circle with an automatic five-gallon plastic carbon monoxproud of being able pails having their ide monitoring lunch and they’re and suppression to do that.” perfectly happy system. with that because “If it happens — John Kerr they’ve done it to get to a level in their whole life. But we’re taking this building or inside these walls them out of that environment.” that is unsafe, that silver thing on The entire building features the wall will automatically open automatic fire safety systems with and it will purge this whole space both working bay areas separated in about three minutes,” he said. by an automatic firewall.

“In that time, we can generate “We’re trying to protect that enough flow of air through here to equipment plus the person area get fresh air from outside.”

ACT 250

continued from page 1 Preliminary approval was delayed through the pandemic but was finalized in 2021 and 2022.

The Haystack development is among several projects that have been queued up for the town’s village growth area. The 40 square miles between the LaPlatte River and Patrick Brook could see well over 400 units of housing built in the next six to 10 years.

A nearby 46 acres of land donated to the town was earmarked for more than 100 homes, 60 percent of which will be perpetually affordable. Further to the east, on property off Mechanicsville Road owned

by Joe Laster, some 55 housing units are planned.

Town officials hope this development will generate badly needed tax revenue for the town. Tax revenue projections based on occupancy of units built during the first phase of Haystack’s construction could net the town roughly $334,000 annually in new tax revenue, according to documents submitted to the Act 250 board.

After full build-out, annual tax revenues are expected to jump to $440,000.

But problems have arisen as the first of the major developments, Hinesburg Center II, reached Act 250 review last month.

That project, a continuation of development that brought Kinney Drugs, the Parkside Cafe and other housing units to town several years ago, is being scrutinized by the Act 250 commission for its potential to

create “an increased risk of flooding on the project property before any impacts of climate change may be considered, as well as resulting in the loss of floodplain function in the Patrick Brook and LaPlatte floodplains which impacts the floodplain’s ability to mitigate future flooding,” said Kyle Medash, a floodplain manager with Vermont’s Agency of Natural Resources.

Those problems seem unlikely to affect the Haystack development. Much of the western part of the Haystack property is in a floodplain area but is not being developed.

“The overall development largely avoids the flood hazard and fluvial erosion areas,” the town’s review board said in its November

2022 decision.

One issue so far in Haystack’s Act 250 hearings is the presence of grassland bird habitats on the property. As much as 41-acres of grassland bird habitat would be permanently impacted by the project, according to document submitted

by Vermont’s Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Noel Dodge, a wildlife biologist with the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, said they are in conversations with the developers to develop an adequate mitigation plan for the permanent impacts proposed to grassland bird habitat on the site.

It’s not clear when the project’s Act 250 review will conclude. A commission hearing of the project was held on Nov. 14.

CHARLOTTE DEVELOPMENT REVIEW BOARD

Project manager John Kerr shows the inside of the four-bay, machine maintenance area in the new town garage in Charlotte.

Officials are asking community members to attend an official ceremony on Wednesday, Nov. 29, at 3 p.m. to celebrate the town milestone.

“For our climate here and for

what the people that will work in here do for us as a community, this will be the best state-of-the-art kind of facility we can give them to work and we feel very proud of being able to do that,” Kerr said.

SHELBURNE Human Resources Coordinator $24 - $28 hourly DOQ Full-time with a great Town Office team and excellent local government benefits.

The Town of Shelburne team has grown to require a dedicated human resources professional. Help all our staff achieve their best, and cultivate the spirit of public service in our town. This coordinator will support all of our departments in the full suite of HR routines and special projects. The ideal candidate has related education and experience in human resources work, including recruiting, benefits administration, training, and problem solving. We are excited to shape this position to the skills and interests of the right candidate.

Visit www.shelburnevt.org/jobs to see the full job description and application. To apply, email scannizzaro@shelburnevt.org. Review of applications begins immediately.

The Town of Shelburne is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Will hold a public hearing at Town Hall, 159 Ferry Rd., Charlotte, VT on the following applications during its regular meeting of Wednesday, December 13, 2023.

7:15 PM 23-178-SPA Kao/Old Brick Store – Site Plan Amendment to review seating and parking at 290 Ferry Rd. 7:45 PM 23-180-PUD Yellowwood – PUD for mixed-use facility at 213 Ferry Rd. 8:15 PM 23-162-PRDA Ulmer – PRD Amendment to establish a building envelope at 2225 Spear St. For more information, contact the Planning & Zoning Office at 802.425.3533 ext. 208, or by email at: pza@townofcharlotte.com.

This new position is a priority for the Shelburne Selectboard, to enhance all of the Town’s services.

The week-long bait drop is a coopera- 100 percent effective when given soon after tive effort between Vermont and the U.S. a person is bitten by a rabid animal.

Page 14 • November 22, 2023 • The Citizen Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services So far this year, 23 animals in Vermont to stop the spread of the potentially fatal have tested positive for rabies, and 14 of disease. those have been raccoons.

Rabies is a deadly viral disease of the According to wildlife officials, rabid brain that infects mammals. It is most often animals often show a change in their norseen in raccoons, skunks, foxes, and bats, mal behavior, but you cannot tell whether but unvaccinated pets and livestock can also an animal has by looking at To advertise in the service directory email: Advertising@thecitizenvt.com orrabies callsimply 985-3091 get rabies. The virus is spread through the it. People should not touch or pick up wild RABIES BAIT left untreated, is almost albite of an infected animal or contact with its saliva. animalsIfor strays – even rabies baby animals. continued from page 2 ways fatal in humans and animals. However, Acupuncture Antiques Collectibles treatment with the rabies vaccine is nearly The week-long bait drop is a coopera- 100 percent effective when given soon after Y P Eis bitten by a rabid animal.

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The Citizen • November 22, 2023 • Page 15

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