Engineer lays out options for better drinking water sources
BRIANA BRADY STAFF WRITER
Last week, a civil engineer from the firm Engineering Ventures presented the Hinesburg selectboard with some possible solutions for getting clean drinking water to the town garage and residents affected by contamination from the closed town landfill off Beecher Hill Road, which has been leaching chemicals into the groundwater for the last few years.
The Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation originally detected high levels of methylene chloride, a toxic chemical often used in stripping paint, and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), synthetic compounds linked to cancer, in the water supply for the town garage and a residence on Forest’s Edge in 2021.
Since then, testing has continued to show PFAS in town monitoring wells near the landfill site as well as the water supply for the garage and other residences on Forest’s Edge and Beecher Hill Road.
According to the fall 2024 monitoring report from Stone Environmental, the company testing the groundwater in Hinesburg, there are increasing trends of PFAS in two of the monitoring wells and one of the affected homes. Stone has not found indications that levels are increasing beyond the landfill boundary and the residences that are already being monitored.
“If something is alarming, then we would
See LANDFILL on page 13
BY
A flash of color on a snowy day,
LIBERTY DARR STAFF WRITER
“Rents are so high that it is impossible to save for a down payment. The ‘American dream’ of ownership is unreachable,” one respondent to a 1991 survey regarding affordability and housing in Charlotte said.
“Charlotte is becoming an elitist community without a healthy income mix,” another said.
With a lot of statewide discussion about
housing — the lack of it and new state regulations to spur building it — swirling around recently, the topic of development and affordability isn’t new to Charlotters. According to some town records, the town and its residents have been discussing it for the past 30 years.
In the spring of 1990, Charlotte received a special planning grant from the Vermont Department of Housing and Community Affairs for conducting research and formulating an affordable housing policy for the town. The town retained a planning consul-
tant out of Essex to study the town’s current housing stock and provide recommendations on how the town could move some of the work forward.
According to the report, the town, at the time, needed approximately 75 additional units of affordable housing, a mix of accessory apartments, elderly affordable housing, or affordable single-family dwellings — what
See AFFORDABLE HOUSING on page 10
PHOTO
LEE KROHN
Friendly race shapes up for Hinesburg selectboard
BRIANA BRADY STAFF WRITER
For the first time in a few years, Hinesburg will have a contested race for a selectboard seat.
Todd Portelance is challenging incumbent Mike Loner for a three-year seat on the board. However, despite the race being contested, the candidates themselves are feeling fairly convivial.
“I don’t know how contested it really is,” said Portelance. “Mike and I, we know each other, and he’s reached out and said, ‘Hey, let’s have some coffee.’”
Despite the friendly nature of the race, residents will still have to decide between the candidates on town meeting day.
Todd Portelance
Portelance recently retired from 35 years with UPS. For the past 17 of those years, he’s driven in Hinesburg. He said this is a benefit for working on the selectboard — everybody knows him.
“I’ve been retired for almost a year now and looking to kind of continue my service to the community,” Portelance said. “I grew up in Williston and I was on the Williston Fire Department many years ago. So, I have ties to the fire department. I have ties to
See HINESBURG SELECTBOARD on page 16
Spear Street repair makes headway
LIBERTY DARR STAFF WRITER
A massive road construction project on Spear Street is set for a completion date of early April, and the contractors tasked with the job say they are ahead of schedule.
Charlotte saw more than 5 inches of rain overnight last July, which washed away a 10-by-60-foot culvert on Spear Street, leaving the major connector unpassable. Additionally, roughly 10 feet of the road just south of the culvert eroded when the ground became oversaturated by the torrential rains.
The selectboard decided in August to fix the road with a dual culvert and engaged two separate contractors to complete repairs for the street.
Burlington-based Poulin Companies, LLC, will complete the culvert replacement for just over $555,000; and Colchester-based Dirt Tech, LLC, will complete the slope stabilization for $272,000.
The town will ultimately end up paying nothing for the repairs through the Federal Highway Emergency Relief Program, which should provide the town with up to 100 percent reimbursement for the project. But under the guidelines, the work must be completed 270 days from the emergency event, putting the town on a strict completion timeline of April 6.
“We have formally signed off on the grant agreement for that and have started submitting requisitions for invoices that have already been submitted and paid for by the town,” town administrator Nate
Bareham told the selectboard Monday night.
At this point, the slope stabilization is nearly all complete and the culverts along with the concrete wing walls have been installed.
“Now all that is left is to backfill the site and then the pavement,” Bareham said.
While the project, according to the contractors, is roughly two weeks ahead of schedule, pavement plants usually do not open back up until spring. Selectboard chair Jim Faulkner told the board that it’s likely the street could open before the paving is complete, but that is also dependent on weather conditions.
“The backfilling is also a very sizable job that will take time, and it’s very weather dependent as well,” Bareham said.
Todd Portelance
CVU school district revisits its search and seizure procedures
BRIANA BRADY STAFF WRITER
Champlain Valley School District has decided against drafting a specific sanctuary school policy in response to changes at the federal level that now allow immigration enforcement agents to make arrests in schools and other sensitive locations such and hospitals or churches.
According to superintendent Adam Bunting, the district is taking steps to help students and families know what their rights are and offer whatever protections it can. In lieu of a new policy, the school district has updated its search and seizure procedures specific to non-local law enforcement, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers.
“I think it’s important that we help our students who may be new Americans, who may be recent immigrants, understand what their rights are, help them understand that they’re an important part of our community and work with them in a time when they’re feeling really vulnerable,” Bunting said.
Since the Trump administration announced last month that it would be changing the federal policy, schools and districts across the country have been grappling with how to respond.
from entering school buildings unless they have a judicial warrant, which must come from a state or federal criminal court, not the Department of Homeland Security or another agency.
