Friday, September 24, 2010

Cavendish Update 9/24/10 Power Outage/CHS/Classifieds

The 9/24/10 Cavendish Update Contains
1. Cavendish Power Outage
2. Cavendish Historical Society Wins Awards and Other News
3. Classifieds: Help Wanted
4. Cavendish Events 9/24-9/30

1. Cavendish Power Outage
Around 7 pm, on Thursday Sept. 23, a car hit a power pole on High Street (corner of the Cemetery and Ranney Hill) in Cavendish. Broken in three places, CVPS had to replace the pole, leaving 33 homes without power. Three people were in the car at the time of the accident. One was transported to the hospital by ambulance.

2. Cavendish Historical Society Wins Awards and Other News
The Cavendish Historical Society (CHS) has recently received word that it is receiving an award from the Vermont Historical Society for two of our program, It is with great pleasure that I write to inform you that the Local Historical Societies Awards Committee met today and has overwhelmingly agreed that you nominations for both the Cemetery Care and Maintenance Project and Young Historians Program are both meritorious and worthy of award. The committee was very impressed with the well thought out, diligent implementation and community wide resonance of your programming. It was felt that your programs are exemplary and can serve as excellent models for other organizations. This award was only possible through the generous support of the Cavendish community, volunteers, the Cavendish Town Elementary School and the Cavendish Cemetery Commission. CHS will receive their award at the 57th Annual Meeting of the League of Local Historical Societies and Museums.

Young Historians: Playing cards was how the youth of 1940’s learned to identify enemy aircraft flying over Cavendish. This past Wednesday, the Young Historians, Cavendish Elementary School students, in grades 3-6, met for the first time this year to begin learning about Cavendish in the 1940’s. Each student received a packet of “spotter cards.” Because of the proximity to Springfield, which was number 6 on the German’s “to be bombed list,” the town had three spotter towers, which kept a look out for airplanes. One was located above the Duttonsville School, a second off of East Road in Cavendish and the third off of Blood Terrace in Proctorsville. Women, along with children, and men not serving in the war, staffed the Spotter towers in two hour shifts 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

If you have information or items you would like to share with the children, please call 802-226-7807 or e-mail margoc@tds.net You can learn more about the program, and follow the various activities, by going to the CHS blog www.cavendishhistoricalsocietynews.blogspot.com This program is a joint effort of the Cavendish Elementary School and CHS. It is sponsored in part by the Cavendish Community Fund, a project of the Cavendish Conservation and Community Association.

Cemetery and Proctorsville Tours: The annual cemetery tour will take place on Oct. 10 at the Hillcrest Cemetery in Proctorsville. Carmine Guica, historian and genealogist will be leading the tour. Meet at the Cemetery at 2 pm. The Proctorsville Walking Tour begins at 1 pm at the War Memorial in Proctorsville. It will connect with the Hillcrest Cemetery Tour at 2 pm.

CHS Annual Meeting and Recognition Dinner: CHS will be holding its annual meeting on October 17 at 5 pm at the Cavendish Elementary School. While this has been a potluck dinner in the past, CHS is providing dinner in thanks to the many members of our community who have contributed to the success of our programs this year. These are just some of the activities volunteers did this past year: planning and staffing programs for the Young Historian’s; cutting the lawn of the Old Stone Church; cleaning gravestones; letting us run hoses from their homes to clean gravestones; organizing and running the plant sale (a special thanks to Pieter Van Schack for taking this over after Craig Rankin died); cleaning the Stone Church prior to the quilt show; restoring the Grange Hall Painted Curtain; deciding that the Joshua Parker Green loom could be restored and taking steps to make that happen; crawling up inside the cupola of the Museum to make sure it was in good shape; painting; carpentry; staffing the various booths at Old Home Day; shoveling snow in front of the Museum; hiking up Hawks Mountain in the continuing search for the rumored cannon; bringing water to volunteers; keeping a watchful eye on the Museum; donating items for the WWII Museum Exhibit-who else but Carmine would dash home and loan us his uniform for the summer; and spending many hours providing information about town history and genealogy.

