The Citizen - 1-4-24

Stannard on 2023

Good year for sports

Columnist reviews the year that was

A recap of CVU titles and tilts

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January 4, 2024

Weekly news coverage for Charlotte and Hinesburg

School district seeks bond COREY MCDONALD STAFF WRITER

The Champlain Valley School District will ask the school board to approve a $3.6 million bond to complete infrastructure projects that were already bonded in 2022 but, because of inflation and supply chain issues, have grown well past previous estimates.

While the $7.5 million bond approved in March 2022 has successfully funded some initiatives, including the phase two of capital improvements at the Charlotte Central School that began this past summer, market and supply-side issues have driven up costs for the remaining projects by a “considerable” degree, Gary Marckres, the district’s chief oper-

From investing millions into the state’s early child care sector to introducing landmark legislation around housing and development, the Vermont Legislature had a busy session in 2023 as many new faces entered the Statehouse amid a record turnover in both chambers.

With this year’s session ramping up, Chittenden County legislators are wasting no time in setting priorities.

“We have a workforce shortage because we have a housing shortage and people are turning down jobs because they cannot find a place to live. We have high proper-

Year in Review

ations officer, said.

Marckres told the school board that they “weren’t even close to have enough funding for what was planned in 2021,” and that they were “significantly short” in meeting those projects.

“That’s where we are — $3.6 million short to finish previously approved projects,” he said.

Many projects are on hold, such as the roof of Champlain Valley Union High School, and an upgrade to the school’s HVAC system. Others are scheduled for work in 2024 or have request for proposals pending.

Board members will decide whether to bring the bond to the FILE PHOTOS

See BOND on page 13

County lawmakers prep for session COREY MCDONALD AND LIBERTY DARR STAFF WRITERS

thecitizenvt.com

ty taxes because we are increasingly putting the educational finance burden on a shrinking number of habitable homes. Our climate emissions are coming from transportation as people live further away from where they work,” Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale, a Democrat, said. “As chair of the economic development and housing committee, we will be focusing on housing, workforce and climate infrastructure.”

But balancing “a much more difficult budget” will also be on legislators’ minds, said Sen. Thomas Chittenden, who is also See 2024 SESSION on page 2

Above: Charlotte Central School kids had a visitor in June as a Black Hawk National Guard helicopter landed behind the school, giving students a chance to take a closer look and ask questions. Pilots explained the science behind how helicopters work, and shared what they do with the National Guard.

Below: Charlotte gathered to honor outgoing town administrator Dean Bloch and welcome Nate Bareham, who took over for Bloch, who served the town for over 20 years in various roles. See more photos, pages 8-9.

Page 2 • January 4, 2024 • The Citizen

2024 SESSION

Ice sculpture

continued from page 1 a Democrat. Flood recovery assistance will be front and center as legislators amend the state budget and adapt to the loss of federal funds.

“I don’t want to pay more, I don’t want you to pay more, and although there are a zillion things we all wish we could accomplish, I think it’s important to be realistic about what we can afford and what smart investments we can make now in the people, infrastructure, and government of Vermont that will help us save money later on,” Charlotte Rep. Chea Waters Evans, D-Chittenden-5, said.

Housing and homelessness Shelburne Rep. Jessica Brumsted, D-Chittenden 5-2, the vice chair of the House Committee on Human Services, said she believes the first order of business will be to address the homeless population.

Vermont remains behind only California with the second highest per capita rate of homelessness in the country. According to an analysis of the 2023 point-in-time count released by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in mid-December, Vermont experienced the largest percentage increase in experiences of family homelessness since the pandemic began, increasing by 213 percent since 2020.

“We need to understand better those struggling due to economic difficulties versus those struggling from mental illnesses and substance abuse disorders and how we can address these challenging issues,” Brumsted said. “We plan to begin with a close look at shelters that prioritize the provision of wrap-around supports.”

Democratic Chittenden County Sen. Ginny Lyons said that one goal is to “determine if appropriate services are available for those with chronic illness, mental health issues, disabilities or substance use disorders as people are placed in supportive housing,” noting that legislation surrounding the state’s general assistance motel voucher program hasn’t been updated in many years and will be considered this year.

“This is an amazing program that helps thousands of Vermonters every year,” said South Burlington Rep. Noah Hyman, D-Chittenden-8, adding that although the program has been running for many years, the Legislature has learned that housing the state’s most vulnerable must be done better, smarter and in a more fiscally responsible way. “We must strive to do better for all Vermonters, and we will be receiving studies back when we start the next year of the biennium.”

South Burlington Rep. Emilie Krasnow (D-Chittenden-9) and Hinsdale, alongside Vermont Treasurer Mike Pieciak, recently announced legislation that would establish a baby bond program in Vermont by investing $3,200 for every Vermont child born on Medicaid. The program would “address intergenerational poverty, support rural economic development, and retain young people in Vermont,” Krasnow said.

On the other side of the coin is addressing the state’s housing crisis with further statewide development of affordable and “missing middle” housing.

While the state passed the HOME Act last year, which effectively banned single-family zoning, legislators like Krasnow, Evans and Hinesburg Rep. Phil Pouech, D-Chitten-

den-4, among others, say access to housing remains at the forefront.

“This can take the shape of Act 250 changes, incentives for developers to build more affordable options, and working with municipalities to help strengthen their town plans or follow the paths they’ve already chosen with currently existing town plans,” Evans said.

Other committees are focusing on the modernization of land use regulations, adjusting tax policy to support housing revitalization and creating more incentives for small and mid-size investors and builders to create more housing opportunities in communities throughout the state.

“All summer I’ve been joining colleagues in advocating for Act 250’s modernization. I believe that futurizing Act 250 is necessary to help us address pressing problems,” said Shelburne Rep. Kate Lalley, D-Chittenden-6.

“These include a shortage of income-diverse housing, especially in communities that offer active transportation and proximity to jobs and daily needs, and to have whole systems approaches for managing climate change stressors like the recent flooding.”

Affordability in Vermont was already a problem before it was exacerbated first by the pandemic, then by this year’s flooding, and now by the drying up of federal dollars, said South Burlington Rep. Brian Minier, D-Chittenden-11.

“While extra resources are going away, the problems they are meant to address are not,” he said. “Unlike some who would call for austerity, I think the only appropriate and responsible way to deal with this issue is to strengthen support for our most vulnerable.”

Minier said he hopes the state will succeed in passing a robust paid family and medical leave plan, and he plans on advocating for increases to the base budgets for food assistance programs like SNAP and Meals on Wheels.

Meanwhile, Krasnow says she will be introducing a bill tasking the housing division of the Department of Housing and Community Development to develop metrics for measuring progress against the statewide needs assessment required under the HOME Act. Chittenden said that the Legislature needs to spend more time looking at the how the state assesses non-homestead properties and consumption-based sources.

“Vacation homes sitting empty in Vermont 10 months out of the year has an opportunity cost in missed economic activity, services, construction and of housing not being used — during a housing crisis,” he said. “Other consumption taxes like what Airbnbs pay are worth considering more to find equitable sources to fund education and to lighten the property tax bills Vermont residents are struggling to pay.”

Mental health, public safety In addition to dealing with housing, Lyons said that mental health and substance use supports will again be a main topic on the agenda.

“Our work will focus on improving local access to recovery services,” she said.

“Improving linkage between substance use disorder and or mental health services with public safety, EMT, schools, corrections and the judicial branch is an ongoing effort in

PHOTO BY LEE KROHN

Waves, rain and wind create sculptures on the shores of Lake Champlain.

committee. This includes the distribution of opioid settlement funds for long-term investments in prevention, treatment and recovery.”