The school district’s search and seizure policy states that “school administrators will not assist law enforcement officers (including school resource officers) in a search, seizure, or interrogation where the primary purpose is to enforce a criminal law.” However, when presented with a valid subpoena or judicial warrant, schools are required by law to cooperate.
“Our concern with the sanctuary policy is that, in some ways, it can be a misnomer, you know. I think based on recent executive orders, the places that we thought of as sanctuaries aren’t really sanctuaries,” Bunting said, citing that the changes to federal policy could override policies that a school district might put in place.
“Our concern with the sanctuary policy is that, in some ways, it can be a misnomer, you know.”
— Adam Bunting
In Vermont, the Winooski School District announced it would be considering a new sanctuary school policy, which was presented to their board in January. Champlain Valleys’ procedures emphasize some of the same protections as the Winooski policy, but in enacting them as procedures rather than a policy, stops short of a sanctuary school label.
“I think one of the worries that I’ve heard other people articulate is, does that put us on the map in an unhelpful way for our students?” Bunting said about adopting a policy.
Like other measures meant to protect students, Champlain Valley’s search and seizure policy and their procedures for dealing with non-local law enforcement rely on the Federal Education Rights and Privacy Act, which prevents schools from sharing students’ and families’ personal information such as names, addresses, or place of birth except under specific circumstances like a valid subpoena or warrant.
School systems are not required to track students’ immigration status, and many make a point of not doing so.
In a communication to superintendents on Jan. 17, Vermont secretary of education, Zoie Saunders, emphasized the legal protections students have under FERPA and laid out for district leaders that schools have the power to prevent law enforcement
The district’s procedures focus on the practical — letting teachers and staff know who to call and what to do if non-local law enforcement come searching for a student. They instruct faculty and staff to keep enforcement officers in the lobby or central office area, gather information about the officer and why they’re there, withhold any identifying information about students, and, if presented with a warrant, to wait for instructions from legal counsel or the superintendent’s office before taking any action.
While schools and districts without a sanctuary policy might offer the same legal protections as those that enact one, some advocates posit that a specific policy helps ease families and students’ fears and helps them feel safe at school.
“We have to make sure that we’re not doing something that’s political, that’s actually not working in the favor of our students who need us most,” Bunting said.
Bunting hopes that in distributing the procedures and making sure faculty and staff are informed, CVSD will help students feel as safe as they can without fostering a false sense of security beyond what the school can legally provide.
According to Bunting, after the federal policy change, he heard from a lot of teachers asking for clarity on procedures and expressing concern for students.
They’ll continue to play a role in communicating with students and families — a teacher reached out to the district office this past week for translations of the procedures into Spanish and other languages, he said. The district has been using software to help translate materials into different languages to reach families in their home language.
Hinesburg Police Blotter: Feb. 3-9
Total incidents: 18
Feb. 3 at 5 p.m., the police department returned a loose dog to its owner.
Feb. 3 at 7:53 p.m., police conducted a welfare check on Silver Street.
Feb. 4 at 10:30 a.m., an officer responded to a single-car motor vehicle crash on Shelburne Falls Road.
Feb. 4 at 3:23 p.m., officers responded to CVU for an ongoing juvenile issue.
Feb. 5 at 6:30 a.m., an officer assisted first responders with a medical emergency on Hollow Road.
Feb. 5 at 6:35 p.m., police investigated a report of fraud.
Feb. 5 at 7:37 p.m., police investigated a report of a stolen credit card with fraudulent use.
Feb. 6 at 6:40 a.m., police investigated an alarm activation at Champlain Valley Union High School.
Feb. 6 at 4:52 p.m., police investigate a report of internet fraud.
Feb. 6 at 7:58 p.m., an officer responded to a single-car motor vehicle crash on Route 116.
Feb. 7 at 2:30 p.m., police conducted a welfare check on Texas Hill Road.
Feb. 8 at 1:49 p.m., police served court paperwork to a citizen on Route 116.
Feb. 8 at 1:50 p.m., police investigated a report of trespassing on North Road.
Feb. 8 at 10:04 p.m., police investigated a juvenile issue at the CVU Winter Formal.
Feb. 9 at 1:30 p.m., an officer assisted first responders with a medical emergency on Birchwood Drive.
Note: Charges filed by police are subject to review by the Chittenden County State’s Attorney office and can be amended or dropped.
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Local lawmaker talks with Girl Scouts about laws
Last week, Rep. Kate Lalley, D-Shelburne, was invited to attend the local Girl Scout meeting to talk to the girls about the legislative process — what a law is and how they are created, what laws the girls might want to pass and what they might consider as criteria for a law. Lalley used the example of a law passed last year that established an official state mushroom, a law that was initiated by school children in southern Vermont. “It was fun and also challenging to explain the legislative process in terms that make sense for students” in grades 2, 4 and 5, Lalley said. “The girls, who are residents of Hinesburg, Shelburne and Williston, had loads of questions and comments and I enjoyed hearing the perspective of my younger constituents.”
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Shape the community’s character
The business next door donates nearly twice as much as big-box stores and online retailers to local non-profits, events and teams.
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OPINION
Realism about achievability amid D.C.’s political headwinds
From the Senate
Sen. Thomas Chittenden
The legislative session is in full swing, and Vermonters are facing significant challenges, from a strained state budget to the weight of rising taxes. This year, I’m serving on the Senate Committee on Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs, where I’m committed to advancing regulatory reforms. My goal is to streamline the process of building homes and businesses in Vermont, making it easier, less expensive and more predictable, with more rational guidelines for appeals.
Beyond education, housing, health care and climate, other important issues are on the table. I’ve introduced a bill to simplify our stormwater mandates. Constituents statewide struggle to comply with these Environmental Protection Agency-inspired state regulations, facing unclear directives, limited resources and unrealistic timelines.
