The Other Paper - 9-28-23

the South

Pizza Hut plans on hold

A years-long effort to redevelop South Burlington’s long-vacant Pizza Hut on Shelburne Road and Swift Street has been stopped over a zoning disagreement and is now being appealed in Vermont Environmental Court.

While the building’s red roof is still recognizable, the shuttered former pizza joint has since its closing in 2011 been masked in graffiti and overgrown shrubbery. Efforts to transform the property, as well as a shuttered gas station nearby, have been underway for at least three years, with owners Gary and Irene Bourne planning for 30 units of housing with commercial space and a Chase Bank.

But a disagreement over what the mix of market rate and affordable housing should be in the proposed development — as well as a disagreement over a drive-through ATM — resulted in the city’s Development Review Board in August voting against the project’s approval.

“I’m going to be perfectly honest with you, the board is leaning toward not approving this project,” Dawn Philibert, the chair of the city’s development review board, said at meeting over the summer. “We continue to have concerns about the bank drive in, and also the calculation of the inclusionary units.”

Community

SB students raise money for beloved bus driver

LIBERTY DARR STAFF WRITER

Not all heroes wear capes. Sometimes they drive buses. For those who call the South Burlington school district “home,” Steve Rexford has been a familiar face behind the wheel for nearly 15 years serving families and teams in more ways than driving the bus. And now, after Rexford was diagnosed with a lung disease that prevents him from working, some families in the district are taking every opportunity to give back to a man who they say has given so much to them throughout the years. Sports teams have launched a fundraising campaign on GoFundMe to help provide critical medical care for Rexford, specifically to help him pay for medication that prolongs his life and makes him more comfortable.

“Since day one, he’s been a highly requested bus driver for us because he cares about us, he treats us with respect, he laughs with us and absolutely loves being a part of our teams and watching us play and grow as players and people,” South Burlington High School girls varsity soccer coach Lindsay Austin-Hawley said. “My grandfather was always a huge part of my athletic playing career and now to have Steve playing that grandfather role to me as a coach is really meaningful.”

Not only has he been referred to as the soccer, field hockey and lacrosse team’s designated grandpa, but he has also been named the team’s “good luck charm,” bussing

See PIZZA HUT on page 12 See REXFORD on page 11

PHOTO BY JANICE RUSSOTTI

Just another beautiful sunset and Adirondack view over Shelburne Bay from Queen City Park in South Burlington.

COREY MCDONALD STAFF WRITER

South Burlington queues up remaining ARPA funds

COREY MCDONALD STAFF WRITER

With $2.1 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds left to spend, South Burlington officials are queuing up how and where to allocate the money.

The city has 14 months remaining from a December 2024 deadline to allocate the money. It has already spent $3.7 million of the original $5.6 million but has earned roughly $200,000 in interest since then.

“As we gear up for the budget process, we wanted to give you a reminder of where we were and provide some opportunity for you to give us direction about what you would like to see next,” city manager Jessie Baker said during a council meeting this month. “These funds are really meant to be transformational for our community, so what are the things that you want to do over the next four years?”

Much of the funds already spent have been to match grants — one for the city’s Illuminate VT program, and one for an ash tree replacement program, for example. Notably, the city in May 2022 allocated $1 million as a carrot to encourage more affordable housing development.

The city has also spent $810,000 to restore three city staff positions

and has spent $1.7 million to fund deferred capital projects.

At their meeting this month, city councilors agreed in principle to fund several initiatives. About $1 million will be allocated to support the future procurement of a “city green” in City Center — an event space for the growing downtown area.

“One of the things that we’ve heard very strongly when we were planning for the city center was the concept of a green where you could have events that would draw people,” Baker said.

Other allocations would send $200,000 to match funds to buildout a new bike path on Spear Street; $150,000 to modernize the city’s permitting and billing system by making it paperless; and $280,000 for the city’s parks and recreation department — which would go toward a master plan for the city’s parks and would fund deferred maintenance on existing facilities.

ARPA funding for the recreation and parks committee would mark a “transformational investment in South Burlington’s recreation and parks services and infrastructure,” Mike Simoneau, the acting chair of the committee, said in a letter to the council last year, and would “resolve longstanding deferred maintenance, bring South Burlington’s infrastructure onto a

Pedestrian killed on Shelburne Road

level of quality commensurate with neighboring towns, and increase access to our parks in an equitable manner.”

The council also agreed, preliminarily, to allocate more than $300,000 over two years to fund the salary of a director of climate initiatives — a staff member who would work to implement and procure federal funding for the city’s goals laid out in its climate action plan.

But there were questions around that allocation.

Councilor Tyler Barnes asked whether the funds should be used to pay a salary that will shift onto the general budget in a few years’ time.

Councilor Andrew Chalnick, the former vice chair of the city’s climate task force, said that those

A pedestrian was killed crossing Shelburne Road on Monday around 8:45 p.m., according to South Burlington police.

A vehicle hit the pedestrian at the intersection of Fayette Drive. Police said despite life-saving measures on scene the pedestrian later died the University of Vermont Medical Center.