For their gift of time, we would like to thank the following: Donna Allen; Ron Bates; Jackie and Joe Blanchard; Gene Bont; Pam Bruno, Dan Churchill, Winston Churchill, David Churchill; Tracy Churchill; Danielle Dulaney; Bradley Goodrich, Abe Gross; Carmine Guica; Jenn and Jarrod Harper; Tim Jefferson, Nancy Kelley; Gloria and Seymour Leven; Peter LaBelle; Cheryl and Carl Liener; Jennifer McBride; Bruce McEnaney; Diane McNamara; Chris Merrill; Priscilla Mound; Mary Ormrod; Jon and Bev Owens; Alex Provance; Bob, Spenser and Cooper Naess; Mike Pember; Chris Quinn; Wendy and Allen Regier; Sandra Russo; Pieter Van Schak; John Snarksi; Carolyn Van Tassel; Pang Ting; Linda Welch; Dwayne Warren; and Gail and Leon (Woodie) Woods.

Every donation we receive is a valued contribution. People give what they can and we appreciate it. A special note of thanks to Stanford Durkin; Dan and Winston Churchill; Theresa Schrag; Foster Johnson; Sandra Russo; Gary Wheeler; Otis Heald; and Patty Derr.

We also want to recognize and thank:
• The Town of Cavendish
• The Cavendish Library
• The Cavendish Community Fund (CCF) and Wendell Smith Foundation for funding several of our programs
• The Vermont Country Store for their generous donations to the Young Historians Program
• The Cavendish Community and Conservation Association (CCCA) for their continuing support of the Cavendish Update, which serves a twofold person, keeping our community informed about what’s happening and helping to keep a record of “tomorrow’s history .”
• The students of Cavendish Town Elementary School-grade 4 for helping to open and close the Museum; grades 6 and 4 for their assistance in the care of the Proctor Cemetery; and the Young Historians.

Everyone is welcome to the dinner and annual meeting. The raffles for the instant wine bar and the Carolyn Van Tassel quilt will take place that evening. This is a free event. If you plan to attend the dinner on Oct. 17, please e-mail margoc@tds.net or call 802-226-7807 by October 11.

3. Classifieds: Help Wanted
The Cavendish Fletcher Community Library is looking for an organized self starter with excellent people skills to work part time (10-17 hours a week) in our bright and cheerful library. Computer and organizational skills are necessary. Library experience and experience with working with children is helpful but not needed. Artistic ability is a plus Please reply with a copy of your resume by October 1 to: Kata Welch PO Box 266, Proctorsville, VT 05153.

4. Cavendish Events 9/24-9/30
If you have events for the Cavendish Monthly Calendar, please e-mail them to margoc@tds.net by Tuesday Sept. 28

September 24 (Friday): Goodman’s American Pie hosts their third annual fundraiser for multiple sclerosis. This event takes place in the Goodman’s backyard in Proctorsville and will feature wood fired pizza, BBQ and beverages. FMI 228-4271
• Farmer’s Market, Okemo Mountain School Campus on Main Street Ludlow 4-7 pm.

September 25 (Saturday): National Take Back Day provides an opportunity for the public to surrender expired, unwanted or unused pharmaceutical controlled substances and other medications for destruction. The following sites near Cavendish are collection sites:
- Ludlow Police Department 19 West Hill Rd, Ludlow
- Weathersfield Transfer Station 5024 VT Route 106, Weathersfield
- Chester Police Department 556 Elm Street, Chester
- Springfield Police Department 201 Clinton St., Springfield
- Windsor Police Department 29 Union Street Windsor

FMI: http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/takeback/

September 26 (Sunday): Cavendish Historical Society Museum Open 2-4 pm. Special focus on the 1940s. Be sure to visit the 1940’s Candy Store being run by the Young Historians. FMI: 226-7807
• Free Facilitate Meditation 4-5 PM. FMI: Robin 226-7736

September 29 (Wednesday): Inservice for teachers. No school for GMUHS and Cavendish Elementary