I’ve also been appointed vice chair of the Senate Committee on Finance, where we’re diving deep into the governor’s proposed education funding formula and proposed student weights. This complex issue demands careful consideration, and I’m ready to tackle it head-on. One thing is certain: We can’t afford to continue down the current path.
Health care costs are another critical concern. Vermont now bears the unfortunate distinction of having the highest health care costs in the nation. We need to explore solutions like reference-based pricing and raising the Certificate of Need threshold, which could encourage more options for common health care services, easing the burden on hospitals and lowering costs for individuals and insurance premiums. I support both approaches and believe it’s time to re-examine policies enacted in Montpelier over the past two decades that have proven unsustainable and too expensive while also looking more closely at how hospitals are spending limited resources.
The current program often requires expensive infrastructure improvements on properties where the impact on water quality is minimal. We need a true all-in approach to cleaning Lake Champlain, where everyone contributes to strategic waterway improvements that will adapt our infrastructure to the rising flood levels we keep experiencing while maximizing the cost-benefit of our limited tax dollars.
I’ve also introduced a bill to allow for stewardship trusts in Vermont, enabling businesses to enshrine their values into operating documents that persist beyond current boardroom priorities, like what Patagonia has done in Oregon.
In the coming weeks, I’ll be introducing bills on data privacy and implementing an ad valorem car registration fee. This type of fee, common in other states, would create a dedicated funding stream for public transportation, charging higher-end vehicles more. Currently, a 2025 Cybertruck costs the same annual registration fee as a 1999 Dodge Neon. I believe those with newer, more expensive vehicles can contribute a bit more to alleviate congestion by helping fund our public transit needs.
We must be realistic about what we can achieve, what we can afford and what is feasible given the political headwinds coming from Washington.
This year, we must also address the state’s collected 30-percent share of local option tax revenues passed by communities to raise money to reduce their residents’ property tax burdens. I’ve introduced legislation to redirect surplus funds back to EMS ambulance service providers by waiving an existing tax on their insurance company reimbursements.
Regarding climate change, Vermont needs to prioritize adaptation and commit to realistic emissions reduction timelines. I agree with Gov. Scott’s call to revisit legislation passed in the last decade and recalibrate it to our current realities. The Global Warming Solutions Act, with its private right of action provision, is diverting valuable attention and resources away from state agencies. I support repealing this provision while maintaining focus on successful programs that transition our economy to greener technologies.
We must be realistic about what we can achieve, what we can afford and what is feasible given the political headwinds coming from Washington.
The state is currently collecting more than necessary, and these taxes were approved by town voters to lower their municipal property taxes, so excess dollars over what is needed for our payment in lieu of taxes agreements should do that. As more towns adopt local option taxes, we need to recalibrate this distribution to ensure these communities receive the full benefit of the revenue they generate.
It is an honor to serve in this role representing you in Montpelier. I welcome your thoughts and opinions, so please reach out: Thomas.Chittenden@gmail.com.
Thomas Chittenden, a Democrat from South Burlington, represents South Burlington, Charlotte, Hinesburg, Shelburne and several other towns in the Chittenden-Southeast Senate district.
Sen. Thomas Chittenden
Medical debt relief is a direct investment in Vermonters
Guest Perspective
Treasurer Mike Pieciak
As Vermont’s treasurer, I am committed to making investments that lower costs, strengthen our economy and support
healthier communities. I believe every Vermonter deserves a fair shot at success, regardless of the situation into which they are born.
Yet, for too many Vermonters, the cost of health care stands in the way of investing in their
future. Vermont has some of the highest health care costs in the country, forcing Vermonters to either forgo necessary treatment or be burdened with medical debt through no fault of their own.
We’re all just one health crisis away from being hit with medical debt, and that debt can linger for years, dragging down credit scores and making it more expensive to buy a home, start a business and build wealth.
Unlike other debt, consumers often have no idea of the cost of medical care before they receive it, and they have little or no choice whether to incur the cost. The consequences are devastating for Vermonters, their families and our economy.
To help Vermonters get back on their feet, I’m proud to announce a proposal to provide medical debt relief to thousands of Vermonters.
Without requiring additional taxes or fees, our proposal would make a one-time investment of $1 million to eliminate up to $100 million of medical debt, focusing on Vermonters with significant debt and low incomes. The program would provide immediate, life-changing relief to thousands of individ-
Support charter to restore vote on land regulations
To the Editor:
Step one is accomplished — we gathered more than enough signatures to get on the Australian ballot. But there are challenging steps ahead, one at a time.
Step two, which is critical for the charter to have any hope of moving forward in Montpelier, is to demonstrate strong support from a majority of Charlotte voters on March 4.
Absentee ballots will be available. I’ve been told legislators read letters to the editor and Front Porch Forum posts. Show-
uals at a critical moment when health care costs are soaring and Vermonters are facing an affordability crisis.
Other states like Rhode Island have adopted similar initiatives, successfully wiping out medical debt for their most vulnerable residents at pennies on the dollar.
When someone is sick or injured, their focus should be on recovery, not their finances.
The proposal would also shield Vermonters’ credit scores from medical debt, preventing health care providers and hospitals from reporting the debt to credit agencies.
Let’s face it: Medical debt doesn’t reflect someone’s financial responsibility — it’s a reflection of the gaps in our health care system. Removing medical debt from credit scores would relieve Vermonters of the financial and emotional stress that so often accompanies this burden and give people a chance to rebuild their lives without debt holding them back.
I am excited about this program because it is a direct investment in people, giving
Letters to the Editor
ing a history of support in writing is important and helpful when seeking change. So is talking to your friends and neighbors and encouraging them to vote yes. Our land use regulations are key to the character of Charlotte. The selectboard already holds the power to influence land use regulation changes by appointing members to the development review board and planning commission. Now they also have the power to make these regulation changes without a town wide vote.
