Rescuers search lake for missing man
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Times Argus Staff
Times Argus Staff
Times Argus Staff - Published: March 3, 2009
COLCHESTER (AP) — Rescuers are searching Lake Champlain for a man who disappeared from Mallets Bay early Monday morning.
Police say 45-old David Leavitt, of Burlington, told people at Nightcrawlers, a Colchester bar, that he planned to drive his Jeep Cherokee onto the lake around 12:30 a.m. Monday.
Colchester police say witnesses told them Leavitt had been drinking.
Colchester Police Lt. Doug Allen says Leavitt called 911 from his cell phone shortly before 1 a.m. asking for help but wasn't specific.
The call was traced to an area in Colchester that includes Mallets Bay.
The U.S. Coast Guard and police are currently searching for him.
Deputy agency head disciplined for outburst
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) — The deputy secretary of Vermont's Natural Resources Agency has been disciplined for an outburst at an environmental group employee.
John Sayles says he lost his temper, yelling and swearing at Mike Rapacz of the Conservation Law Foundation outside a meeting of the Lake Champlain Basin steering committee in Plattsburgh, N.Y., in late November.
Agency Secretary Jonathan Wood wrote to CLF to apologize and say that Sayles had received disciplinary and corrective action to ensure he does not exhibit such behavior again.
Sayles also has been removed as the state's representative on the Lake Champlain Basin steering committee.
New CEO at Vermont Teddy Bear Co.
SHELBURNE, Vt. (AP) — Vermont Teddy Bear Co. is turning to a veteran marketing executive for its top job.
The Shelburne company, which makes gift bears and other novelties, announced Monday that John Gilbert — former marketing chief for The TJX Companies, Inc. — has been named president and CEO.
Gilbert, a specialist in brand management, advertising and consumer strategy, formerly worked for Dunkin' Donuts, Yum! and PepsiCo, Inc. Vermont Teddy Bear board chairman Bob Crowley says the 52-year-old Gilbert is a natural choice to lead the company's next chapter.
Vermont Teddy Bear, which is a direct-to-consumer company, announced in January that it was laying off 35 people and closing a retail store to cope with the economic downturn.
In Burlington, $9.7 million bond on ballot
BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — Voters in Burlington are being asked to approve a $9.7 million bond to pay for repairs and renovations at school buildings.
If approved Tuesday, school officials say, the money would go to replace boilers at the J.J. Flynn school and windows at C.P. Smith school and fortify a failing roof at Lawrence Barnes School.
Schools Superintendent Jeanne Collins says the work would ultimately save taxpayers money on energy and on emergency repairs.
Voters also are also being asked to approve a school budget with a 9.1 percent increase.
Castleton, Fair Haven look to merge police
RUTLAND, Vt. (AP) — Officials in Castleton and Fair Haven are considering joining to form a regional police force.
Castleton Police Chief Bruce Sherwin says that by sharing expenses between two communities, the towns could save money. Fair Haven Police Chief William Humphries says the departments duplicate work in some areas, including infrastructure and computer access.
And Castleton Town Manager Charles Jacien says Poultney — whose police force was disbanded in the 1970s — has also expressed an interest in a regional police force.
The towns are also looking for information from states where joint forces are more common, including Pennsylvania and Indiana.
In Manchester, voters hold off on wind project
MANCHESTER, Vt. (AP) — Residents of Manchester are putting off a decision on a wind project proposed for Little Equinox mountain.
At Town Meeting on Saturday, a question that asked if the town should support the installation of wind turbines on the mountain was deemed too vague.
Select Board member Michael Kilburn said the nonbinding question was put on the ballot after town officials were told a small, temporary wind research project was being proposed for the mountain. In 2006, the town voted to oppose a larger wind project that has yet to come to fruition.
Shumlin concedes 1 point to administration
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) — Vermont Senate President Pro Tem Peter Shumlin has conceded one point in a barrage of allegations by the Douglas administration that he's been making inaccurate statements.
