‘Jubiliate Deo’
Big trees
Artists series returns with impressive lineup of musicians
State wants your help to ID tallest and biggest. Page 11
POSTAL CUSTOMER
PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT #217 CONCORD, NH ECRWSSEDDM
Page 3
Volume 51 Number 19
shelburnenews.com
Shelburne eyes local option tax
May 12, 2022
Spring sweep
Proposal would affect sales, meals, rooms and alcohol taxes by 1 percent COREY MCDONALD STAFF WRITER
The Shelburne Finance Committee is discussing the possibility of implementing a local option tax in town, which would tack on a small percentage to various sales taxes to raise revenue. The new tax has a long way to go before being enacted, but proponents of the levy in the committee say that it could be a significant revenue generator. There are 16 other municipalities in the state that exercise the “desti-
nation-based” tax. “We have quite a few visitors that come to our community and one of the potential pros of a local option tax ... is that users of our community’s attractions, who don’t pay the local community directly for the use of those attractions, would be making a contribution to the services that we provide,” Jeff Carr, an economist at Economic & Policy Resources, Inc. and the newest member of Shelburne’s Finance Committee, said. See TAX on page 4
CVU students headed to Scholars Bowl nationals DOM MINADEO COMMUNITY NEWS SERVICE
Champlain Valley Union High School survived contentious playoff competition to win the Scholars Bowl team championship at Montpelier High School earlier this spring. The team triumphed over host Montpelier High School, Hanover and South Burlington to earn the title, but it was not easy, senior Ben Fox said. “South Burlington — that’s the one that was really, really tough, because they’d been defeating us all year,” Fox said. “I wasn’t sure if we were going to win just because they’re so good.” South Burlington won three previous major scholars bowl tournaments this season, and had beaten CVU three times, coach John Bennett said in an email.
“We had to play a perfect match, minimizing mistakes and taking advantage of any opportunities they might give us with missed questions. That is exactly what we did,” Bennett said in explaining what made the difference this time. The team got off to a quick lead and after a brief comeback from South Burlington, held off to win the match by a margin of 70 points, 385-315. The championship was a team effort, but one thing is certain to both Bennett and Fox: Evan McMahan played a crucial role. “Evan is our all-time leading scorer and the best player I have had on one of my teams,” Bennett said. McMahan finished his scholars bowl career with 1,136 quesSee SCHOLARS BOWL on page 12
PHOTO BY LEE KROHN
Runners make their way through Shelburne during RaceVermont’s 5k, 10k and half marathon on Saturday, May 7.