This charter is not about closing the doors to Charlotte. It is about retaining and growing civic engagement. It’s about
Vermonters the freedom to invest in their families, their homes and their futures. Vermonters would also be automatically enrolled in the program — no forms, no hassle. I believe this proposal represents government functioning at its best, taking pressure off household budgets and helping people move forward with their lives. People with unpaid medical debt are more likely to put off seeking the care they need due to fear of punishment, which can worsen their health, lead to more expensive care in the future or put them out of work. When someone is sick or injured, their focus should be on recovery, not their finances.
I hope Vermonters will join me in supporting this program and contact their legislators to lift the burden of medical debt for thousands of Vermonters and build a healthier, more financially secure future for our state.
Mike Pieciak is Vermont’s state treasurer.
building on the values and years of hard work and commitment by many that have resulted in the feeling you get, heading south from Burlington or Shelburne, when you think, “Ah, I’m home.”
And retaining the ability to continue this work, to solve the issues facing our town, by more of us, not fewer. Please show your support for growing civic engagement around Charlotte’s future. Vote yes for the Charter by Australian ballot on March 4, in person or by absentee ballot. One step at a time.
Karen Frost Charlotte
Community Notes
Hinesburg greenhouse hosts winter pop-up event
Red Wagon Plants, 408 Shelburne Falls Rd. in Hinesburg, presents “Dreaming of Flowers,” a winter pop-up event designed especially for flower lovers and gardening enthusiasts of all levels, Feb. 15 at 10 a.m. More information, redwagonplants.com/ calendarofevents/dreaming-of-flowers.
Vermont Repertory Theatre takes on “Sweeney Todd”
Step back to Victorian London and experience some delightfully theatrical horrors on stage with Vermont Repertory Theatre’s “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” presented Feb. 28-March 7 at Main Street Landing Performing Arts Center in Burlington.
Sweeney Todd tells the tale of the infamous “demon barber” of Fleet Street, a man driven by vengeance and madness. The story follows Todd as he returns to London after being wrongfully exiled, only to discover the tragic fate that befell his wife and daughter. With the help of a pie-maker with cannibalistic tendencies, Todd embarks on a dark and bloody journey that blends macabre humor with exquisite musicality in Stephen Sondheim’s 1979 musical thriller.
The cast includes Matthew Winston of Waterbury as Judge Turpin, Hannah Normandeau of Waterbury Center and Aleah Papes of Richmond in the ensemble.
Kyle Ferguson of Burlington stars as the eponymous barber, with Chloë Fidler of Williston as the baker, Mrs. Lovett.
Other Burlington cast members include Zach Stark as Anthony Hope, Rachel Weinfeld as Johanna and Eamon Lynch as Tobias. From Colchester are Michael Godsey as the Beadle, Ian Ferris as Pirelli and George
Conklin in the ensemble. Kristen Bures of South Burlington plays the Beggar Woman. The ensemble is rounded out by AJ Banach of Fairfax and Kylie Halpin of Williston.
The show is directed by Michael Fidler of Williston, whose credits include London’s West End professional theater and the Edinburgh Festival. A nine-piece orchestra is led by Ashley O’Brien of Burlington.
“Sweeney Todd” will mark the fifth production of Vermont Repertory Theatre, which was founded in March 2023 by Michael Fidler and Connor Kendall.
Seating will be divided between cabaret tables and traditional raked seating, giving the audience the opportunity to be up close and personal in the “blood zone,” or have a safer experience further back.
Trigger warnings include blood, dismem-
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berment, sexual violence, cannibalism, gunshots and immolation. The show is recommended for ages 18+, and no entry will be permitted for those under 13.
“Sweeney Todd” runs for eight perfor-
mances. Information and tickets: vermontrep. com/sweeney-todd.
Gomer & Gunther
PHOTO COURTESY OF VERMONT REPERTORY THEATRE
Chloë Fidler as Mrs. Lovett and Kyle Ferguson as the eponymous barber star in “Sweeney Todd,” presented Feb. 28-March 7 in Burlington by Vermont Repertory Theatre.
Passing of the guard
Law enforcement colleagues from around the area attended the funeral for Allen Fortin on Monday. Fortin, a Hinesburg resident and longtime police officer, died Feb. 2.
BY
PHOTOS
LEE KROHN
continued from page 7
Asylum network seeks creatives for recruitment
The Chittenden Asylum Seekers Assistance Network is looking for creatives —artists, poets, writers, sculptors, musicians, photographers — for its third annual April fundraising event, Arts for Asylum Seekers.
Creatives will produce and virtually share their work weekly or more often throughout the month. CASAN and the creatives will reach out to recruit sponsors who will donate to CASAN in exchange for receiving the creatives’ work through email or another online method.
Funds will be used to help
asylum seekers with housing, basic living expenses, transportation, legal fees, and other necessary support. The signup deadline is Feb. 28. For more information and to sign up to participate, visit casanvermont.org. Questions? Write to artsforasylumseekers@ casanvermont.org.
Sailing Center director receives top sailing award
The Community Sailing Center executive director Owen Milne is the 2025 recipient of U.S. Sailing’s Organizational Leader Award.
John Charles Hancock
John Charles Hancock of Morrisville died peacefully at Copley Hospital on Dec. 30, 2024, from advanced stage kidney and liver disease.
He is survived by his son Etienne Hancock, daughters Elise Hancock and Juliette Volk, their spouses and partners, and grandchildren Lila and Theron Hancock, and Eva and Riley Volk. He is also survived by his former wife Claire (Couture) Hancock, siblings Betsy, Stephen, and Melissa, and several nieces and nephews.