The driver, who was also taken to hospital, was screened for intoxication, a standard

funds would “leverage themselves. We hire a person for whatever it costs, and the hope is they bring in 10x in grants.”

part of any fatal motor vehicle crash, police said.

Police released little information, calling the investigation active.

The South Burlington Fire Department, Vermont State Police, and Shelburne Police Department assisted at the scene of the crash.

Witnesses are asked to contact Det. Martin Maloney at 802-846-4192 or mmaloney@southburlingtonpolice. org.

While the decisions are not final, it will give the city administration some guidance for the future.

South Burlington School Board debates whether to fill vacancy

debating whether to fill the position now or wait for the city-wide vote on Town Meeting Day.

Following the resignation of the South Burlington School Board’s newest member, Bryan Companion, the board is still

Companion was elected to the two-year seat in March, beating former South Burlington board chair Travia Childs by just 26 votes.

He submitted a letter of resignation on Sept. 11 citing a “lack of respect and civility” at board meetings for his departure.

“I will not participate in public criticism of others, nor do I wish to work in this type of environment,” he wrote in his letter. “I try to treat people in a respectful manner and believe my meeting conduct confirms this.”

Now, the four-member board must decide whether to appoint somebody to fill the open seat halfway through the year, a procedure explicitly outlined in South Burlington’s city charter.

“The South Burlington city charter indicates that when a vacancy occurs during the course of a particular year, the board has the right but not the obligation, the word is, ‘may’ fill that vacancy for the remainder of that particular year,” the district’s attorney, Joe

McNeil, said. “Then the language switches to ‘shall’ and indicates that the voters shall fill the vacancy for the remainder of the term at the annual city meeting in March. So, you may but you are not obligated to fill the vacancy between now and the March election. But there must be the question of an election put to the voters in March.”

Alex McHenry, the former chair, called the small size of the board “a problem,” said the seat should be filled immediately, and suggested finding someone with prior experience on the board or someone familiar with labor negotiations.

“I am in favor of opening up this vacancy to the public and doing the process as we did last time,” he said.

Board member Laura Williams, who was appointed to fill a vacancy through the same process last year, said that as a new member, it can be difficult to get up to speed on processes.

“Everyone’s already in the groove, and so it was hard,” she

LIBERTY DARR

STAFF WRITER

“So, you may but your are not obligated to fill the vacancy between now and the March election.”

— City attorney Joe McNeil

Late lawyer honored

Public Utility Commission seeks clean heat volunteers

The Vermont Public Utility Commission is seeking applications for membership on two advisory groups to help design Vermont’s potential clean heat standard program.

The commission will appoint members of the public and representatives of various organizations to serve on either its Technical Advisory Group or the Equity Advisory Group.

The Affordable Heat Act, or Act 18, directs the commission to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Vermont’s heating-fuel

SCHOOL BOARD

continued from page 2

said. “My own personal feeling is to leave it to the voters in March and have us just stay focused on what we need to do. We are in a really good position this year.”

Member Chelsea Tillinghast thought the vacancy could be a unique opportunity for someone who’s considering running for the board to get a taste of exactly what the workload is like but did not feel strong enough to cast a vote.

Board chair Kate Bailey said she would be more in favor of

sector and to design a regulatory structure based on clean heat credits.

The technical group will assist the commission in designing the ongoing management of the program and in developing the accounting methodology and values for clean heat credits and measures.

The mission of the equity group is to ensure that an equitable share of clean heat measures is delivered to low- and moderate-income Vermonters and that heating fuel remains affordable.

Send letters of interest to puc. businessmanager@vermont.gov or by mail to Business Manager, Vermont Public Utility Commis-

4th Floor, 112 State St., Montpelier VT 05620-2701 by Oct. 9.

Letters of interest should identify the advisory group on which the applicant seeks to serve; identify the entities or relevant groups, interests and expertise they seek to represent; describe their qualifications; and explain their reasons for wanting to serve.

bringing on a new member if the board had clearer set of goals, noting that with so much turnover, the board may not have as much credibility with the public right now.

“I really respect a transparent process and I think that we would be doing a better service to the community and building more trust if we were putting our time and intention into orienting ourselves to our role and our responsibilities as board

members,” she said.

Following the discussion, Bailey suggested taking action at a later meeting to give the board time to digest the entirety of the conversation, but McHenry made an immediate motion to open the vacancy for applications.

However, the board could not agree on a way forward, so no formal vote to open the vacancy was taken. Instead, the decision was tabled for discussion at the board’s Oct. 4 meeting.

sion,

COURTESY PHOTO

Many lawyers, judges, friends and family of the late Beth Danon were on hand for the unveiling of the plaque honoring her with the Vermont Association for Justice 2023 Frank G. Mahady Public Service Award. Danon received the award posthumously in recognition of her “vigorous advocacy on behalf of the people of Vermont and demonstrating the highest qualities of moral leadership and social justice.” The plaque will hang in the Chittenden County Courthouse just outside of the probate office where Danon donated much of her time and expertise as an attorney. Speakers included Vermont Superior Court Judge Helen Toor, Chittenden County Probate Judge Gregory Glennon, and attorneys Mary Kehoe, her sister, and Karen Allen, both pictured above as they unveil the plaque.

