A look back at 2009: Capital City has a year of ups and downs
Toolbox
By SUSAN ALLEN TIMES ARGUS STAFF - Published: December 30, 2009
MONTPELIER – In many ways, 2009 felt like a long year in Montpelier.
The city moved from severe traffic snarls this summer to the disclosure in October of an enormous accounting error made in 2004, to a serious fire that damaged the Senior Activity Center.
Although the news wasn't all bad, the big stories of 2009 included:
Scott Construction
Mayor Mary Hooper and City Manager William Fraser disclosed in October that the city had mistakenly cut a check from the water fund for $548,111 to Scott Construction Inc. of Newport on Dec. 22, 2004. The amount should have been $85,775.
The $462,336 overpayment was subsequently cashed by Scott Construction and the mistake wasn't discovered by the city until 2006. The city had collected nearly $115,000 of that overpayment, but feared losing the remainder after the Chittenden Bank called in a $4.8 million loan to the company.
The City Council and administration took heat from the public for failing to fully disclose the error for three years, and State Auditor of Accounts Thomas Salmon stepped in to supervise a public committee to set up an official audit of the city's financial systems and the mistake to ensure it never happens again.
The city received good news in mid-December that its errors and omissions insurance policy would cover the mistake, reimbursing the water fund for the full amount lost plus interest and expenses.
Senior center
A fire broke out on the night of Dec. 14 in the crafts room of the Senior Activity Center at 58 Barre Street, seriously damaging the building and forcing activities to be moved to new locations around the city. The Senior Center's annual holiday dinner had been scheduled for Dec. 15, but after news of its cancellation, businesses, schools and organizations stepped forward with offers of help.
Transportation
The Montpelier City Council in July authorized nighttime paving on two major construction projects along Routes 2 and 302 after traffic snarls led to long waits in traffic, angry calls to City Hall to complain about the work, and fears of businesses on and near the roadway that lost customers as a result of the tie-ups.
In August, the City Council finally – after months of discussions – approved City Hall as the new Greyhound bus stop. The stop had been on Taylor Street, but had to be moved after contaminants were found in the soil at that site.
In November, Hooper learned that a plan to increase rail service in central Vermont to serve Rock of Ages granite company will route several trains daily through Montpelier. Hooper voiced concern about the plan's impact on the city's historic downtown, prompting harsh criticism from Barre Mayor Thomas Lauzon, who had hoped to keep the plan quiet until it could be presented to the public in a planned format.
Schools
The Montpelier School Board, at the invitation of the Washington Central Supervisory Union's Executive Committee, began a serious study of possible consolidation of everything from the two districts' superintendent duties to shared academic programs to the merger of Montpelier High School and U-32 Middle and High School in East Montpelier. That work will continue in 2010.
Then-school Superintendent Stephen Metcalf died on June 11 after a battle with bile duct cancer, a rare, incurable and inoperable form of the disease. Metcalf spoke publicly about his illness to help the school community deal with the loss and learn from the experience.
Fearing too few players, the Montpelier High School boys' hockey team joined forces in November with Northfield and Randolph High Schools to form one large team.
And in June, Vermont's Roman Catholic Diocese announced it was closing St. Michael's elementary school in Montpelier and consolidating it with St. Monica's in Barre in the face of declining student enrollment.
Landmark businesses
Several longtime businesses came up for sale in 2009. The Savoy Theater, The Coffee Corner, the Walker Motors Ford dealership and Somers Hardware found buyers.
For several months, the Vermont League of Cities and Towns considered moving its headquarters from City Center to locations elsewhere in Montpelier – primarily the Elks Club property – and in other communities. A deal with the Elks club fell through in March, prompting the League to extend its lease with City Center for now.
The New England Culinary Institute board voted in May to close its Essex campus and move its administrative offices to Montpelier.
And the City Council in July gave Charlie O's bar on Main Street permission for outdoor seating, commonly called a 'beer garden.' That plan ran into snags, however, and was not implemented this year.
Community
Scores of people turned out in front of Montpelier City Hall on Sept. 1 to protest the arrival of five members of the Westboro Baptist Church of Kansas, who traveled to Vermont to protest a gay marriage law. The Westboro group travels the country to promote an anti-Semitic, anti-gay agenda.
Montpelier was dubbed by AARP the Magazine as No. 3 on the list of "Best Places to Live the Simple Life."
In April, Vice President Joseph Biden called Montpelier's Fraser to find out how things were going with the federal stimulus package – one of five communities the vice president called. "It was an honor to be included … It was fun. I wish we had another hour to get into it in detail," Fraser said of the call.
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