John was born May 15, 1951, to John and Anne (Melendy) Hancock. He grew up first in Proctor before the family settled on Spear Street, just south of the old village of East Charlotte.
John loved visits to the family farm in East Hardwick, and as a teenager excelled in competitive swimming and in academics. He once said that he preferred swimming to other sports because being underwater drowned out the noise of people cheering.
His young adulthood was indelibly marked by both the experience of working with the disabled at Camp Jened over several summers and the tumult and upheaval caused
by coming of age during the Vietnam War.
John had a lifelong respect for the natural world and spent many years of his working life as a logger. That particular profession agreed with both his disinterest in the traditional definition of a job as “working for others,” as well as his preference for personal solitude combined with excessively loud machinery. An avid dog lover, John spent the last two plus decades operating a dog camp/daycare. John’s ability to connect with animals—particularly ones no one else could—was impressive and a testament to his own free spirit and acceptance of others. Many previously mistreated
and misunderstood dogs found their forever home with him at Dogcamp.
As a father, John loved participating in his children’s interests. Whether it be as a part of the board of the Wolcott Children’s Ballet, learning to skate ski in Switzerland with a hernia, or just simply the glee with which he would engage in neighborhood snowball fights, he was a highly engaged and active father. He was very proud of his children’s accomplishments and who they became.
John loved live music, Sunday opera on the radio, and family trips to Maine and Lake Caspian.
The family would like to thank the nurses, doctors, and support staff of Copley Hospital, all of whom made the Christmas time stay so comfortable and caring.
A graveside ceremony is planned for early spring at the family plot in Grandview Cemetery in Charlotte. Donations in John’s memory may be made to Justice for Dogs, PO Box 1014, Wolcott, VT 05680.
U.S. Sailing is the national governing body for the sport of sailing and recognizes top-performing organizations and individuals in a variety of categories from coaching and racing to community programs and advocacy. From its website, “The Outstanding Organizational Leader Award is presented to an exceptional individual who has made notable contributions to an organization that have resulted in membership growth, positive financial development, or increased community awareness and integration.”
Friends and Family Dinners
Order by Tuesday for Wednesday pickup at The Mill Market and Deli
The award was given at the recent U.S. Sailing Leadership Forum in Coronado, Calif.
Obituary
John Charles Hancock
AFFORDABLE HOUSING
continued from page 1
the report referred to as “starter homes.”
A survey from the town’s former Affordable Housing Committee was sent to 1,276 residents of Charlotte. Although only 135 residents responded, a 7-to-1 majority of respondents expressed a need for affordable housing in town, with over half of the respondents indicating that they would be unable to move into the town now if they did not already live there.
Those groups most cited as needing affordable housing were elderly folks, first-time buyers, second-generation residents looking for first homes and single-parent households.
A more recent 2006 housing affordability study commissioned by the town determined there was an unmet need for 46 units of affordable rental housing and 16 owned units. Since that study came out, Charlotte has added just 14 affordable units.
Charlotte has some of the most expensive housing costs in Chittenden County. For example, the average sale price of property was over $625,000 in 2021, with a median home sale price of $534,500. In addition, the median gross rent in Charlotte is 30 percent higher than the median rent for Chittenden County at $1,794 per month as of 2023.
According to the 2020 Census, 15 percent of Charlotte households already are severely cost-burdened by home costs, meaning they spend 50 percent or more of their income on housing expenses.
While the town has had some form of a housing committee in the past, there currently isn’t one. And, according to town clerk Mary Mead, there are no meeting minutes in the town’s vault that correspond to any of the committee’s work in the 1990s.
The town took a big step toward addressing the lack of affordable housing when it adopted new land use regulations in March 2006, which provided a much higher density allowance — a quarter-acre in village areas, half-acre for adaptive reuse, and 1 acre in rural areas — for permanently affordable housing, according to the 2016 Town Plan.
Around this same time, in 2007, Charlotte residents voted at Town Meeting Day to institute a housing trust fund, funded by the municipal property taxes similar to the town’s conservation fund, and was initially funded with $40,000 per year
for three years in an effort to provide grants to encourage the building of affordable housing in Charlotte. Policies and procedures for the fund were amended in 2011.
That committee seemingly disbanded and was replaced in 2018 with an affordable housing working group, which was charged with the task of reviewing the fund structure and requirements and hopefully creating a new life for the fund and affordable housing in town.
At the time, there was roughly $140,000 in the fund and just one property owner had completed and rented a unit since the program was established.
Mead declined to answer questions regarding how much money is currently in the fund or how many new applications have been submitted since 2018. Questions to town administrator Nate Bareham were not answered by press deadline.
In more recent years, the town’s planning commission has undertaken a revamp to the town’s East and West Village land use regulations. While the town plan is clear that new development should be directed to the village centers, the current pattern in Charlotte is not consistent with those goals. Over the last 30 years, over 450 new dwellings have been built in Charlotte, with 94 percent of them single-family homes in rural areas outside Charlotte’s villages.
Lack of onsite septic capacity, unduly restrictive zoning bylaws, and insufficient water supply pose significant constraints to development of any kind in the village centers.
The work for this project is being completed in conjunction with Chittenden County Regional Planning. An initial 75-page draft report for the project was adopted by the planning commission in November and outlines 14 recommended changes to the current land use regulations to make creating housing and other small forms of development possible in the villages. Some of the recommendations include lower minimum lot area, minimum lot frontage requirements and minimum setback requirements.
The planning commission, with the help of regional planners, is now beginning the long task of drafting new land use regulations that correspond to recommendations in the report. These are planned to be brought to the selectboard for approval this summer.
PHOTO BY MIKE DOUGHERTY/VTDIGGER
State Health Commissioner to retire at the end of next month
ERIN PETENKO
VTDIGGER
Health Commissioner Mark Levine announced his retirement last week after eight years serving as the head of the Vermont Department of Health.