September 30 (Thursday): Sit & Knit" at the Six Loose Ladies yarn shop, Pollard Building, Proctorsville Green, 2:00 -9:00 PM. Open to knitters, spinners, crocheters, hookers. Free. FMI: 226-7373

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Selectmen’s Meeting, Wednesday, September 22 , 2010

Meets in the Cavendish Town Office Meeting Room at 4:15 PM

AGENDA

1. Call the meeting to order
2. Sign Orders
3. Review Correspondence
4. Adjust agenda
5. Review bid calculation sheet and consider bid award for Truck Body and Plows
6. Adjourn

Friday, September 17, 2010

Cavendish Update 9/17/10 SB Mtg/Town Meetings/News/Events

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 9/17/10 Cavendish Update Contains
1. Select Board Meeting 9/13/10
2. Town Meeting: Appraisal Update
3. Cavendish Related News
4. Why Not Throw Unused Medication Down the Toilet, sink or in the trash?
5. BRGNS Fall Rummage Sale: Help Needed
6. Friends of Ludlow Auditorium Receive Movie Equipment
7. Weathersfield - Cavendish - Ludlow Home Repair Program
8. Cavendish Events 9/17-9/24

1. Select Board Meeting 9/13/10
The following items were among items discussed at Monday night’s Select Board meeting.

A. 250th Anniversary of the founding of Cavendish will take place in the coming year. The Cavendish Historical Society (CHS) has started discussions with the board about this event so that the town can plan activities accordingly. Rich Svec, town manager, said that the original founding document is in the town’s vault and he would like to see it displayed. It was suggested that CHS might be able to help with the preservation of the document.

B. Emergency Response Policy: At the March Town Meeting, members from the audience asked about the town’s response plan in the event of a disaster and where the town’s shelter is located. Svec indicated that it was time for the town’s emergency plan to be moved to a priority status, noting that the town’s designated shelter area is the Cavendish Elementary School in Cavendish. Dave Norton is the person who is responsible for the plan.

C. Twenty Mile Stream Paving Project: As many people are already aware, a lot of work has taken place this summer on Twenty Mile Stream-replacing culverts, blasting of ledge and preparing for final paving of this road. In addition to the paving, the sidewalks have been cleaned. Stripping was done earlier this summer, even though the state agency responsible for this activity knew a week earlier that Cavendish had received funds for the repaving project. Svec is hoping the state will come back and replace the yellow lines down the center of the road before the weather becomes too cold. Additional signs will be needed to help reduce speeding on the road.

Svec also noted that Cavendish will not be eligible for paving assistance from the state for at least the next two years. Even though Tarbell Hill Road is in need of assistance, Twenty Mile Stream was selected because it gets double the traffic of Tarbell Hill.

D. Depot Street Bridge: The board voted to hire Hoyle, Tanner and Associates, a civil and structural engineering firm from Burlington, to provide an assessment on the Depot Street Bridge in Proctorsville. They will also make recommendations for long and short-term solutions, as well as what the appropriate load baring capacity should be for the bridge. Svec stated that the costs would be $7,500, which he hoped he could get from the state. However, if that is not a possibility, this site assessment is needed so the town will have to pay for it.

E. Town Website: A proposal developed by Spring River Enterprises for a town website was distributed for the SB members review. This will be on the October SB agenda.

2. Town Meeting: Vote for town-wide Appraisal Update
A little over 20 citizens and town officials (Select Board, Town Manager, Moderator and Clerk) met to vote on whether the town should have an appraisal update. An information handout, see the Cavendish Blog for a copy, was distributed at the meeting. The need for the Appraisal Update was due to several factors:

• Several Castle Hill condominium owners appealed their property assessment to the Board of Civil Authorities this year. As a result, their property was reduced to current fair market value versus the last town assessment in 2006. Svec anticipates that all of the condo owners, which he estimated to be about 48, would appeal in the coming year.

• The value of properties in Cavendish, similar to the rest of the country, has dropped significantly since the 2006 full appraisal.