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Above: On Sept. 15, officers from the South Burlington police and fire departments, alongside friends, family and Special Olympics athletes, carried the Flame of Hope in the Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics to raise money and awareness.

Left: Officer Brianne Williamson with one of the participants.

Torch run

COURTESY PHOTOS

South Burlington Police Blotter: Sept. 18-24

Traffic stop: 31

Agency / public assists: 22

Welfare check: 19

Motor vehicle complaint: 17

Retail theft: 15

Foot patrol: 13

Suspicious event: 11

Accident: property damage: 11

Disturbance: 10

Trespass: 10

Directed patrol: 9

Field contact: 9

Alarm: 9

Larceny from motor vehicle: 7

Fraud: 7

911 hangup: 5

Unlawful mischief: 5

Juvenile problem: 4

Animal problem: 3

Leaving the scene of an accident: 2

Larceny from a structure: 1

DUI: 1

Total incidents: 274

Arrests:

Aug. 15 at 10:01 p.m., Grace L. St. Francis, 23, of St. Albans, was arrested for simple assault on Hinesburg Road.

Sept. 18 at 6:24 p.m., Jodi M. Palmer, 46, of Winooski, was arrested on an in-state warrant at Kirby Road Extension and Airport Parkway.

Sept. 20 at 1:52 a.m., Kimberly Dawn Concannon, 32, of Winooski, was arrested on an in-state warrant at Winding Brook Drive and Hinesburg Road.

Sept. 20 at 1:52 a.m., Jason R. Brown, 46, of Winooski, was arrested on an in-state warrant

at Winding Brook Drive and Hinesburg Road.

Sept. 20 at 10:01 p.m., Kayla M. Palmer, 29, of Berlin, was arrested on an in-state warrant on Williston Road.

Sept. 20 at 11:26 p.m., Slobodanka

Sehic, 46, of South Burlington, was arrested for driving under the influence, first offense, at Williston Road and Dorset Street.

Sept. 21 at 4:57 p.m., Jessica L. Ploof, 43, of Burlington, was arrested for false pretenses on Williston Road.

Sept. 22 at 12:45 a.m., Austin B. Robinson, 30, of Colchester, was arrested on an in-state warrant on Logwood Street.

Sept. 22 at 1:05 p.m., Geoffrey A. Gamble, 23, of Burlington, was arrested on an in-state warrant on Community Drive.

Sept. 24 at 11:15 a.m., Aaron J. Montgomery, 34, of Springfield, was arrested on an in-state warrant on Dorset Street.

Selected incidents:

Sept. 18 at 10:34 a.m., police performed a vacant house check on Fairway Drive.

Sept. 18 at 2:48 p.m., police are investigating an alleged drug possession incident on Dorset Street.

Sept. 19 at 9:58 a.m., a vehicle was reported stolen on Kennedy Drive.

Sept. 19 at 2:06 p.m., police were called to a report of a suicidal person on Timber Lane.

Sept. 19 at 2:55 p.m., police are investigated a burglary on

Williston Road.

Sept. 20 at 10:38 a.m., police performed a needle pickup at Airport Parkway and Berard Drive.

Sept. 20 at 2:47 p.m., a suspicious event was investigated on Keari Lane.

Sept. 20 at 6:12 p.m., a fraud was reported on Timber Lane.

Sept 20 at 7:41 p.m., an accident on Williston Road resulted in injury.

Sept. 21 at 10:49 a.m., a larceny from a motor vehicle was reported on Shelburne Road.

Sept. 21 at 8:58 p.m., a suspicious event was reported on Quarry Hill Road.

Sept. 22 at 12:57 p.m., police were called to Kennedy Drive to deal with a problem with a juvenile.

Sept. 22 at 3:10 p.m., someone reported threats on Anderson Parkway.

Sept. 23 at 12:48 a.m., a domestic assault was reported on Williston Road.

Sept. 23 at 2 a.m., someone eluded police at Hinesburg Road and Woodcrest Drive. The incident is under investigation.

Sept. 23 at 3:45 p.m., a stalking is being investigated on Gregory Drive.

Sept 23 at 9:57 p.m., a disturbance brought out police on Valley Ridge Road.

Sept. 24 at 2:14 p.m., a missing person was reported on Helen Avenue.

Sept. 24 at 5:15 p.m., a larceny from a motor vehicle was reported on Central Avenue.

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Fasten your seatbelts: Yet another Vermont futures project on the way

Guest Perspective

John McClaughry

Once again, Vermont’s future is the topic of an initiative by a high-powered collection of partners, this time under the auspices of the Vermont Chamber of Commerce.