Being on the House Committee on Education, Minier says he sees these issues through the lens of children and the effects of the “mental health crisis” on schools with resources that are continually being stretched thin.

“The medium-term goal has to be properly staffing our designated community-based health agencies,” he said. “Our already overburdened schools have increasingly been put in the position of providing services for which they were never designed. However, our current statewide dearth of health care providers means that in the short-term addressing these needs may require continued school-level supports such as increased numbers of school-based counselors, interventionists and paraeducators.”

Other legislators have said the state government needs to take on a larger role in public safety. Hinsdale says the state has “increasing public safety needs, including a devastating number of opioid deaths and acute mental health and health care

access concerns,” and added she has asked colleagues in judiciary and human services to join the economic development committee for a joint hearing later this month “focused on public safety in our downtowns and beyond.”

Many downtowns, like South Burlington’s, are experiencing upticks in retail theft.

Chittenden said he witnessed a “brazen unapologetic, forceful (if not violent) shoplifting” at Kohl’s during the holiday week.

“I asked a few of the employees about this and they were not surprised at all — this was commonplace behavior they were experiencing regularly. This isn’t right,” Chittenden said. “There needs to be serious consequences for brazen forceful theft — or else this will continue to perpetuate and grow in a vicious cycle leading to tragic ends. Those who don’t respect the law are inspiring others to not respect the law creating more of this violent theft.”

He said the Legislature should set stricter penalties for repeated misdemeanor offenses. “We should make knowingly receiving See 2024 SESSION on page 3

The Citizen • January 4, 2024 • Page 3

2024 SESSION

continued from page 2 stolen property in exchange for narcotics a felony,” he said.

Climate change, environment For the House Committee on Transportation, Lalley said this year’s transportation bill will focus on carbon reductions and climate resiliency. The bill proposes funding for equipment for vehicular electrification, more electric vehicle chargers in public places, and funding to upgrade older chargers to faster ones. The bill will propose substantial increases in rebates for e-bikes, as well.

She also plans to introduce a bill to make active transportation safer for all ages and abilities and to make it easier to build new pedestrian facilities within communities.

The bill includes updates to traffic regulation and would make federal and state grants to expand walking and biking projects more cost-effective for communities.

“To reduce emissions and extend healthy lifestyles to more Vermonters, it’s important that communities like ours can expand walking and biking facilities. Most communities depend on state and federal grants for planning and construction, and federal dollars can have ‘strings’ that add expense and delay projects,” she said. “My bill could speed up the rate Vermont builds critically necessary infrastructure while making it happen more affordably.”

Climate change will continue to be on the legislative agenda.

Pouech said the Legislature will follow up on the clean heat standard and consider proposals to update Vermont’s renewable energy standard.

“It is likely we will debate how we might hold the fossil fuel industry accountable for the cost burden of climate change in the same way the tobacco industry was required to pay for the societal costs of smoking,” he said.

South Burlington Rep. Martin LaLonde (D-Chittenden-12), chair of the House Committee on Judiciary, is also proposing a bill to establish a climate superfund, which will require large producers of fossil fuels to pay for the damage caused by their greenhouse gas emissions.

Additionally, Brumsted and others explained that one of the first orders of business will be to deal with Gov. Phil Scott’s veto of H.158, an act relating to the beverage container redemption system.

H.158 would update Vermont’s landmark environmental bottle bill by expanding the redeemable container list to include PET and HDPE water bottles, hard cider and kombucha containers, and glass wine bottles.

“Selfishly, as our long-standing GreenUp Coordinator, I look forward to overriding our governor’s veto and passing an updated our bottle bill,” Pouech said.

Vermont passed its first bottle bill in 1972 to clean up litter, Brumsted said.

Since then, it has become a successful statewide recycling program, which allows Vermonters to redeem certain beverage containers such as beer bottles and soda cans.

The current bottle bill covers only 46 percent of the beverage containers sold in the state, and plastic water bottles are the second-most littered piece of trash in Vermont, Brumsted said, noting that nationally, 75 percent of plastic water bottles end up in landfills.

Not all are in favor of the veto and bottle

bill expansion. Chittenden says it represents a “regressive tax on peoples time, storage and transportation costs.”

“To the people who don’t care about a couple of dollars in cans on their Saturday mornings, they will just put the cans in the blue bin to save them the time and hassle of storing, lugging, driving and then manually stuffing each can individually into the automated machines. This will cost poor people proportionately more time, storage and transportation costs, which is why it is a regressive tax,” he said. “A deposit/refund system expansion I would support would be on batteries and circuit boards. We are not doing enough to keep these toxic materials out of our landfills and our main waste streams.”

Additionally, several environmental issues may be addressed this session — including actions to eliminate PFAS in all commercial products and address existing contamination, Pouech said.

Holiday Sparkle

In the other column There are many other topics and issues on legislators’ minds. Evans, for example, says she plans on introducing two bills.

One would add to the state ethics laws and would create financial penalties for political candidates who miss campaign finance deadlines and add mandates about disclosing information about themselves or spouses that could present a conflict of interest.

The other would provide a standard code of ethics for all municipalities in the state and would give investigation and enforcement authority to the ethics commission.

“Accountability is my jam and I’m excited to be working on these important bills,” she said.

A bill is also on the works, Evans said, that would create a path to file complaints about animal welfare, would create a director of animal welfare position, and clarify standards for animal adoption and rescue organizations.

The Legislature is also expected to explore options for a universal paid medical leave program, Pouech said. And Hinsdale says she plans on introducing legislation on age-appropriate coding and software, and prescription drug pricing.

Krasnow says she will introduce a bill relating to public health outreach programs regarding dementia risk. By 2025, the number of Vermonters living with dementia will increase “by an astounding 30.8 percent from 2020.”

Her bill would “ensure we utilize all existing opportunities to educate providers and the public about brain health, the importance of early diagnosis, ways to reduce the risk of dementia, and the value of the care partner as part of the health care team.”

Chittenden, meanwhile, said he will push for a bill that would stop collecting tax revenue on military benefits earned by those who serve in the military.

“Sadly, Vermont is one of only a few states that tax the military benefits these selfless individuals earn with their sacrifices through their years of military service,” he said. “Sixteen of the 30 Vermont state senators co-signed a bill (S.118) to address this.

It is time for Vermont to stop collecting tax revenue on military benefits earned by those who serve our country in the U.S. military.”

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Page 4 • January 4, 2024 • The Citizen

State treasurer promotes ‘baby bonds’ legislation HABIB SABET VTDIGGER

Vermont Treasurer Mike Pieciak is promoting legislation that would create a state baby bonds program, an initiative that would set aside money for Vermont children who are on Medicaid at birth and allow them to access that money when they turn 18.

The policy would invest $3,200 for each Vermont child born on Medicaid into a state trust fund managed by the state treasurer’s office. Those children could later access the bond money between the ages of 18 and 30, provided they are residents of Vermont and use the money for wealth-building activities, which include buying a home in Vermont, starting a business, or pursuing higher education.

Pieciak unveiled the proposal at a press conference last week at the Spectrum Youth & Family Services Center in Burlington, addressing a room of lawmakers and community members alongside bill sponsors Sen. Kesha Ram Hinsdale, D-Chittenden Southeast, and Rep. Dan Noyes, D-Wolcott, as well as nationally recognized experts on the baby bonds concept.

“The baby bonds program has three basic aims,” Pieciak said. “It’s aimed at addressing generational poverty, promoting rural economic development, and retaining young people in

our state.”

According to data shared at the press conference, about 2,000 children are born on Medicaid in Vermont each year, meaning that a baby bonds initiative would require nearly $6.5 million each year.