Shumlin says he misspoke when he said trimming two weeks from the legislative session would be a 14 percent cut in pay for lawmakers — it actually works out to 11 percent.
That was just one in a barrage of complaints administration officials voiced in letters sent to the Senate president last week.
The complaints range from the senator's statements about how many of Vermont's roads and bridges are in bad shape to the impact of the governor's budget proposals on local property taxes.
Mayor's race may be decided in instant runoff
BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — With four strong candidates for mayor of Burlington, it's looking increasingly likely that Tuesday's election will be decided by instant runoff voting.
Incumbent Progressive Mayor Bob Kiss is facing strong challenges from Democrat Andy Montroll, Republican Kurt Wright and independent candidate Dan Smith.
If no candidate gets 50 percent of the vote, the lowest vote-getter is dropped with his or her supporters' second-choice votes being counted.
So whoever is the second-choice candidate of the most voters could end up topping 50 percent and being elected mayor.
Dad, 23, charged
with child abuse
BRATTLEBORO (AP) — A 23-year-old Brattleboro man could face 17 years in prison if convicted on charges that he abused his 5-month-old baby.
Police say they were called to Brattleboro Memorial Hospital in November after the baby suffered a broken arm and neither Lukas Campbell nor the baby's mother could explain how it happened.
A follow-up exam 15 days later found two additional fractures, at each of the baby's ankles. Police say the baby had previously suffered a head injury.
The investigation resulted in police charging Campbell with first degree aggravated domestic assault and cruelty to a child under 10 years old.
Lake cleanup group targets phosphorus
SOUTH BURLINGTON — The Lake Champlain Basin Program says it's time to redouble efforts to reduce the amount of phosphorus flowing into the lake from farms and from urban and suburban runoff.
Vermont, New York, Quebec and U.S. federal agencies are involved in the effort. But Vermont is expected to play a big role, since it's the biggest contributor of phosphorus pollution to the lake.
In a draft plan, Vermont promises to keep cows out of the lake by 2012, expand efforts to use cover crops on farms to reduce runoff and install new wastewater treatment systems.
Vermont already has spent $100 million in state and federal funds on lake cleanup efforts since 2003.
Bellows Falls official regrets hiring lawyer
BELLOWS FALLS (AP) — The president of the village trustees in Bellows Falls is apologizing for not consulting the rest of the board before hiring a lawyer to help handle a dispute the village is having with the town of Rockingham.
Cathy Bergmann told a special meeting on the matter on Friday that "I made a mistake," in hiring Montpelier lawyer Paul Gillies, an expert in Vermont municipal law, without first getting a vote from the trustees.
The trustees and Rockingham Selectboard have been locked in a dispute over a contract for the municipal manager the village and town share.
The village already has spent nearly four times its budget for legal help, and Gillies has not yet issued his bill.
Deputy agency head disciplined for outburst
MONTPELIER (AP) — The deputy secretary of Vermont's Natural Resources Agency has been disciplined for an outburst at an environmental group employee.
John Sayles says he lost his temper, yelling and swearing at Mike Rapacz of the Conservation Law Foundation outside a meeting of the Lake Champlain Basin steering committee in Plattsburgh, N.Y., in late November.
Agency Secretary Jonathan Wood wrote to CLF to apologize and say that Sayles had received disciplinary and corrective action to ensure he does not exhibit such behavior again.
Sayles also has been removed as the state's representative on the Lake Champlain Basin steering committee.
Judge to rule whether city must release records
BURLINGTON (AP) — Lawyers have until Wednesday to submit written arguments in a dispute over whether the city of Burlington should release records related to alleged misconduct by the manager of the city's Community Boathouse.
William Rasch, an employee of the Parks and Recreation Department, alleges that boathouse manager Adam Cate illegally accessed his e-mails via the city's computer system. Rasch is suing the city and requesting that records on its investigation of Cate be made public.
The city is opposing the request, saying it doesn't want to violate Cate's privacy and that personnel matters should be kept secret.
Rasch's lawyer, John Franco, argues that some details already have been made public, and that city residents deserve to have full details on the matter.
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