A good case can be made that today is an apt time for another Futures report, hopefully free from interest group agendas. That’s because demographic trends, the COVID-19 pandemic, a crippling flood, billions of federal dollars, a soaring homelessness problem and the belief in a global climate emergency have put a lot of forces into motion to seek the driver’s seat for the state’s future.

Let’s look at some earlier efforts.

In 1987 Gov. Madeleine Kunin appointed a Governor’s Commission on Vermont’s Future, chaired by the former head of President Carter’s Environmental Protection Agency. This important person had settled in Vermont earlier that same year, and the governor seemed to think he was well suited to advise Vermonters on their state’s future.

Its theme was centralized control of land use to prevent private landowners from doing anything contrary to the public interest. That interest was to be defined and enforced through regulations ominously described by Kunin as “uniform in standard, specific in requirements, and tough on delinquents.”

The Legislature passed Act 200 of 1988, but her longed-for state land controls faded away soon

after passage, when 125 towns adopted resolutions condemning the scheme.

In 2006 the Ethan Allen Institute, aided by a Project Advisory Group heavy with economists and business leaders, produced a report entitled “Off the Rails: Changing Economics, Accumulating Obligations: How Will Vermont Cope with a Challenging Future?” Alas, its analysis, projections, warnings and recommendations did not appeal to legislators and others determined to extend the reach and responsibilities of state government and find some way to extract the new costs from increasingly overburdened and overregulated taxpayers.

In 2021 the federally funded Vermont Council on Rural Development held 22 rural summits around the state to learn what our communities need to do, and to stand for … to build a successful, prosperous and unified Vermont in 2050.” It produced “The Vermont Proposition” featuring, as I wrote at the time, “what you would get if you assembled a dozen of the most high-minded, most sincere, politically correct liberals in the state, who as liberals are not at all hesitant to use the power of government to make sure everyone falls in line with the grand vision.”

“The Vermont Proposition” was the first to point to the supposed climate emergency to bolster its pleas for bold action to defeat “the existential threat of our time” that if unaddressed, “will result in catastrophic impacts on communities, states and ultimately on world civilization.”

Its leading proposal was

carbon pricing, better known as a carbon tax, to generate a huge revenue flow to subsidize favored people and enterprises waging war against climate change.

In December 2021 the Vermont Climate Council, a government within the government, released its Climate Action Plan promoting similar far-reaching goals. Last May the Legislature approved the Vermont Climate Council’s clean heat standard over Gov. Phil Scott’s veto and gave the Public Utility Commission $2 million to find a workable way to impose higher costs on home and business heating fuel users without calling it a tax.

In January 2025 the Legislature will vote on this plan, designed to extract $500 million from heating fuel users by 2030.

And now comes the Vermont Futures Project. With a board of business-friendly leaders, the project is at work to use the magic of data to define updated economic development goals. Central to this work is the goal of increasing Vermont’s population to 802,000 and increasing housing inventory to 350,000 non-seasonal units by 2035.

“It’s essential that we invest in strategies and remove barriers to strengthen our economy, scale up Vermont’s impact on sustainability, and make progress on social equity,” executive director Kevin Chu said. “Vermont needs to prioritize helping the people who will be most affected by climate change.”

Climbing aboard the Climate Catastrophe Express and declaring for social equity are predictably necessary to gain sympathetic attention for data-driven recommendations these days.

Without prejudging what one hopes will be a timely and useful report, it’s certainly debatable whether a 24 percent increase in the state’s population will assure Vermont’s happy future. If most of the new arrivals come here to work for and create businesses, hire workers, pay taxes and sell products into a national or global market, it would be a very happy day.

If the bulk of the new residents are unskilled immigrants fleeing socialist regimes, plus non-workers who come here to sample Vermont’s generous benefit programs, participate in the controlled substance trade and demand the many varieties of social justice ... well, not so fast.

"Every day I see my child building confidence, academic integrity, and a broader and deeper understanding of the world."

- Current Parent

John McClaughry writes for the Ethan Allen Institute, a conservative think tank in Vermont.

Old-growth forests are a call to action

Into the Woods

Ethan Tapper

On a highly altered landscape, the idea of an old-growth forest is captivating to many. But what are old-growth forests? Why do they matter?

Some would say that the only true old-growth forests are primary forests — the tiny fraction that has never been extensively altered by humans or by humans of European descent. Others would say that an old-growth forest is any forest that is old, one that has escaped extensive disturbance for a long period of time, usually at least several centuries.

Others would say that a forest becomes old-growth when it attains late-successional characteristics, the suite of traits common to many older forests. These characteristics include multiple generations of trees — what I call multi-generationality — some big, old trees and lots of dead wood on the forest floor.

By any definition, most people have never seen an old-growth forest in Vermont, or anywhere in eastern North America. Unless you specifically seek out one of our few remnant old-growth forests, a walk in Vermont’s woods will carry you through an area that was a field or a clearcut within the last 150 years, and probably as recently as the 1960s.

Most of Vermont’s forests are just 60-100 years old — just at the beginning of their centuries or millennia-long journey toward old-growth. While old-growth forests once covered more than 90 percent of Vermont, today the number is closer to 0.1 percent — perhaps one thousand acres in total.