Asked how the program would be funded, Pieciak said that the initial plan is to use money from the state’s Unclaimed Property General Fund Transfer, derived from unclaimed property given over to the state each year.

“Investing in baby bonds provides hope and a chance to allow individuals to have a stake in their own future — a future where they’re not just paying bills but actually have an ability to get ahead,” Noyes told those gathered for the press conference.

Ram Hinsdale will lead support for the bill in the Senate in the upcoming legislative session.

“So often, people just need the foundation and the helping hand to take their passion, their energy, their great ideas, their drive to be successful,” Hinsdale said. “Something to give you your own capital and your own foundation when you come of age can be life-changing for so many people and can have a huge generational impact.”

Vermont could become the second state to adopt a baby bonds program after Connecticut, which implemented a similar program

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PHOTO BY HABIB SABET/VTDIGGERTREASURER

Treasurer Mike Pieciak unveils the proposed Baby Bonds legislation at the Spectrum Youth & Family Services Center in Burlington.

earlier this year. The policies of both states are based primarily on the theories of Darrick Hamilton, a professor of Economics and Urban

Policy at The New School, who also spoke at the press conference in support of the proposal.

“Baby bonds are trying to offer

everybody the benefits associated with a capital foundation that those that are born into certain families already have,” Hamilton said.

Hinesburg Police Blotter: Dec. 19 - Dec. 31 Total incidents: 28 Arrests: 4 Dec. 19 at 7:53 a.m., officers investigated a 911 hang-up on Ballard’s Corner Road.

Dec. 19 at 8:51 a.m., a citizen was assisted with a lockout.

Dec. 19 at 12:33 p.m., officers recovered a stolen vehicle from Williston on Hillview Terrace.

Dec. 19 at 4:56 p.m., police investigated a report of stolen property from a motor vehicle at CVU. Dec. 20 at 8:17 a.m., officers recovered a stolen vehicle from Shelburne on North Road.

Dec. 20 at 4:33 p.m., officers responded to a domestic dispute on Hollow Road.

Dec. 20 at 5:07 p.m., police served court paperwork to someone on Hillview Terrace.

Dec. 20 at 6:00 p.m., police investigated a single-car motor vehicle crash on Place Road West.

Dec. 20 at 8:23 p.m., officers responded to a residence on Silver Street where they assisted the Essex Police Department with an investigation.

David Quaglietta, 50 of Hinesburg, was arrested for burglary.

Dec. 21 at 9:25 a.m., police investigated suspicious activity in the parking lot of a business on Route 116.

Dec. 21 at 4:57 p.m., a welfare check on Richmond Road was conducted.

Dec. 21 at 7:00 p.m., officers executed a search warrant on North Road, recovering stolen property and a stolen vehicle.

Dec. 22 at 8:15 a.m., a vehicle on Route 116 was reported stolen.

That vehicle was later located on Hillview Terrace.

Dec. 22 at 12:25 p.m., Officers executed a search warrant on Hillview Terrace. Stolen property and a stolen vehicle were recovered.

Dec. 24 at 7:00 a.m., an officer responded to a single-car motor vehicle crash on Lincoln Hill Road. The occupants fled the scene, and the vehicle was later determined to have been stolen in Burlington.

Dec. 24 at 10:38 a.m., officers assisted with a landlor and tenant issue on North Road.

Dec. 24 at 11:45 a.m., an officer assisted first responders with a medical emergency on Route 116.

Dec. 25 at 9:05 p.m., an officer assisted a business on Route 116 with a utility issue.

Dec. 26 at 5:38 p.m., officers responded to a single-car motor vehicle crash on Charlotte Road.

Dec. 27 at 10:00 a.m., someone reported a motor vehicle crash after the fact.

Dec. 27 at 2:30 p.m., police investigated a report of disorderly conduct through electronic communication.

Dec. 27 at 7:25 p.m., officers responded to a domestic dispute on Place Road West. Stephen Bench, 39 of Hinesburg, was arrested for first-degree aggravated domestic assault.

Dec. 28 at 11:07 a.m., officers responded to a single-car motor vehicle crash on Route 116.

Dec. 28 at 11:37 a.m., an officer assisted with a medical emergency on Hawk Lane.

Dec. 28 at 4:07 p.m., an officer assisted the Chittenden County Sheriffs with a DUI investigation in St. George.

Dec. 29 at 12:18 p.m., officers recovered a stolen motor vehicle on Hillview Terrace.

Dec. 30 at 12:11 p.m., an officer responded to a single-car motor vehicle crash on Route 116.

Dec. 30 at 3:15 p.m., officers investigated a domestic dispute on Hillview Terrace. Justin Perkins, 39 of Hinesburg, was arrested for first-degree aggravated domestic assault.

Dec. 31 at 9:10 a.m. an officer attempted to stop a vehicle on North Road for speeding. That vehicle fled from police. The incident is still being investigated.

Dec. 31 at 10:41 a.m., officers responded to Hillview Terrace for the report of suspicious activity. Michael Taylor, 33 of Burlington, was cited on an in-state warrant emanating from Burlington.

The Citizen • January 4, 2024 • Page 5

OPINION

Join the 2024

Reps set the record straight on independent schools Guest Perspective A recent commentary by Vermont House representatives Rebecca Holcombe of Norwich, Erin Brady of Williston and Monique Priestley of Bradford, while making a few fair points about the rising cost of education, unfortunately ended with inflammatory rhetoric about independent schools and the Vermont style of school choice that has provided amazing opportunities for generations of students in rural Vermont. (“Gov. Scott needs to get serious on affordability,” Dec. 21, 2023) The thrust of this argument is that students from rural parts of Vermont are driving up taxes because they attend independent schools. These three representatives then assert that students are served by an “uncontrolled, poorly regulated” voucher system. We are compelled to set the record straight.

First, Vermont does not have an education voucher system. A voucher system, like we see in some other states, is one where a school district operates a public school, while also providing an option for families to withdraw their children and take a voucher to another school. This voucher has the effect of draining resources from the local public school.

But, under Vermont law, fami-

lies have no entitlement to tuition payments from their school district if the district operates a public school. In rural parts of Vermont, some school districts do not operate public schools for some or all grades. In these rural areas without public schools, school districts can pay tuition for students to attend independent schools, such as Burr & Burton Academy, St. Johnsbury Academy and others.

Often, public schools located in operating towns are only peripherally available — if at all — to these rural areas. They are not a viable alternative. Independent schools fill the gaps.

Second, this is not an “uncontrolled, poorly regulated” system that is driving up taxes for the rest of Vermont. As a benchmark, Hanover High School, the out-of-state public school serving students from Norwich, has the highest tuition rate of any high school paid by Vermont taxpayers at $23,598. By comparison, the Taconic & Green School District, which serves parts of Bennington, Windham and Windsor counties and is served by independent high schools, pays a tuition rate of $19,987 to Vermont independent schools — a savings of $3,600 per student that benefits all Vermont taxpayers.

Unlike public schools, Vermont’s independent schools require approval and re-approval by the State Board of Education

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at least once every five years, and they must demonstrate compliance with strict regulations laid out in statute and in rules promulgated by the State Board of Education. This includes compliance with anti-discrimination rules that protect vulnerable students and staff, including the LGBTQ community.

In addition to complying with stringent regulations, Vermont’s independent schools are held accountable to the highest standards of all — the need for the support of families and local school districts. Independent schools survive only when they deliver high-quality education, for the simple fact that families can exercise a choice of where to send their children.

If the availability and quality of independent school options is not meeting the needs of the community, the local voters always have the power to end tuition payments by building and maintaining their own public school.

Of course, the construction of several new public schools across rural parts of Vermont, for which the authors appear to advocate, would not be without considerable expense to Vermont taxpayers.

