Cavendish Update 6/12/09 H20/Events/Transfer St

This issue of the Cavendish Update is made possible by the Cavendish Community and Conservation Association (CCCA), a non-profit membership organization that is dedicated to the conservation of land and natural resources and to the preservation of historic sites within the context of sustainable economic growth. FMI: PO Box 605, Cavendish VT 05142 or 802-226-7736

The 6/12/09 Cavendish Update Contains
1. Select Board Meeting
2. Upcoming Events
3. Great deals at the Cavendish Fletcher Community Library this summer!
4. Cavendish Community Fund Awards Three New Grants
5. Healthy Choices Quilt
6. Transfer Station Beautification
7. Summit Soapworks Seeking Artists

1. Select Board Meeting
At the June 8 Select Board meeting, the following items were discussed:
A. Water
The new filtration system is starting to show water quality improvement in many areas of town. This is largely due to the reduction of iron in the water. It was anticipated that the iron levels would reduce quickly, which has been the case. The manganese (Mn), was projected to take 7-8 weeks for significant reduction. To date there has been a 20% reduction down to 1.7 mg/L. This is still well above the FDA standard of 0.05mg/L. The Health Advisory issued by the Vermont Department of Health remains in effect until levels are brought down to standard. The Health Advisory issued October 2006 states the following: “The Cavendish Public Water System has concentrations of manganese which exceed the Environmental Protection Agency and Vermont Department of Health lifetime Health Advisories of 0.3 mg/L. In 2005 and 2006, the levels of manganese in the Cavendish system were 2.5 mg/L and 2.1 mg/L, respectively.

Manganese is an essential element. However, most of the manganese needed on a daily basis comes from the food we eat. Long-term consumption of high concentrations of manganese in drinking water may cause adverse neurological health effects. Children and people with liver disease are more susceptible to the health effects of manganese. If you have specific health concerns, consult your doctor.”

Town wide flushing will take place later in June. Richard Svec, town manager, hopes to have the dates for the flushing, as well as recommendations for home pipe cleaning, by mid June.

B. Cavendish Historical Society
• When the pipes were being laid for the new water system, the electric line to the Stone Church in Cavendish was cut. The town has dug a trench for the new line. CVPS wants the meter off the pole, but because the Stone Church is an historic building, it can’t be placed there. There was discussion about refilling the trench until issues with CVPS and the electrician are finalized. The Historical Society would like this resolved as soon as possible as the Winston Churchill Retrospective will take place at the Stone Church the weekend of Old Home Day July 4-5 from noon to 4 pm.

• CHS explained how allocated town funding is used for building maintenance. Since 1973, CHS has received $2,000 per year for this purpose. Last year, the total building costs were $3,167. This year, the town voted to reduce the customary $2,000 to $1,800. To date, CHS has already spent close to $2,500 to make repairs on the Museum Building. The anticipated cost for the year is about $5,000. CHS pointed out that they do not have the funds to provide the upkeep on the many historic buildings and war memorials. The Select Board asked that CHS prepare a report on the needs and bring it back to them at a later date. CHS has agreed to do this and plans to discuss this with the Planning Commission, as the Town Plan recommends, “Provide management and protection guidelines to insure the conservation of cultural and historic resources.”

• CHS asked the Select Board to address the issue with the Proctor Cemetery, which is accessed from Main Street. While a survey has been done, which gives the town the right of way, the owner of the property keeps the access road blocked. Given that summer is a time when many people visit the town looking for genealogy information, and want to visit the graves of their ancestors, this is a problem that needs resolution sooner rather than later. Svec indicated that the current owner does not agree with the town survey about the access road. To that end, the Select Board has scheduled a site visit prior to their next meeting and plans to send a letter to the property owner asking them to demonstrate why they think the survey is incorrect. The owner will have 30 days to respond to this request.

C. Yard Sales and Junk Yard Ordinance
There is an increasing number of what appears to be permanent yard sales in the various towns. Svec indicated that the Town Office is receiving calls about this. There was a discussion of whether this is covered under the town’s Junk Yard Ordinance, which appears not to be the case.

2. Upcoming Events
June 13 (Saturday): The Cavendish Town Elementary School PTO is having a community sale which will include all kinds of items from new & unique to used & practical. It will be held at the school from 8:00 a.m. to 3 p.m. Rain or shine. The gym will be available if it rains. 10'x10' space is still available to rent for $20. Contact Tracy Churchill for more info at 226-7758 or 226-8106. Come and see what's for sale and support the Parent Teacher Organization at CTES!

June 17 (Wednesday): The CTES 6th grade graduation will be held at the Proctorsville Park at 6:30 pm or at CTES gym in case of rain. According to the Search Institute, a big part of helping youth become responsible citizens and healthy, caring adults is that they sense the support of a caring neighborhood and that their community values youth. Show your support and honk on the way by the park if you see the graduates!