What are old-growth forests like? While they are defined by their irregularity and their variability, which make it difficult to generalize, old-growth forests — whether they are primary or just old — often feature those late-successional characteristics. While the most obvious of these is big, old trees — but not a lot, often just 10-12 per acre — old-growth is equally characterized by multi-generationality, by tons of dead wood on the forest floor, by a canopy filled with gaps and by deep, well-developed soils. Interestingly, while many people imagine that old-growth forests are

peaceful and easy to appreciate, these qualities make them seem incredibly messy, chaotic, even jarring.

From an ecological perspective, old-growth forests are not just valuable because they’re old. They’re valuable because of these characteristics. On a landscape that was once dominated by old growth, the characteristics mentioned above are the conditions to which our native flora and fauna have adapted for thousands of years. Each of these characteristics supports vital natural processes and provides important habitats for wildlife, and all are woefully underrepresented on our modern landscape.

The rareness and uniqueness of old-growth forests has convinced some people that the best thing for our forests is just to leave them alone. Unfortunately, this is not so. While we should certainly protect all existing old growth forests and set aside some unmanaged reserves, we need to acknowledge that our forests are facing an apocalyptic array of threats and stressors: they have been cleared and exploited; have lost native species and had non-natives introduced; and are simultaneously navigating a climate crisis, a biodiversity crisis and a mass extinction event. Many, if not most, of our forests have been altered to an extent where they will likely never become old growth without our help. Of the forests that may someday become old growth on their own, this process will likely take two or three centuries, leaving our planet and our biodiversity to suffer in the meantime.

While we say Not in My Backyard to local forest management, forests — including old-growth forests — will be exploited across the world to feed the need for resources, forcing peoples and ecosystems elsewhere to bear the cost of our consumption. As we pretend that the beauty and the importance of old growth means that we should leave every forest unmanaged, forests and the biological communities that they support will continue to suffer without our help.

To me, old-growth forests are a call to action. At a time when old-growth is more needed than ever before, we can use forest management to create old-growth characteristics, and the myriad habitats and benefits that they

provide, in decades rather than centuries. We can do so while protecting biodiversity, sequestering and storing carbon, producing local, renewable resourcesand

supporting a vibrant and just local and global economy.

To me, this is a far greater tribute to old growth than leaving every forest alone.

Ethan Tapper is the Chittenden County forester for the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation. See what he’s been up to at linktr.ee/chittendencountyforester.

COURTESY PHOTO

A tip up creates a gap in an old-growth forest.

Diaper drive

The Family Center of Washington County holds its annual diaper drive during October. Families need diapers in all sizes, from infant to pull-ups, as well as baby wipes. Community members and businesses can drop diapers off at the Community Outreach Building during regular business, 383 Sherwood Drive in Montpelier. The diaper bank distributed over 19,939 diapers to 216 children in need, and 10,384 diapers to eight community partners. From right, Charity Clark, attorney general of Vermont, drops off diapers at the center’s diaper bank with Claire Kendall, its co-executive director.

Community Notes

Walk or run to support George Cannon Scholarship Fund

Don’t forget that the 11th annual George Cannon 5K Walk/Run is Sunday, Oct. 1.

The event starts at 9:30 a.m. with registration at 9 a.m., at South Burlington High School.

Prizes are awarded. Wear superhero costumes or the color green in honor of the late George Cannon, a popular South Burlington teacher.

The event is being organized by high school students and costs $5 to participate. All proceeds benefit the Cannon Memorial Scholarship Fund.

Champlain Water District win’s best tasting award

Champlain Water District water was named the best tasting water in New England among 10 participants for the second year in a row in a blind taste test contest held at the New England Water Works Association’s conference on Sept. 19.

This is the third time the district has achieved this honor.

The Best Drinking Water trophy is presently on display at the district’s water treatment facility at 403 Queen City Park Road, South Burlington.

“The award reflects CWD’s dedication to providing high quality drinking water to our 83,000 customers in Chittenden County. It takes a team of qualified and passionate employees to do what we do,

with a supportive elected governing Board,” general manager Joe Duncan said.

Stop by and see bike, ped committee at energy festival

The South Burlington Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee will join the Energy Committee at the South Burlington Energy Festival on Saturday, Sept. 30, from 10 a.m.- 2 p.m. on Market Street in front of city hall.

The committee will share information about Penny for Paths projects and ask the public for feedback on where they would like to see a new shared-use path, sidewalk or crosswalk constructed. The committee will participate later this fall in the creation of a bicycle and pedestrian master plan using a consultant funded through the city and the Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission and is seeking public input on the plan.

At the festival, enjoy valet bike parking courtesy of Local Motion, e-bike demos organized by the energy committee and a demonstration about how to fix a flat tire by emergency services personnel at noon in the senior center.