Where would that money come from?

This takes us to a powerful truth often ignored by those See EDUCATION on page 12

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Page 6 • January 4, 2024 • The Citizen

A look back: Year marked by gun violence, Trump indictments Guest Perspective Bob Stannard For some, this past year has flown right by. For others it felt like it would never end. Let’s look at some of the events that helped shape the year and may have consequences for the future.

January: We kicked off the year in the dumps with the former disgraced president announcing in November 2022 that he’d be running for president again. Most people could see that he had to run again as it’s his only chance to stay out of prison. If you’re thinking of running away to Canada, fuhgeddaboudit. Canada just voted for a two-year ban on foreigners buying property.

February: America saw five gun shootings. Courts shot down a New Jersey law that would allow victims to sue the gun industry.

The U.S. military shoots down a Chinese spy balloon and more classified documents were found at former vice president Mike Pence’s house.

March: NATO increases its membership as Finland joins. The indicted former president would have America pull out of this important global alliance. Romania becomes the first country to have an artificial intelligence advisor.

Prominent South Carolina attorney Alex Murdaugh was found guilty of murdering his wife and son.

About 171 trillion pieces of plastic now litter the world’s oceans, an increase from 16 trillion in 2005. Oil company Saudi Aramco posts earnings of $161 billion for 2022, the highest ever recorded annual profit by a publicly listed company. The United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says the world has less than a decade to stop catastrophic warming and must reduce greenhouse gasses by half by 2030.

April: U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk suspends the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of the abortion pill mifepristone, leading to a U.S. government legal appeal to stop nationwide ban. Fox News settles its lawsuit with Dominion Voting Systems for $787.5 million, moments before trial, with Fox admitting it had defamed Dominion during 2020 election by broadcasting conspiracy theories.

A Guinness world record for the largest afro is set at 5 feet, five inches for the third time by Aevin Dugas of Reserve, La. May: Geoffrey Hinton, “The Godfather of AI,” resigns from Google to speak out about the dangers of artificial intelligence.

The 40-year-old weight loss company Jenny Craig announces it will close due to the weight of crushing debt. The World Health

Organization declares COVID-19 over as a global health emergency, but says the virus remains a significant threat, with seven million known deaths. The real total is likely 20 million.

The Canadian province of Alberta declares a state of emergency over unprecedented wildfires, more than 100, that have forced the evacuation of 25,000 people. Vermonters fear tourists might not see fall foliage.

June: Trump is found guilty of sexually assaulting E. Jean Carroll and fined $5 million. George Harrison’s “Here Comes the Sun” becomes first Beatles song to register a billion streams on Spotify.

Mike Pence and Chris Christie announce they’re running for president. New York’s air quality sinks to the lowest in the world thanks to Canadian fires. Trump pleads not guilty to stealing top secret documents found in his house.

Claims Mr. Nobody brought them to Mar-a-Lago.

July: Israel launches its biggest military operation against militants in the Jenin refugee camp, West Bank, in 20 years, killing eight people. The hottest global temperature ever is recorded as the average global temperature tops 17.18 degrees Celsius. NASA beams Ringo Starr’s voice wishing “Peace and Love” across the universe via the Deep Space Network in honor of his 83rd birthday. Elton John completes his final tour.

A finger was removed from the dike of the Dutch government. It collapsed.

“Barbie.” SAG-AFTRA strike.

The show will not go on.

The 2023 wildfire season in British Columbia is now most destructive on record. City of Phoenix, Ariz., breaks five-decade heat record of 19 consecutive days of temperature at or above 110°F. August: Trump is indicted by special prosecutor Jack Smith for election conspiracy. Trump and 18 others are indicted by Fulton County district attorney Fani Willis in Georgia. July is declared the warmest month in 172 years.

A 5,300-year-old mummified Anatolian farmer is discovered.

Evangelicals who believe the Earth is only 6,000 years old scramble to determine how long he’d been farming. Trump is arrested and has his mugshot taken in Georgia.

September: Aerosmith begins a final tour. Former Proud Boys chairman Enrique Tarrio is sentenced to 22 years in prison — the longest so far — for seditious conspiracy in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. The heaviest rainfall in 140 years recorded in Hong Kong causes intense flooding, while the U.S. sets a record for the number of 23 weather disasters in one year costing more than $1 billion, in less than nine months.

Aerosmith postpones the tour after Steven Tyler blows out his voice.

October: The Colombian Army apologizes for the murder of 6,402 civilians and falsely passing them off as left-wing guerrillas to boost its kill rate 15 years after an armed conflict with Farc. Yeah, gotta keep those kill rate numbers up.

New research confirms fossil footprints found at White Sands National Park in New Mexico are 23,000-21,000 years old, probably the oldest evidence of humans in the Americas. This throws a monkey wrench into the Earth only being 6,000 years old. Hamas attacks Israel. RFK Jr. launches an independent bid for president.

Taylor Swift begins her Eras Tour.

Not to be outdone, Madonna goes on tour. Kevin McCarthy is ousted as U.S. House Speaker, breaking the record for the shortest term ever.

November: One-hundred-twenty fires are confirmed to still be burning across Australia. Speaking of monkey wrenches, two astronauts lose a tool bag during a spacewalk 200 miles above earth

which officials say will disintegrate safely as it falls to Earth ... we hope.

The Beatles release John Lennon’s “Now and Then,” the band’s first No. 1 single in 54 years. Ohio votes to protect abortion rights and legalizes pot.

SAG-AFTRA ends its 118-day strike.

Taylor Swift is Spotify’s moststreamed global artist of the year with 26.1 billion streams. Russia’s Supreme Court outlaws LGBTQ movement, calling it an extremist organization.

December: As of the second week of December there will have been 627 mass shootings in America. That’s down 18 from last year, but don’t worry, we still have a few weeks left. The House GOP gives George Santos the boot for lying, but still supports Trump, a known pathological liar. We kiss KISS goodbye as their tour ends. Taylor Swift is named Time Magazine’s “Person of the Year.”

A big deal: Shohei Ohtani signs a North American pro-sports record 10-year, $700 million deal

with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Homelessness in the U.S. increased by 12 percent, now totals 650,000 people.

Rudy Giuliani is ordered to pay $148 million to two former Georgia election workers in civil defamation suit. Channeling his inner Hitler, Trump says immigrants coming to the U.S. are “poisoning the blood of our country.” Homophobic, climate denying, religious zealot Speaker Mike Johnson adjourns the U.S. House for the year after accomplishing absolutely nothing.

And so ends another year here on Planet Earth. A note to my faithful readers: Thanks to all who have offered positive comments on my 24 columns this year. To those who offered not so positive comments, keep reading. You may find one you like. Here’s hoping for a very Happy New Year to all.

Bob Stannard has been a Vermont political commentator for over two decades. He is an author, musician and former state legislator and lobbyist.

Lake associations help protect public waters Guest Perspective Jerremy Jones Pat Suozzi Did you visit one of Vermont’s many lakes this summer?

Maybe you launched a vessel at one of the many fishing accesses around the state and were approached to have it inspected by a greeter. You may have wondered who manages that program, and who works to make sure Vermont’s lakes and ponds are protected and remain clean and healthy.

Since nearly all of Vermont’s lakes and ponds are public waters held in trust by the state, you might think that it is their responsibility. Vermont statute places this responsibility with the Agency of Natural Resources. Within the agency, the Department of Environmental Conservation, in conjunction with other agency departments, oversees public waters.

However, with over 800 lakes and ponds in Vermont, it’s not possible for the relatively small Department of Environmental Conservation staff to do all that is necessary to preserve and protect our public waters. For that reason,

the state partners with various conservation, watershed and lake groups to help with the work necessary to monitor and protect Vermont’s water resources.