Levine, a medical doctor, led the department through several crises, including the state’s most significant health challenge in decades: the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Dr. Levine was a steady, reassuring voice through the pandemic, and in the months of recovery that followed,” Secretary of Human Services Jenney Samuelson said in a statement. “Each week, during marathon press conferences, he
calmly tackled complex topics in epidemiology and public health.’
The Department of Health tracked Covid-19 data, provided Covid guidance to Vermonters and organized mass vaccination campaigns, among other measures. Levine also served as an adviser to Gov. Phil Scott on health matters.
“I will be forever grateful for his advice and counsel over the years, but especially during the pandemic, as he appeared with me daily at press conferences during those difficult days, giving much comfort to Vermonters as our very own ‘Country Doc,’” Scott said in a statement.
Along with Covid-19, Levine led the department through some
of the worst years of the opioid epidemic, which hit a new peak during the Covid pandemic but began dropping in 2023.
The press release announcing his retirement cited other accomplishments during his tenure, including creating a nurse home visiting program for newborns. Levine, a 71-year-old resident of Shelburne, had an internal medical practice and served as associate dean for Graduate Medical Education at the University of Vermont Larner College of Medicine before joining the health department. He plans to officially retire at the end of March. Levine and Scott were not available for further comment.
Governor’s education plan calls for school choice lottery for all
ETHAN WEINSTEIN VTDIGGER
Gov. Phil Scott’s education proposal would allow every student to opt into a school choice lottery system within their regional school district.
Last week’s testimony in the House Committee on Education from Education Secretary Zoie Saunders was the first public explanation of how school choice would work in Scott’s “transfor-
mation” plan.
“It’s very provocative,” Rep. Peter Conlon, D-Cornwall, the committee’s chair, said during the hearing, “and we need provocative.”
The new information on school choice and education governance is the latest aspect unveiled in the administration’s extensive proposal. Previously, Saunders released the details of the governor’s proposed foundation formula, a new way to pay for education that
would spend about $180 million less than the state currently spends.
Week by week, Scott and his team have added more specifics to their cornerstone policy proposal. Lawmakers had been eagerly awaiting more information on school choice, one of the plan’s biggest gaps in the first weeks of the legislative session.
In Vermont’s current system,
Health Commissioner Mark Levine was a familiar voice during the Covid-19 pandemic.
CougarHawk hoopsters fall in two
LAUREN READ CORRESPONDENT
Girls’ basketball
Burlington 59, Champlain Valley 56: The Champlain Valley girls’ basketball team narrowly fell to Burlington Monday night, losing to the Seahorses for the second time this season.
It is the first time that Burlington has swept the regular season matchups between the two teams since 2008-09.
It was also the second loss in a row for the Redhawks, who fell to St. Johnsbury on Friday 60-31.
Zoey McNabb had eight points for CVU in the loss.
Boys’ basketball
EDUCATION PLAN
continued from page 10
many towns offer school choice if their local school districts do not operate public schools for all or certain grades, sometimes offering specific options and other times allowing total choice.
In Scott’s proposed system, every student would be assigned by their district to a public elementary, middle and high school, according to Saunders, with limited exceptions. Each student could also apply for a lottery to attend a “school choice school.”
Those choice options could be magnet public schools or private schools, and each school district would decide which and how many schools to designate, though every district would need to designate at least one school choice school. Officials did not indicate whether religious schools could receive public funding as they do in Vermont’s existing system.
for existing school choice in the current system. The lottery could provide “preference” for students in towns that have historically had school choice, Saunders said.
In the proposed system, state money would follow students, meaning school choice schools would be paid directly by the state for the weighted funding associated with choice students.
“Does this open the door to folks coming in and creating an independent school in competition with the public school system?”
— Rep. Peter Conlon
The designated schools would need to follow state guidelines related to “educational and financial standards,” according to the proposal, and certain requirements could be set such as a minimum number of school choice students that a private school would accept.
Despite some state oversight, “select state academic and operational requirements would not apply” to school choice schools, according to the proposal.
The plan attempts to account
Some Democratic members of the committee appeared concerned about providing access to school choice for all students — an expansion compared to the state’s existing system.
“Not surprisingly, this is a big issue,” Conlon said.
“Does this open the door to folks coming in and creating an independent school in competition with the public school system?”
Jill Briggs Campbell, interim deputy secretary of education, said school districts could decide not to allow a proliferation of “school choice schools” so as not to “drain” students from the public school system. Lawmakers could also set limits on creating new private schools.
Thursday’s testimony from Saunders also provided more information on the five proposed regional school boards that would oversee all the state’s public schools.
The plan recommends school
boards with five members, with each member representing a regional “ward” within the district.
Each school under the proposed system would have a “school advisory committee,” composed of parents, students, teachers and community members. The committee, Saunders said, would play a role in offering budget feedback and could direct some limited amount of discretionary spending.
Essex 55, Champlain Valley 51 (OT): Champlain Valley fell to Essex in overtime after giving up a three-point-
er with under 30 seconds to play on Saturday night in high school boys basketball.
Champlain Valley fouled Essex’s Cooper McCurley with three seconds left in regulation and the Hornets forced overtime after he hit all three foul shots.
Owen Scott had 19 points to pace the Redhawks.
Girls’ hockey
BFA-St. Albans 3, Champlain Valley/Mount Mansfield 2 (OT): The Champlain Valley-Mount Mansfield girls’ hockey team fell just short of upending BFA-St. Albans on Friday. Abby Bunting and Devin Taylor each had a goal for the CougarHawks, while Cadence Tessier dished out an assist. Ella Gilbert stopped 24 shots in goal.