In addition, if you ride your bike to the event, you can receive a free bicycle safety check courtesy of Mark Quinlan of Boppawheelie, a bicycle repair service in South Burlington. Those cycling to the event

DianeVonFurstenberg,Shoshanna,Alice&Olivia,ShonaJoy,Trinaturk,Halston, Hutch,JulieVos,MoniqueL'huillier,Milly,MacDuggal,TedBaker,Josephribkoff,soia&kyo...

COURTESY PHOTO

Discover

Epic A.J. by Grayson Dailey

COMMUNITY NOTES

continued from page 8

will also receive a free raffle ticket being managed by Local Motion at the valet parking tent for bike-themed prizes including a Camelback hydration pack and Bontrager helmet from Earl’s Cyclery and other prizes.

Another raffle for all attendees will feature over $3,000 in prizes donated by local businesses. Those prizes include 25 bike helmets donated by Bird Bike Share.

UVM Extension holds two agritourism webinars

University of Vermont Extension is hosting two free webinars for agritourism operators in October.

“Legislation to Support Agritourism in the United States” will be held via Zoom on Wednesday, Oct. 4, at 1 p.m. U.S. Rep. Jennifer Wexton from Virginia and other legislative leaders will present information about the purpose and intent of the bipartisan Agritourism Act, designed to create an Office of Agritourism in the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The office will represent the interests of agritourism enterprises and consolidate federal resources, such as loans, grants and broadband connectivity programs, to sustain these businesses.

To register, go to go.uvm.edu/legislation.

The following Wednesday, on Oct. 11, “Growing the Global Agritourism Network: Findings from Evaluations of Webinars and Conferences,” will begin at 10 a.m. This Zoom session includes an update on the Global Agritourism Network, which was established earlier this year to enhance the capacity of agritourism worldwide.

Register at go.uvm.edu/growing-agtourism.

Shelburne Age Well offers Grab and Go meal Oct. 10

Age Well and St. Catherine’s of Siena Parish in Shelburne are teaming up to provide a meal to go for anyone age 60 and older on Tuesday, Oct. 10

The meal will be available for pick up in the parking lot at 72 Church St. from 11 a.m. until noon and are available for anyone 60 or older. Suggested donation is $5.

The menu is chicken cacciatore, wheat rotini pasta, peas and carrots, wheat bread, pumpkin cookie and milk.

To order a meal contact Kathleen at agewellstcath@gmail.com or 802-5031107. Deadline to order is Wednesday, Oct 4. If this is a first-time order, provide your name, address, phone number and date of birth.

Learn more at agewellvt.org.

1547 Hardwick Street East Hardwick

Monday-Saturday, 8am-6pm

them to nearly every game and standing on the sidelines showing support after the bus is parked.

South Burlington parent Tricia Kelley remembers a time just three years ago when both the field hockey and soccer team made it to the championships, and the first question on everyone’s mind was, “who was going to drive soccer and who was going to drive field hockey?”

“We didn’t know the schedule yet,” Kelley said. “We were praying that they weren’t going to be at the same time because we were ready to throw down the gloves and start fighting for Steve.”

Luckily, the games had staggered times and Rexford was able to bus both teams, who both ended up winning.

“He always made it work no matter how difficult it would have been,” she said.

Kelley said that both of her daughters have known Rexford since middle school, and he has played a major role in their athletic career like dozens of other South Burlington families throughout the years. Even after students went to college, Rexford would frequent their college games if it wasn’t too far.

“I saw some comments from people whose kids had graduated from South Burlington years ago and Steve’s still an important

part of their lives,” Kelley said, noting that her oldest daughter Rachel still makes it a point to give Rexford a hug when she visits games.

Rexford said bus driving started really as an afterthought when he retired from IBM but has become much more like a passion project than a job. The gig, in turn, gave way to another favorite pastime: photography.

Kelley explained that during senior night, Rexford is the one making special posters for each of the girls and gives them a special gift that usually has a picture of all the seniors together.

“He takes photos at every game,” coach Austin-Hawley said. “That brings such positive, memories for the players and the parents.”

For Rexford, the South Burlington community is more like family, and driving bus gave a whole new meaning to his life.

“I feel like South Burlington was my second family,” he said. “Without doing that, I don’t know what I would be doing now. I just love doing it and then it is getting harder for me now because of the lung disease and knee problems, but I’m still able to get out there and do the pictures.”

Although getting out to the field has become more difficult, Kelley said it’s still

rare to look over to the sidelines and not see Rexford with his camera.

“He’s always there for them and even though he has to have oxygen now, he’s like, ‘I wouldn’t miss this for the world.’”

Within less than 24 hours of launching the fundraising campaign last month, organized by Monica Ostby, the effort raised more than $10,000 in support. As of Tuesday, $12,595 of a $15,000 had been raised.

“We knew that our families cared for him, but even he had no idea what he’s meant to

other families, players and coaches. It’s true, that communities do come together in tough times,” Kelley said. “It is really amazing to see.”

Rexford says he considers himself lucky to have found the South Burlington School District community all those years ago and he looks forward to continuing with what he does best: taking photos and cheering on his teams.