Department of Environmental Conservation staff provide training and guidance, oversight, technical assistance and standards and management of project permitting. Staff scientists also conduct important research, and data collection and analysis. However, much of the hands-on work necessary to protect public waters falls to volunteer lake and watershed associations.

The previously mentioned greeter program is an integral component of the department’s overall plan to prevent the spread of aquatic invasive species and nearly all the greeter programs on inland lakes are managed by volunteer lake associations. Greeters inspect vessels and equipment entering and leaving lakes to ensure they are not transporting invasives, along with educating boaters about the dangers of moving them from one water body to another.

Greeter programs are only one element in the fight against invasive species. Some 100 of the state’s lakes and ponds are

already infested with some type of invasive. While the greeters are instrumental in preventing further spread, it is equally important that those lakes already infested work to control and reduce the level of infestation to decrease the possibility of that infestation being carried to other lakes, and to restore a more balanced aquatic ecosystem.

The most widespread invasive in the state’s lakes is Eurasian watermilfoil, a biological pollutant that can spread quickly, damaging aquatic habitats and reducing water quality.

The work to control, reduce, and where possible, eradicate milfoil is complicated and costly.

Control methods include hand pulling, diver assisted suction harvesting, bottom barriers and herbicide.

Unfortunately, the state provides very little funding for the prevention and control of invasive species. In 2023, a state grant program only supplied up to 25 percent of a lake’s total project cost. It’s left to the volunteer lake associations to close the gap by fundraising.

All of this may sound like more See WATERS on page 12

The Citizen • January 4, 2024 • Page 7

Community Notes Audition now for Shelburne Players’ ‘Kodachrome’ The Shelburne Players hold auditions for its spring 2024 production, “Kodachrome,” on Monday and Tuesday, Jan. 8-9, 6-8:30 p.m. at the Shelburne Historic Town Hall, accessed from Pierson Library, 5376 Shelburne Road.

Callbacks, if needed, will be Thursday, Jan. 11, from 6-8:30 p.m.

Welcome to Colchester, a small town where everybody knows each other, and the pace of life allows the pursuit of love to take up as much space as it needs. Our tour guide is Suzanne, the town photographer, who lets us peek into her neighbors’ lives to catch glimpses of romance in all its stages of development. ‘Kodachrome’ is a play about love, nostalgia, the seasons and how we learn to say goodbye.”

The spring production will be April 5-13.

For information, audition materials go to shelburneplayers.com.

Vermont chamber to hold economic conference in January The 2024 Vermont Economic Conference, presented by the Vermont Chamber of Commerce, will take place on Jan. 30, 8 a.m.-3:30 p.m., at the University of Vermont Dudley H. Davis Center in Burlington.

Industry professionals, policymakers, business owners, and community members are encouraged to attend.

With workforce recruitment and retention a concern for Vermont businesses, this year’s agenda will feature a lively panel discussion entitled “The Future of Work: How Immigration Shapes Vermont’s Talent Landscape.”

In addition to highlighting the economic contributions of immigrants to Vermont, a panel of experts will share successful workforce development and diversity strategies that attendees can leverage and implement in their businesses. The panel on immigration will feature Leslie Holman of Holman Immigration Law, Tracy Dolan of the Vermont Refugee Office, Julia Birnn Fields of Birnn Chocolates of Vermont, and Adam Grinold of the Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation.

The conference will provide networking opportunities and feature presentations on the state economic outlook with Mat Barewicz of the Vermont Department of Labor, the national economic outlook with Leslie Preston of TD Bank, and artificial intelligence with Alec Newcomb of ScaledOn. To learn more or to register, go to vtchamber.com.

Students invited to Vermont Youth Invention Fair All K-8 students in Vermont are invited to participate in the Vermont Invention Fair on Saturday, Feb. 10, in Shelburne. To participate, students must come up with an invention that addresses a problem or need in society.

Students design, build and test their inventions, and then showcase them at the fair. Top inventors in each age group will have the opportunity to compete in the U.S.

Toy drive nets $5k

National Invention Fair with inventors from all over the world.

The Vermont Invention Fair is offered as a partnership between the Young Inventors’ Program and Vermont Day School in Shelburne.

To register for the fair or for additional information, visit vtdayschool.org. The registration deadline is Jan. 15.

Secretary of State talks on elections, democracy The League of Women Voters of Vermont presents the third in its 2023-24 lecture series on elections and democracy.

The third program, on Wednesday, Jan. 10, at 7 p.m. at the Kellogg-Hubbard Library, 135 Main St., Montpelier, will feature Secretary of State Sarah Copeland Hanzas and Martha Diess, global citizenship specialist with the Vermont Agency of Education, will discuss innovations in inspiring youth in democracy, state policy on civics education in schools, and the secretary’s outreach program to encourage student engagement.

The League of Women Voters of Vermont Lecture Series, now in its eighth season, is designed to bring outstanding speakers to discuss contemporary issues related to democracy and social justice.

More at lwvofvt.org.

Ambassador, mayor headline MLK remembrance events Former U.S. ambassador Suzan Johnson Cook and Talladega, Ala., mayor Ashton Hall will be the speakers at the 2024 Burlington Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Remembrance event at City Hall, Contois Auditorium, on Sunday, Jan. 14, 3 p.m., sponsored by the Greater Burlington Multicultural Resource Center.

Twenty-two-year-old Hall said he hopes to be a voice and advocate for community members. Hall served as vice chair for the city’s planning commission and has been active in other public office positions. As the newly elected mayor of Talladega, he said he wants to create a more community-oriented atmosphere with activities for youth.

Cook, 65, is a U.S. presidential advisor, pastor, theologian, author, activist and academic who served as the U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom from April 2011 to October 2013.

She served as a policy advisor to President Bill Clinton and later to the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Henry Cisneros and has been a dean and professor of communications at Harvard University, a professor of theology at New York Theological Seminary, a pastor at several churches, television producer, and the author of nearly a dozen books.

She was the first female senior pastor in the 200-year history of the Mariners Temple Baptist Church in New York City and a close friend of Coretta Scott King.

The 2024 MLK recognition will be presented to the Howard Center, Rev. Dr. Arnold Thomas, Rep. Kevin “Coach” Christie and City Market. Tickets for the free public event are available at City Market, ECHO, and Fletcher Free Library.

COURTESY PHOTO

SeaComm employees recently donated $5,112 to the Toys for Kids program of Vermont after a year-long employee fundraising effort. The all-volunteer program is operated by the Vermont Marine Corps League and distributes toys to children and teens in need through the age of 17. From left, senior teller Brayden Button and financial service representative Nicole Sumner.

The events will end with a civil rights panel on Monday, Jan. 15, 3 p.m., at ECHO.

Age Well, church host Frosty Funfair Luncheon St. Catherine of Siena and Age Well are teaming up to offer a Frosty Funfair Luncheon on Tuesday, Jan. 16, in the St. Catherine of Siena Parish Hall, 72 Church St. in Shelburne.

The check-in time is 11:30 a.m. and the meal will be served at noon. There is a $5 suggested donation.

The menu features roast pork with sauce, diced cabbage, sliced carrots, home fries, dinner roll, apple cake and milk.

There will also be a 50/50 raffle and door prizes.

Register by Wednesday, Jan. 10. Contact Kerry Batres, nutrition coordinator, at 802-662-5283 or email kbatres@agewellvt. org.

Tickets are also available at the Age Well Office, 875 Roosevelt Highway, Suite 210; Colchester.

Restaurant tickets will be available for distribution for a suggested $5 donation.