The Comets scored 17 second into the extra period to get the win.
PHOTO BY GLENN RUSSELL/VTDIGGER
Education Secretary Zoie Saunders has gradually been letting out details of Gov. Phil Scott’s education plan.
Bees are always at home in holes and hollows
Jason Mazurowski
On a subzero morning, I clip into skis and head out across my meadow, gliding between desiccated husks of sundial lupine (Lupinus perennis) poking up above the snow. I imagine this spot eight months ago, as I watched bumblebees, mason bees, and sweat bees forage among them.
Back then, in June, the world was exploding with sounds and colors, insects on the wing, and birdsong in the humid air. Today, there is silence.
As a pollination ecologist, I spend much of my time chasing solar-powered creatures, crouched among wildflowers observing an intimate interaction between two of life’s kingdoms. The common denominator of it all is sunlight, which provides plants with energy to grow and produce the nectar and pollen necessary for powering the flight of tiny creatures redistributing energy throughout the ecosystem.
But now, in the depths of winter, sunlight is scarce, and the hum of insects will be absent from the landscape until the first willows bloom. The creatures I spend so much time thinking about are gone for half the year. Yet, they haven’t truly disappeared — the progeny of those bees I observed among the lupine are likely nearby, awaiting the return of the sun.
Signs of overwintering bees can be found almost anywhere, except for the European honeybee (Apis mellifera). Having evolved in the tropics, honeybees never experienced selection pressures resembling a New England winter. Instead of hibernating, they huddle together in the hive, sipping honey
and generating warmth by movement. They emerge during thaws, searching in vain for floral rewards.
Our native bees, on the other hand, are well-adapted to winter and rely on environmental cues to time their emergence. Most solitary bees complete their larval stage and pupate during the growing season before entering diapause, a state of arrested development. They overwinter as pupae, resuming development when their preferred food blooms. Less commonly, some species overwinter as larvae or, in rare cases, as fully developed adults.
Whatever stage of life they overwinter, bees must remain protected from preda-
tors, extreme temperatures, and desiccation. About 70 percent of solitary bees overwinter in nests below ground. The rest are scattered throughout the landscape, tucked into stems, logs, rocks, and snags.
Perhaps the easiest above-ground nests to observe are those of the genus Ceratina. These small, turquoise carpenter bees hollow out the pithy interior of dead branches on sumac, elderberry, or raspberry. Find a broken stem on any of these shrubs, and you’ll likely see a small entrance hole where pupae are hidden.
Artificial “bee houses” and natural snags riddled with beetle holes are also great places to look. Occupied nests are capped with mate-
rials determined by the genus inside: mud for mason bees (Osmia spp.), mashed-up leaf material for leafcutter bees (Megachile spp.), and sap for resin bees (Heriades spp.). Unoccupied nests from previous winters are often easier to spot at first, with small exit holes chewed through the entrance.
Then, there are the elusive bumblebee queens: all New England’s bumblebee species overwinter as adults. Unlike honeybees, bumblebees evolved in tundra-like conditions and are adapted to cool, short growing seasons. Their annual colonies die in the fall, leaving only reproductive females to become next year’s queens, much like seeds of an annual plant.
After mating in the fall, future queens find safe places to overwinter before emerging to establish new colonies in early spring. Despite being relatively abundant, little is known about where these queens go. Incidental observations suggest that they hunker down beneath leaf litter, under bark, inside rotten logs, or in shallow underground burrows, yet few have ever been found. Community science projects like “Queen Quest” aim to collect more systematic observations and shed light on how they survive the winter.
Each of my morning excursions through the snow-covered woods is a reminder that mysteries linger beneath the snowpack, even among our most familiar and studied creatures. Like them, I patiently wait for those first warm April days when the sun brings those welcome sounds, smells and colors back to the landscape, and I can dust off my insect net and hand lens and head out to meet them.
Jason Mazurowski is an ecologist, naturalist, and adjunct instructor at the University of Vermont. Illustration by Adelaide Murphy Tyrol. The Outside Story is assigned and edited by Northern Woodlands magazine and sponsored by the Wellborn Ecology Fund of New Hampshire Charitable Foundation.
recommend sampling additional residential wells, but since everything looks stable at this point, we’re just continuing monitoring as normal,” Katrina Mattice, a senior engineer from Stone Environmental, said
To access clean drinking water, four nearby homes and the town garage currently rely on point-ofentry treatment systems, which filter water as it enters a building. After Hinesburg received a $60,000 grant from the state’s revolving loan program last year, the town tasked Engineering Ventures with studying the cost and feasibility of different methods, including the current system, for providing the area with clean water. The firm has completed 60 percent of its study.
Peter Gibbs, a senior civil engineer from Engineering Ventures, presented three different options to the board:
The first was to connect the garage and homes to town water produced through the town well that services the village water district. That well, according to Gibbs, produces more than enough water to provide for additional homes and fire service. However, in order to connect the area to the water supply, the town would have to build 1.7 miles of eight-inch PVC water main with hydrants and service connectors.
Gibbs said this seems like it would be a simple solution. However, the main that would be built would be running uphill, losing pressure as it climbed in elevation. That would require the town to also build a pump station along the main to maintain pressure. Gibbs estimated that the total cost of this project would be $5 million.
At the other end of the spectrum, Gibbs presented the selectboard with a cost analysis of main-
taining the current point-of-entry treatment systems. The systems in place are functioning well at removing dangerous chemicals, according to testing by Stone Environmental. Gibbs said that they likely wouldn’t need to be replaced for about ten years — the end of their warranty.
However, the town would need to continue testing and maintenance of the systems, replacing parts and making repairs as needed. Including the cost of new systems in ten years, Gibbs estimated that this would cost the town $44,000 annually. This would add up over time, he said, and did not account for the potential that more residents might require point-of-entry treatment systems if the contamination spreads.