“I just don’t know how I can thank the people of South Burlington enough for what they’ve done to help me.”

Steve Rexford

COURTESY PHOTOS

Steve Rexford with girls soccer coach Lindsay Austin-Hawley, left, and assistant coaches after the 2020 state title win.

PIZZA HUT

continued from page 1

South Burlington’s inclusionary zoning law requires that new housing developments include affordable units totaling 15 percent of the overall number of units, to keep a mix of both affordable and market-rate apartments.

If, for example, a developer wants to build 40 units of housing, six of those would have to be affordable.

But a disagreement over the calculation of the number of affordable units has brought this project to a halt.

Developers, under city statute, can receive density bonuses for including more than the required number of affordable units, which would then allow the property owners to build additional marketrate units over the amount that city statute allows in this specific zoning district.

In this case, 30 units have been proposed — 10 more units that the city’s base zoning density unit-maximum — with seven affordable units. But the city DRB has argued that the developer needs 10 such units to meet the city’s requirements.

“The board finds the applicant must revise the inclusionary unit count to 10 by converting three additional market rate units in the multifamily building, one per floor, in order to achieve the requested bonus and permit 30 total units to be built,” the board wrote in its decision.

Also at issue is whether the proposed Chase Bank would be able to include a drive-up ATM on the property, which members have said is not permitted under current zoning regulations.

Property owner Gary Bourne has since appealed this decision to Vermont Environmental Court.

“I have no interest in starting a project that the city doesn’t want,” he said. “(But) if this doesn’t go the

way we’re hoping, we do have to step back and take a hard look at the whole thing. I’m hoping the Environmental Court will make a decision one way or the other.”

The final application for the property was first received in February. The project has for years sat as an “eye sore” on the property, Irene Bourne, one of the property owners, said at a development review board meeting.

“It looks horrendous, and I’d really like to know what the board thinks is the best use for that site,” she said.

Philibert during the meeting said that the board “would not disagree with you that the appearance of that area, currently, is horrendous, as you say.”

“However, the board has given a great deal of feedback and we’ve spent a lot of time discussing our concerns about things such as the inclusionary units, the calculation of that, and in particular the driveup ATM,” she said. “It’s not our responsibility to suggest what we think should be a good plan.”

“The regulations exist for a reason (and) I feel like the board has given the applicant plenty of feedback about things we’re concerned about in this proposal at it currently exists,” she said.

Gary Bourne, a Massachusetts resident originally from Morristown, owned and operated the gas station since 1981 before it was shut down. He then purchased the adjoining Pizza Hut lot, as well as a third lot, in recent years with the goal of developing the three properties.

“2020 is when we first had architects meet with the planning professional staff before we started to get a sense of direction, and what would be supported,” he said. “But it’s been a long, drawn-out thing, and it looks like it probably has a ways to go yet.”

PUBLIC HEARING SOUTH BURLINGTON DEVELOPMENT REVIEW BOARD

The South Burlington Development Review Board will hold a public hearing in the South Burlington City Hall auditorium, 180 Market Street, South Burlington, Vermont, or online or by phone, on Tuesday, October 17, 2023, at 7:00 P.M. to consider the following:

Master plan application #MP-23-01 of John Larkin, Inc., to establish a master plan for an approximately 40 acre existing PUD consisting of 270 residential units in eight multi-family buildings, a 20,000 sf movie theater, a 22,500 sf restaurant/medical office building, and a 3,500 sf restaurant with drive through. The master plan includes four phases and consists of adding approximately 92,105 sf of commercial space including a 110 room hotel, approximately 281 homes in multifamily and mixed use buildings, 6 homes in two-family buildings, approximately 5 acres of programmed and passive open spaces, and extending a city street, 1185 Shelburne Road.

Board members will be participating in person. Applicants and members of the public may participate in person or remotely either by interactive online meeting or by telephone:

• Interactive Online Meeting (audio & video): us06web.zoom.us/j/89369317171

• By Telephone (audio only): (646) 931-3860, Meeting ID: 893 6931 7171

A copy of the application is available for public inspection by emailing Marla Keene, Development Review Planner, mkeene@southburlingtonvt.gov.

September 28, 2023

Take a timeout for turtles: nesting beach cleanup day

The annual spiny softshell turtle beach cleanup day is Saturday, Oct. 14, and the Department of Fish and Wildlife is looking for volunteers to help.

Participants should rrive at North Hero State Park at 10 a.m. After finishing at North Hero, the group will carpool to another site in Swanton.

Volunteers will pull up vegetation on nesting beaches to prepare turtle nesting sites for next year. They may also find a few hatchlings that occasionally remain in nests underground this late in the year. In addition to threatened spiny softshell turtles, these nest sites are also used by map turtles, painted turtles and snapping turtles.

Some of these hatchling turtles will be raised in captivity by the ECHO Leahy Center for Lake Champlain while they are small and most vulnerable to predation.

Wildlife Briefs

They will be released back into Lake Champlain next spring.