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Page 8 • January 4, 2024 • The Citizen

The Citizen • January 4, 2024 • Page 9

FILE PHOTOS

Charlotte and Hinesburg

2023 Year in Review Above: Charlotte road commissioner Junior Lewis at a ribbon cutting for the town’s new, energy efficient highway garage.

Top Right: The cast of “Newsies” in rehearsal at the CVU High School Theater.

Middle Right: The 11-12 Little League team.

Bottom Right: Champlain Valley Union High School Class of 2023 packed Patrick Gymnasium at the University of Vermont campus June 16 for commencement.

Below: Ella, Sonnet, Lucy, Olive and Theo hold up puppets they created to honor Martin Luther King, Sacagawea, and Ruby Bridges and her teacher Barbara Henry.

Middle Left: A scene from the Hinesburg Police Department Grinch campaign over the holidays meant to make connections with the community.

OPPOSITE PAGE Top Left: Charlotters gathered for the town’s annual beach party barbebuce and potluck July 8.

Bottom Left: Crews from Hinesburg on the scene of an overturned box truck at the intersection of routes 116 and 2A in August.

Top Right: This little guy is a newly arrived rescue goat at Merrymac Farm in Charlotte.

Bottom Right: Runners come through the Holmes Creek covered bridge in Charlotte during the Charlotte Covered Bridge 5K/10K and half marathon.

Page 10 • January 4, 2024 • The Citizen

SPORTS

Year in Review LAUREN READ CORRESPONDENT

It was a season of memorable moments for Champlain Valley, with banners raised and records broken. Here are some of the most notable moments from 2023 for the Redhawks.

CVU boys’ basketball claims first title It took 100 tournaments, but the Champlain Valley boys’ basketball team finally came out on top.

The Redhawks claimed the program’s first Division I state title in March, beating three-time defending champs Rice 42-38 at the University of Vermont’s Patrick gym.

It was just the second title game appearance for the Redhawks, who lost to Rutland in the final in 2017.

It was not easy for CVU, who rallied from a 9-point deficit to beat a veteran squad and Kyle Eaton’s 19 points.

Cross country runs a perfect race The girls’ cross-country team has plenty of accolades. But entering the 2023 D-I state championship, the Redhawks found a new mark to set.

CVU had one of the best single-season performances even before it came into the title race. Then the team ran a perfect race.

The Redhawks had a 1-2-3-4-5 perfect score in the state championship.

Alice Kredell was first, Estella Laird was second, Audrey Neilson came in third, Lydia Donahue was fourth and Charlotte Crum came in fifth place.

CVU then followed up the win with the program’s seventh New England championship.

Redhawks win baseball title behind first-year coach Behind a duo of top pitchers and a firstyear coach, Champlain Valley baseball captured the program’s third title in the last four seasons.

One of the team’s star pitchers, Stephen Rickert, threw a complete-game, one-hitter in the state championship game to beat Mount Anthony 6-0.

It was the second shutout in CVU’s three postseason games — with Chris Robinson also racking up innings and strikeouts on the mound for the Redhawks.

Champlain Valley also became just the second school to sweep the D-I football, basketball and baseball titles in the same

FILE PHOTOS

Above: The Champlain Valley Union High School Redhawks with their championship trophy. The girls defeated St. Johnsbury in the Division I title game on March 3 at the University of Vermont’s Patrick gym.

Left: A Mt. Mansfield runner gets safely back to first as CVU’s Lewis Kerest readies for the throw. CVU won 8-5.

school year after the former won breakthrough crowns in fall 2022 and winter 2023.

Shelburne’s Berger pitches for Team USA After winning a D-I state title with the Champlain Valley baseball team, Shelburne resident Elise Berger took the ball for the red, white and blue.

The right-handed pitcher took the mound for the U.S. women’s national baseball team last spring as part of five-game series.

Berger pitched four innings and allowed one hit in a 2-0 win for Team USA against Mexico. She also earned a win on the mound against Australia in the tournament.

CVU girls’ basketball returns to the top Champlain Valley had been in a title drought, for them at least. The Redhawks went six seasons without winning a girls’ basketball state championship. CVU shared the state title when the tournament was canceled in 2020 due to COVID-19 — a long run for a program that won five titles in

a row from 2017 to 2022.

That drought ended in 2023 as the Redhawks beat St. Johnsbury 43-29 to win the D-I state title.

The Redhawks controlled play throughout the title game, with Addi Hunter and Elise Berger leading the way offensively.

Penalty kicks sealed title for boys’ soccer The boys captured its 20th D-I state championship in the most dramatic fashion

possible — on penalty kicks.

The Redhawks beat defending champs South Burlington 5-4 for the program’s first title win since 2019, and the boys tied the CVU girls’ program for the most titles in the state’s history.

The back-and-forth game saw South Burlington take the lead, then CVU go ahead before the two teams finished regulation tied at 2-2 and headed into overtime and, eventually, penalty kicks.

It was a dramatic end to a dramatic game to give CVU its record-tying title.

The Citizen • January 4, 2024 • Page 11

FILE PHOTOS

Above: Anderson McEnaney runs the ball in a Redhawks win over the Burlington-South Burlington team last fall.

Top Right: CVU’s sprint relay team in action during the state championship.

Bottom Right: Tucker Tharpe battles for the ball against BFA-St. Albans last January. Tharpe had 12 points.

Below: The Champlain Valley Union High School boys’ soccer team won its 20th state title against South Burlington on penalty kicks.

Bottom: Rose Bunting and a Burlington High School player battle it out at the top of the net in the Redhawks’ seventh win in a row in October.

Page 12 • January 4, 2024 • The Citizen

Green Mountain Transit will start charging fares Green Mountain Transit will restart charging passengers on March 6 on its Chittenden County commuter and LINK Express routes.

GMT will use a new fare system that will increase non-cash payment options, increase speed of payment onboarding, and limit the daily and monthly costs to individual riders through a capping system.

The proposed new fare structure will create a seamless travel experience with standardized fares across both local and commuter services, said general manager Clayton Clark.

“Our new fare system is pretty much ready to go, but the delayed components are key to making service affordable for cash-

based riders,” said Clark to explain why fares won’t start in January as originally planned.

Rides on all Chittenden County routes, including commuter routes, will go to $2 on March 6. GMT will no longer offer free transfers but will cap the daily cost of transit rides to $4 or $2 for discount fare riders.

Discount fares are offered to riders aged 6-17, over 60, or with a disability.

In addition to capping the daily cost of fares, GMT will also offer a monthly fare cap. If a rider reaches $50 ($25 for discount fare riders), the remaining rides in a 31-day will be free.

For questions or comments, contact Jamie Smith, director of planning and marketing, at jamie@ridegmt.com.

EDUCATION

continued from page 5 attacking the extraordinary opportunities independent schools provide for rural students. Independent schools are not eligible for state construction aid and, therefore, fund their capital construction and improvement programs on their own, resulting in huge savings to Vermont taxpayers. These avoided costs result in increased state bonding capacity available to meet the overwhelming capital improvement needs currently faced by so many public schools.

It cannot possibly make sense to require the construction of new schools in areas that are already so well served by the current system.

Finally, contrary to erroneous claims made by our colleagues, Vermont’s four historic academies were never public schools. These academies were incorporated as non-public, nonprofit entities and have operated as such since their founding in the 19th century. In fact, some of them pre-date the arrival of public education.

While several other historic academies voluntarily converted from non-public, nonprofit entities to public schools — Leland & Gray Seminary, for example —

the remaining four historic academies made the decision to forego this transition and have remained independent throughout their history.

While the authors advocate for a ubiquitous, one size fits all system, we suspect most people recognize that just because something is different doesn’t make it something we need to kill. Over the course of the last 200 years, rural parts of Vermont have developed a rich mosaic of options for their children, often public in some grades and independent in others. That mosaic provides extraordinary opportunities for our children at the same time we have saved taxpayers hundreds of millions of construction dollars.