Gibbs also repeated a kind of refrain a couple of different times during his presentation: “In the ideal world, you don’t want to start with a contaminated source. You just don’t.”
The third option Gibbs presented to the selectboard was to build
a well in the town forest and, similar to the first option, connect the homes and town garage to the water supply via a main, this time running downhill. Drawing a new well would necessitate that the town establish an additional water district, build new treatment facilities, and because the pressure would increase going downhill, building pressure reduction stations.
Additionally, the wells in the town forest don’t have great yield, meaning that there might only be enough water through this option to service the currently affected homes and town garage. This project would cost an estimated $3.7 million.
While Engineering Ventures has not yet fully investigated it, Gibbs also presented a scenario in which the town could purchase a lot north of the landfill on Observatory Road, currently owned by PR&R Development and slotted as part of an eight-lot subdivision approved this past year. According to Gibbs, the town might be able
to place a well on the property in proximity to the affected homes.
Because Stone Environmental has reported that the leachate — contaminated groundwater — appears to be moving through the bedrock to the southeast, Gibbs speculated that water drawn from the north would likely be safe. He added that it’s unknown how much water the town might be able to draw from wells on the property or if the water would be free of contamination, but at an estimated $500,000, it might prove to be a relatively inexpensive solution.
After hearing this option, members of the selectboard and the public suggested that Gibbs also investigate the possibility of extending the town water service main that serves homes on Buck Hill Road. However, town manager Todd Odit is skeptical that that process would be simpler than the other water main extensions. There are ridges in the way, and he predicts that they would still have to run the main through elevation.
“It’s not as simple, oh, we’ll just
shoot straight across,” Odit said.
A resident from the affected area, Janet Francis, whose drinking water is being monitored although her home is not on a point-of-entry treatment system, also stated her concern that, should the selectboard continue with the current solution they might find themselves in an unsustainable situation should the drinking water at more homes become highly contaminated.
“Let’s not be penny wise and pound foolish, because if it’s just me, OK. But if that system is already maxed out, what are you going to do for me? Another (point-of-entry treatment) system? And for anybody else?” she said, encouraging the board to consider its most expensive option.
Despite recommending last year to cease testing the drinking water at six homes in the area, in its most recent report, Stone Environmental recommended that those homes continued to be tested. Monitoring will be conducted in the spring.
PHOTO BY LEE KROHN
The cows at Shelburne Farms grab a bit of lunch on a recent fair-weather day, Camel’s Hump striking its couching pose in the background.
continued from page 2
the police department. I’m a Free Mason.”
Portelance thinks that he can bring a different perspective to the selectboard and sees his potential first term as a learning experience. He said that he’ll take up issues as they come and try to make decisions that benefit the town and the people. As of right now, he doesn’t have any issues that he’s particularly focused on but was clear on his approach: he’s got a mechanical mind.
“My hobby is working on cars, and I don’t know what’s wrong with the car ‘til I pop the hood and look to find out what’s going on. And I will sit there and think about it and find the best way of fixing it and then execute it,” he said, comparing this approach to how he sees himself working on the board.
Portelance said he’s looking forward to collaborating with other selectboard members and finding collective solutions.
Mike Loner
Mike Loner has been on the selectboard since a special election in 2020 to fill a vacated seat. Most recently, he’s a real estate agent with Greentree Real Estate and the keeper of the inn attached to his home.
Before that, he was the CEO of the nonprofit DREAM, which connects disadvantaged children with college-aged mentors for more than a decade.
February arch
good position to address upcoming issues as well.
Before joining the selectboard, Loner served as the Hinesburg representative to the Champlain Housing Trust Board. He also serves on the town’s diversity, equity, and inclusion committee.
He said, in seeking another term on the selectboard, he hopes to see Windy Ridge, the affordable housing project with Champlain Housing Trust, completed along with other housing developments in town.
“Hinesburg needs housing. Vermont needs housing. And I think Hinesburg is doing a really good job of doing our part to help with that. And I value an opportunity to continue to see that through,” he said.
He said his experience and knowledge from having served on the selectboard put him in a
“I think just how complicated things are these days, with the landfill concerns, with the wastewater treatment plant expansion, concerns of the new wells coming online,” he said. “There’s just so much there that I think, just at this point, it would be difficult for somebody to hit the ground running with all the complications.”
He thinks that the current selectboard members, while they don’t always see eye-to-eye, collaborate well together and hopes to continue to try to build consensus among the group.
Dennis Place runs unopposed
Dennis Place is also running for his third term in a two-year selectboard seat, unopposed. Place is a lifelong Hinesburg resident who has served on the planning commission and currently serves on the devel-
opment review board in addition to the selectboard.
In his time with the selectboard Place has been known for his meticulous approach to the budget and his role in moments such as the negotiation of the bus contract with Tri-Valley in which he pushed for the nonprofit to
offer Hinesburg a lower rate.
Early voting for town meeting day has already begun in Hinesburg. You can request an early ballot with the town clerk’s office online or in person. You can also vote at the polls on March 4 between 7am and 7pm at the town hall.
warmer all winter and stop wasting the heat you’ve paid for!
• Get up to $9,500 off comprehensive home air sealing and insulation projects with an Efficiency Excellence Network contractor (or $4,000 depending on household income)
• Plus, income-eligible Vermonters can now get up to an additional $15,000 for home repairs that are necessary prior to completing a weatherization project
• Financing options start at 0% interest, or add the monthly payment to your utility bill
Income-eligible Vermonters may also qualify for free weatherization services.
*Subject to availability and eligibility.
Mike Loner
Dennis Place
PHOTO BY LEE KROHN
All is quiet at Shelburne Farms, but the busy season will be here soon enough.