Participants should wear layers of warm clothes and bring water, work gloves, a leaf rake, short-handled tools such as trowels, and their own lunch.

For more information, contact Toni Mikula at toni.mikula@ vermont.gov.

Vermont hunters can report some kills online

Vermont hunters will be able to report turkeys and some deer they harvest this fall online at vtfishandwildlife.com.

Turkeys may be reported online or in-person at a regional big game reporting station.

Deer may be reported online or in-person during the archery and muzzleloader seasons, but deer must be reported in-person during the youth and novice deer hunting weekend on Oct. 21-22 and during

the regular deer season on Nov. 11-26. This in-person reporting requirement allows biologists to collect important information from deer during these seasons.

Bears must be reported in-person at a regional big game reporting station.

Wildlife officials release list of tracking dogs

The list of certified leashed tracking dog owners who volunteer during the hunting seasons to help hunters locate deer or bear that have been shot during hunting season but not yet recovered has been released.

The leashed tracking dog owners, who provide their services free of charge, must pass an extensive exam in order to be certified and licensed.

This list, which may be updated during hunting seasons, is available at vtfishandwildlife.com.

COURTESY PHOTO

A spiny softshell turtle hatchling. Spiny softshell turtles are listed as threatened on Vermont’s threatened and endangered species list.

FILE PHOTO

The shuttered Pizza Hut on Shelburne Road and Swift Street.

Boys’ soccer team remains undefeated

Boys’ soccer

South Burlington 4, Mount Mansfield 3: Mateo Duracek stuck in overtime to lift the South Burlington boys’ soccer team over Mount Mansfield on Saturday, Sept. 23.

Duracek’s game winner came on a long-distance strike to give the Wolves the win in a back-andforth affair.

Hammad Ali had one goal and two assists for South Burlington, while Gabriel Gelfenbein and Jackson Adams each added a goal.

Connor Maxwell chipped in an assist for the Wolves, who moved to 6-0.

Football

South Burlington-Burlington 25, Colchester 12: The South Burlington-Burlington co-op football team grabbed its first win of the season on Friday, Sept. 22, beating Colchester 25-12.

Andre Bouffard broke a 12-12 tie with a touchdown in the fourth quarter to put the SeaWolves ahead for good. Ahmed Diawara had two touchdowns and Liam O’Connor also scored a TD.

The SeaWolves moved to 1-3.

Cross country

The boys’ and girls’ cross-country teams headed to New Hampshire on Saturday for the Manchester Invitational.

Kelly Brush Ride raises $1.1 million

Paige Poirier was the top finisher for the Wolves, coming in 37th. Marina Fisher followed in 53rd, with Callie Beyor in 57th and Maggie Clark in 64th.

For the boys, Sky Valin was the first Wolves runner across the finish line in 42nd. Austin Simone came in 46th. Odin Cloutier (136th) and Daniel Jackson (137th) rounded out the finishers.

Girls’ soccer

Champlain Valley 1, South Burlington 0: South Burlington gave up the lone goal and the Wolves fell to rival Champlain Valley in soccer action Friday.

Alisa McLean made 13 saves in a losing effort, while the Wolves drop to 3-3.

Boys’ golf

South Burlington came in with the lowest score on Thursday to capture first place at the North Country Invitational at Newport Country Club.

Teddy Maynard had the low score for the Wolves with a 76, Jay Eagle followed with a 77 and Sawyer Bond had a 78. Evan Marchessault rounded out the scorers with an 81.

Garrett Cameron of Spaulding earned medalist honors with 70.

Girls’ volleyball

Essex 3, South Burlington 0: The girls dropped three sets to fall to Essex on Thursday, Sept. 21.

The Wolves lost each set 25-15 and dropped to 4-2.

SALES EXECUTIVE

Award-winning group of community weeklies with offices in Stowe, Morrisville and South Burlington seeks a sales person. Ideal candidate should have a basic knowledge of the local towns, business and communities we serve. A proven track record in sales and an ability to offer topnotch customer service is a required. In addition to servicing established accounts, candidate must be able to generate sales from qualified leads as well as establish new ones. Our company offers health benefits, vacation time, and provides on the job training in newspapers sales. Generous base salary during training and ideal hours (few nights or weekends). If you possess these qualifications and would like to be considered, please send your resume and cover letter to: Bryan Meszkat at bryan@newsandcitizen.com.

The annual Kelly Brush Ride raised more than $1.1 million to support the Kelly Brush Foundation’s mission of helping people with spinal cord injuries return to sport. The race, held Sept. 9, drew 953 participants, including 36 hand cyclists, making it the largest adaptive cycling event in Vermont. With 30 days left to fundraise, the foundation is hoping to hit its $1.2 million goal. Donations are welcome at kellybrushfoundation.org/ride.

LAUREN READ CORRESPONDENT

COURTESY PHOTO

Eat and Be Hoopy!

Piano Lessons

RABIES BAIT

continued from page 2

The week-long bait drop is a cooperative effort between Vermont and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services to stop the spread of the potentially fatal disease.

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September 28, 2023