The system deserves to be celebrated, not demonized.

This commentary is from the following representatives in the Vermont House: Rep. Seth Bongartz (D-Manchester), Rep. Scott Beck (R-St. Johnsbury), Rep. Michelle Bos-Lun (D-Westminster), Rep. Bobby Felice-Rubio (D-Barnet), Rep. Robin Chestnut-Tangerman (D-Middletown Springs), and Rep. Mike Rice (D-Dorset).

WATERS

continued from page 6 than enough for volunteer lake associations to do, but what about water quality?

Once again, it’s these volunteer groups and their local partners, like Natural Resource Conservation Districts, that are implementing water quality improvement projects at their lakes and ponds.

Some of these water quality improvement programs include water sampling, mitigating stormwater runoff carrying phosphorus into lakes, performing Vermont invasive patroller paddles looking for new introductions of aquatic invasives, and monitoring for cyanobacteria (harmful algae blooms) and other lake conditions throughout the summer.

But wait, there’s more.

These volunteer groups also carry out extensive educational activities, keeping

lake communities informed of best practices, helping lake property owners with lake friendly landscaping to protect shorelines, working to address polluted runoff from roads entering lakes, and providing free boating education classes.

But it’s not all work! Many lake associations also organize community events such as boat parades, rewarding volunteer opportunities, annual meetings, educational events, ice out contests, and more.

These associations and volunteer groups undertake so much work because they believe that we are all stewards of our natural resources, and, as such, it is the responsibility of the entire community to protect, preserve and enhance the health of the state’s public waters. Working in partnership with state agencies and other

PHOTO BY DWIGHT MAZUR

CVU/MMU Cougarhawks girls’ varsity hockey team member Megan Rivard moves the puck down the ice in a Dec. 31 overtime win against Missisquoi.

Champlain Valley basketball beats opponents over break LAUREN READ CORRESPONDENT

Girls’ basketball Champlain Valley 57, Kingston, N.Y. 53: The girls team rallied from a halftime deficit to beat Kingston on Wednesday.

Samara Ashooh had a double-double to pace the Redhawks, with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Elise Berger chipped in 16 points and seven rebounds.

Gymnastics The Champlain Valley gymnastics team was led by an overall team effort to beat St. Johnsbury 127.45 to 103.55 on Wednesday.

Mckena Lesage was second in the vault, while teammate Gabriella Serafini came in third place. On the bars, Serafini was second and Ruby Opton

conservation organizations, these volunteers are indispensable to ensuring their health for future generations.

If you love Vermont’s lakes, ponds, and waterways, think about a donation to a lake or watershed association and take a minute to thank your local lake and watershed associations and the volunteers — or who devote

came in third.

Cadence Haggerty came in second on the beam and Opton was second in the floor exercise.

Boys’ basketball Champlain Valley 60, Mount Mansfield 37: The Champlain Valley boys’ basketball team remained undefeated with a win over Mount Mansfield on Wednesday, Dec. 27.

Jack St. Peter led the Redhawks (4-0) with 13 points, with 11 points in the first quarter. Kyle Eaton also had 13 points, while Tucker Tharpe chipped in 10.

Champlain Valley also beat the Colchester Lakers on the Friday before the holiday break, 63-48.

Tharpe had 20 points and 10 rebounds for CVU, while Eaton added 12 points and Russell Willoughby had nine.

countless hours of their time to preserve these precious natural resources for all of us.

Jerremy Jones lives in Poultney and is a member of the Federation of Vermont Lakes and Ponds; Pat Suozzi lives in Hinesburg and is its president. Learn more at vermontlakes.org.

The Citizen • January 4, 2024 • Page 13

Obituary continued playing with friends in local studios.

Ezra Pouech, 30, died tragiHigh school was not a great fit cally on Thursday, Dec. 21, 2023, for Ezra. He enjoyed some classes while protecting his girlfriend and but questioned others. Eventually, her children from the hands of a as graduation approached, Ezra domestic abuser. decided to pursue a GED in lieu of His family takes solace know- continuing in typical classes. ing Ezra acted to protect those His mom and pa were a bit he cherished, showing himself to nervous about this approach, espebe the caring, kind person they cially knowing the test is extremeloved. Ezra never stopped striving ly diverse and challenging. As it and believing that we all have a turned out, his childhood of voraresponsibility to make this world cious reading and curiosity paid better. off and he passed the test, earned Ezra was born at home during his high school diploma early, and a snowstorm on Feb. 2, 1993, in proudly marched with his ChamHinesburg. He grew up on the plain Valley Union High School top of BlackberClass of 2011. ry Hill, an ideal Immediately place to play following gradwith his brothuation Ezra flew er Zach, sister off to San Diego Emma, neighbors to be with his first and friends. Ezra love that he met loved adventures in Vermont. Ezra in the woods, spent the next few catching crayyears thoroughly fish in the brook enjoying southern and, best of all, California. Later sledding down he moved to the the long twisting San Francisco driveway at top Bay area where he speed.

Ezra Raymond Pouech expanded his work While Ezra experience in the played many local marijuana dispensports, including hockey, soccer, sary industry. lacrosse and high school UltiEzra loved the music scene, mate frisbee, his favorite sports skateboarding, photography and involved racing downhill. He was meeting new people who became an avid snowboarder, skateboard- his close friends. He considered er and serious downhill sledder. San Fran his home.

He continued to love sledding as Ezra is survived by mother, he grew older and was known to Natacha Luizzi; father, Phil sled down Bolton Mountain and Pouech; his stepmom, Lia Cravedi; Camels Hump with his teenage other dad, Joe Tomko; big brother, friends.

Zach Pouech; niece, Margaret; big For many years Ezra’s summers sister, Emma and life partner, Tom included vacationing in Small Wilson.

Point, Maine, with his family. This Ezra is also survived by annual adventure produced many his uncles, Steve (Ellen) and childhood memories that included Raymond (Leslie) Desroches, and playing pinball, ice cream at the Steve “Tex” (Deb) Pouech; aunt, Hermit’s Island snack bar, boogie Crystal Mengele; and grandma, boarding at Popham Beach, and Dora Wright. special time with Sunset Sally.

Ezra will be dearly missed Ezra was surrounded by his by his Desroches cousins, Leah extended family throughout his Marie, Joseph, Gedeon and Griffchildhood. Every holiday or other en; his Pouech cousins, Raya and milestone event included loving Tanya; and special second cousin, family members. Although he only Tevon. had a short time with his Grandma He was predeceased by Uncle Desroches, her love and influence Norm Desroches; grandparents, impacted Ezra his entire life. He Normand and Natacha Desroches especially enjoyed fun and chaos and Robert and Claire Pouech. with his Groton, Vt., cousins.

Ezra recently quoted: “Grief is Ezra’s head was always buried just love with nowhere to go. Go in books supplied in unlimited out and love some more. Love, quantities by his mom, who worked love, love.” as a librarian and owned the local Friends and family will be invitBrown Dog Bookstore. In elemen- ed to a celebration to be scheduled tary school Ezra took up drumming at a later date. In lieu of flowers the and participated in school concerts. family suggests a donation to the Not surprisingly he transitioned to GoFundMe for Ezra’s girlfriend playing in a garage band with his and children who have been affectHinesburg friends and eventually ed by this tragedy (bit.ly/3tEptook his love of drumming and WsU) or the Vermont Network adventure to California where he Against Domestic Violence.