June 17-20 (Wednesday-Saturday): ITS TIME TO CAST YOUR VOTE! The 2009 photo competition has brought in an awesome array of photographs showing our landscape, our historic buildings, animals and more. Now it's time to select your favorite photos for next year's Cavendish Community Calendar. The Photographs will be on display in the Cavendish Town Elementary School from 3 to 6 pm Wed-Friday and 1-4 on Saturday. Voting is open to all Cavendish residents, full and part time.

July 4 (Saturday): Cavendish Old Home Day, events are as follows:
8:30 Annual Plant sale opens on the Museum Green
9:30 Dedication of the Craig and Pat Rankin Bench in front of the Museum
10:00: Cavendish Green will include a variety of booths, food sales, Chicken BBQ and more
11:00 Games for children and families on the Cavendish Green
Noon: Winston Churchill Retrospective opens at the Stone Church

July 5 (Sunday): The Winston Churchill Retrospective continues at the Stone Church from noon until 4 pm. FMI: margoc@tds.net or 802-226-7807

3. Great deals at the Cavendish Fletcher Community Library this summer!
The Cavendish Fletcher Community Library is pleased to announce the availability of two free or discount passes to area attractions. The first is the Vermont State Parks Pass. It entitles up to eight people in one vehicle to free entry to any Vermont State Park. The second pass is to the Echo Center on the Burlington waterfront. It allows up to five people to get into the Echo Science Center at a highly reduced rate. Both passes are available free of charge at the library circulation desk as are thousands of books and hundreds of DVDs and VHS tapes.

4. Cavendish Community Fund Awards Three New Grants
The Cavendish Community Fund announced today the award of three grants for education, music and dance in Cavendish this summer. The first grant, to Fiber Arts in Vermont, Inc. will sponsor a class at the Six Loose Ladies fiber arts store on Depot Street in Proctorsville. The class will be taught by Alice Vogel of Alstead, NH and will challenge participants to redesign, repurpose and generally to wake up their imagination to create something new from something old. Students bring in gently used clothing and embellishments, contribute the articles to a pool of items, and in turn each student is allowed to select items from the pool to create a completely new and uniquely original garment. The class will be offered this summer free of charge at a time to be announced by Six Loose Ladies.

The second grant, to the Cavendish Fletcher Community Library, will help fund the annual summer concert series on the Proctorsville Green. This is the fourth year of the concerts, but the first year in which the Library sponsors them. The concerts will be held on consecutive Wednesday evenings beginning July 15th. Exact times and performing artists will be publicized in the local press.

The third grant will enable Ashley Hensel-Browning and Rebecca Salem to explore choreography and yoga in a summer session with Cavendish Children at no cost to their families. Classes will focus on encouraging children to educate themselves exploring dance and choreography as art forms and participating in active art making. A Friday family day will allow students to incorporate their families into their learning. Hensel-Browning and Salem have both worked as teachers in their fields for several years, with studios in Springfield and Chester respectively. Hensel-Browning recently completed teaching a series of workshops on dance and choreography at the Cavendish Town Elementary School. FMI: Barbara Dickey at (802) 226-7187.

5. Healthy Choices Quilt
During the school year 2002-03, the CTES students all participated in creating a quilt where they drew pictures on 12"x12" squares of fabric showing what they thought were healthy choices for their lives. They created beautiful works depicting them dancing, playing sports, and eating healthy. Under the leadership of Doris Eddy, Ann Stewart, and Paulette Martel, volunteers spent several nights sewing the quilt together until there was one huge quilt representing over 100 CTES students versions of healthy choices.

The students who are now high school seniors were then in the 6th grade and the present 6th graders were then in kindergarten. Since the students who are represented on the quilt will all soon be gone from CTES and the quilt just sits in a closet, we decided to give it new life. The PTO will sell the individual squares for $20 each and use the money to help with the playground improvements. To receive your child’s quilt square ( sometime this summer) please contact Martha Mott at 226-7092 or martimot@tds.net.

6. Transfer Station Beautification
Norma is beautifying the Transfer Station and is looking for donations of flowers. She also has given new life to some old birdhouses and birdfeeders and would appreciate donations of birdseed. Please take items to Norma or Bill at the transfer station during their regular hours of operation.

7. Summit Soapworks Seeking Artists
Summit Soapworks at 106 Main Street in Ludlow is owned by Proctorsville resident Craftspeople & artists can place their work on consignment at Summit Soapworks Gift Shop. Summer Hrs: Open Wed & Fri 11-5, Thurs 11-6, Sat 10-5 and Sun 10-4. By chance on Tuesdays. FMI: 802-228-4900 or www.summitsoapworks.com