Rapt attention

Ezra Raymond Pouech

PHOTO BY LEE KROHN

While Shelburne Farms is running its horse-drawn wagon rides during the winter months, Craig Newman, director of Outreach for Earth Stewardship, an independent wildlife education organization whose facilities are located at the farm, often brings along a raptor ambassador to say hi to the passing visitors. The birds — and Craig — are always a hit.

BOND

continued from page 1 ballot for voter approval during their next meeting.

Williston Board member Josilyn Adams, asking what would happen if either the bond didn’t pass or the board chose not to move it forward, said she was curious about “the optics of going back to voters and asking them for more money for projects that were voted on in 2022 — just with the increase in the budget overall.”

If the bond didn’t pass, or if the board chose not to move it forward, they could decide which of the remaining projects they can finish with the funding they have, Marckres said.

“We’d have to reprioritize them all and see, other than CCS, what we could possibly do with the little that’s remaining,” he said. “We certainly can’t do most of this.”

Angela Arsenault, board chair, said that the new cost “is not the result of poor planning or underestimating anything, it’s just world events completely out of anyone’s control.”

The bond ask from the administration marks a growing reality for many schools across the state who need to renovate or, in some cases, fully replace infrastructure but struggle to find the financing.

In April 2022, an independent analysis commissioned by both chambers in the Statehouse reviewed a broad range of facility-related factors in 54 school districts across the state, and found a considerable need for improvements, and aired concerns for the overall condition of school infrastructure across the state.

That study used an index to measure the aggregated depletion percentage of facilities for each district. Champlain Valley School District’s overall depletion percentage of 48 percent fared better than other districts — the South Burlington School District had an overall depletion percentage of 81, while the average for districts participating in the study was 71.4 percent.

But staff in the Champlain Valley district are nonetheless dealing with a slew of issues related to failing infrastructure due to aging buildings.

The new bond, if approved, would not address future capital projects that the district will soon need to tackle.

The Allen Brook School in Williston, for example, will need a “major renovation” that could top $50 million. The B-Wing at Shelburne Community School, meanwhile, needs to be renovated, ad phase three of the Charlotte Central School upgrades will need to be funded, among other various projects at Hinesburg Community School School and CVU. By spring, the district will have created a facility study committee that will try and prioritize the needs of each school. A draft architectural study for the Hinesburg Community School, recently received by the district, shows there is significant work to be done, while a similar study for the high school should be done by early this year.

The question of whether state government should help in fund-

ing Vermont schools has loomed over recent meetings and budget talks.

Vermont stopped a program to help fund schools in 2007. At the time, the state was spending $10 million a year on school construction, according to a previous report from VTDigger, and by the time the program was halted, the state had more than $70 million in debt that was not fully paid off until 2016.

But lawmakers have a renewed interest in some kind of state-funding program. Arsenault, who also serves as a representative in the House, said there is a bill that was modeled after Rhode Island’s funding system, and added that the state impaneled a school construction task force that worked through the summer.

“I think construction aid has support in the House, but I don’t know the political ramifications of where it’s going to go,” Marckres said. “I think it’s critical.”

The new bond came up as part of a continuing series of budget presentations as the district works to finalize a budget this month to bring to the voters in March.

The district’s spending for fiscal year 2025 would increase by 9.9 percent, if approved.

The district also has roughly $1 million left for potential one-time spending to remain under the 10 percent per pupil spending cap included in Act 127. The administration earmarked several facilities projects the district could spend that on at schools in Williston and Hinesburg.

Page 14 • January 4, 2024 • The Citizen

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Flooring

FLOORING

Flooring Inventory  IN STOCK 

HARDWOOD • LUXURY VINYL LAMINATES • CARPET • CARPET TILE TILE • FLOORING SUPPLIES

Hyper Relic Sports Cards Bob & Jessica Trautwine

Cell/Txt: 802-233-1451 • Office: 802-497-1681 Hyperreliccards@gmail.com • hyperrelic.com

1111-855-DRY-TIME • www.northernbasements.com

Insurance

Knife Sharpening

96 Commerce Street | Williston | www.floortraderwilliston.com | (802) 204-1080

Landscape / Lawncare

The Holidays Are Coming

THE SHARPER BLADE Covering Your Life’s Journey Home • Auto • Motorcycle • Watercraft Business • Contractor 802-862-1600 • info@turnbaughinsurance.com 188 Allen Brook Lane • Suite 1 • Williston, VT 05495

Kitchen Knives Sharpened

Fast Turnaround • Convenient Shelburne Drop Box at Village Wine and Coffee For more information contact Bill Lowell (802) 363-2447 • TheSharperBlade109@gmail.com

Metal

Painting

Full Line Steel Service Center

4/29/2019

Renovations

TONY BRICE PAINTING, LLC

Huge inventory of steel,

aluminum and stainless 3.5 x 2 AD for Shelburne News & The Free Citizen Estimates Interior & Exterior in many shapes and sizes from sheets to tubing to angle iron

24 Consecutive Weeks $18.00/week for both802.777.8771 papers $432.00

Serving all your metal needs for over two generations

Cutting, Punching, Drilling and Bending Services

802-864-0326 800-540-4692

We’ll even recycle your ferrous and non-ferrous metal

35 Intervale Rd, Burlington

www.qcsteel.com

Delivery available

Scheduling 2023-2024 Interior Painting

Bath ~ Kitchen ~ Home Renovations

TO ALL OF OUR CLIENTS, THANK YOU!

jeff@aatileandcarpentry.com

Sheds

Siding/Remodeling

Town & Country Sheds, LLC

BEAGLE BUILDERS, LLC Remodeling & Additions

ALL TYPES OF SIDING

2175 N Wolcott Rd Wolcott, VT 05680 (802) 888-7012 FOR RENT 60 FOOT LIFT JLG600S

CALL US TODAY!

Vinyl/Wood/Composite

Windows & Doors • Decks & Porches

Kitchens & Bathrooms Sunrooms & Garages

Monkton, VT

beaglebuilders@gmavt.net

802-453-4340 CALL US! 802-355-0807

802.355.7148

Serving the Shelburne area for 20+ years

The Citizen

Service Directory It does a BIG job for your business for a little price.

Call 985-3091 for details.

The Citizen • January 4, 2024 • Page 15

Horoscope January 4, 2024

ANSWERS FROM THIS ISSUE

Weekly Puzzles

Page 16 • January 4, 2024 • The Citizen

Island Memorial Pet Service

Looking to Lead?

Howard Center is looking for passionate and driven individuals to lead its Crisis Programs.

Become a leader at Howard Center and make an impact today!

CRISIS STABILIZATION: Program Director and Operations Director FIRST CALL FOR CHITTENDEN COUNTY: Program Director and Operations Director • Master’s degree or higher • Vermont clinical licensure in good standing and ability to supervise others toward licensure (Program Director positions only) • Full Time

$3,000 Sign-On Bonus!

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Gomer & Gunther

“LOYALTY DESERVES DIGNITY”

We understand the love you have for your pets and the importance they hold in your life. Our compassionate staff is devoted to easing the difficulties at this challenging time.

Our staff is here for you 24/7 • The Island Memorial Difference: • Pet Funerals • Cremation Services • Your Pet is Always in Our Care • Dignified Pet Transportation from Your Home or Vet • Immediate & Witness Cremation Available • Full Line of Pet Loss Products

Tiger & Buster

1176 Main St. • Fairfax, VT 57 Main St. • Essex Jct., VT www.islandmemorials.com Northwestern Vermont’s Only Pet Crematory A Member of the A.W. Rich Funeral Home Family • www.awrfh.com

802-316-2284

• 36 days of combined time off per year (increases with years of service)

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Premium Compassionate Care for Your Pets Because

802-488-6946

howardcentercareers.org

12/20/23 11:03 AM

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