• The state has set forth guidelines that trigger when a town needs to conduct a full audit. This is generally when the fair market value and the most recently appraised value differ by more than 20%. Cavendish was close to that number in 2010 (19.33%) and will most likely exceed it in 2011.

• Since the town had a full appraisal in 2006, we are within the five-year time frame that allows for an update appraisal to bring property levels closer to fair market pricing. The cost of an updated appraisal, which only looks at the outside of houses and limits interior assessment to properties where it appears significant changes have occurred since 2006, is much less, by $20,000 or $30,000, than a full appraisal.

Phyllis Bont. a member of the Board of Civil Authorities when the condominium owners appealed their case, said that it was very concerning to her that the condo owner’s property were reappraised based on 2010 fair market values while the rest of the town’s property owners were being taxed on the 2006 appraisal.

Those present voted unanimously in favor of a an appraisal update. For more information, please see the information handout provided by the town office on the Cavendish Blog.

3. Cavendish Related News
Shumlin Confirmed as Winner of Democratic Primary for Governor

Dry Spell May Bode Ill for Foliage

State Police Seeks Tasers

4. Why Not Throw Unused Medication Down the Toilet, sink or in the trash?
As a follow up to last week’s post, on the Sept 25 National Take-Back Drug Day, there were questions about whether it wouldn’t be easier to just flush the medications down the toilet. Studies of drinking water show that at least 41 million Americans are exposed to pharmaceuticals from their tap. Medications, from antibiotics, to sex hormones, along with over the counter drugs, such as acetaminophen and ibuprofen , have been found in trace amounts in the drinking water all over the United States. While the amount is far below the medical dosage level, its impact has already been documented in wildlife, particularly fish and amphibians.

Keep in mind that while wastewater is treated, most treatments do not remove all drug residue.

Medications that are tossed in the trash, without being properly treated, can also leach into landfills and ultimately into the water. While it’s sitting in a trash bag, un treated medications can also be an easy target for pets, kids and even other household members.

To learn more about proper disposal, go to the FDA website.

5. BRGNS Fall Rummage Sale: Help Needed
Black River Good Neighbor Services is holding a gigantic Fall Rummage Sale at Fletcher Farm on Friday and Saturday, October 1st, 2nd from 10am to 4pm and Sunday October 3rd from 10am until 2pm. All monies raised will help cover utilities/fuel cost, food and rent assistance for those who qualify and live in Ludlow, Mt. Holly, Proctorsville, Cavendish and Plymouth. Here is what you can do to help:

1) If you have anything to donate, please call Audrey Bridge at 802-228-3663 to arrange a drop off time. Drop offs will be accepted at Fletcher Farm starting Saturday, September 25th through Thursday, September 30 from 11am to 2pm (any drop offs for Sunday 9/26 must be arranged in advance by calling Audrey Bridge). Fletcher Farm’s Barn is located at 611 Route 103 S. Fall and Winter clothing will be especially welcome. Furniture will be accepted gratefully (nothing broken or torn please). Please do not donate items that are stained, ripped or broken. If you are unable to drop off a furniture donation, it can be picked up by our volunteers if arrangements are made in advance.

2) If you have a vehicle and some time, Black River Good Neighbor Services could use your help to move items from the Thrift Shop on Main Street to Fletcher Farm.

3) Volunteers are needed to help work the sale as well as setup, so please come and help.

4) There will be a table selling baked goods. So, if you can bake an item to donate for selling, please do so. This proved to be a very popular addition last fall.

5) Please come and buy some of the great bargains.

FMI: Audrey Bridge 802-228-3663 or BRGNS@tds.net

6. Friends of Ludlow Auditorium Receive Movie Equipment
Recently received equipment from Edgewood Studios in Rutland, funded by donations from over 90 people plus an award from the 2010 Ludlow Town Meeting, will be used to show classic and recently-released family-oriented films to Ludlow and surrounding area residents in the auditorium. According to Ralph Pace, Chair of FOLA (Friends of Ludlow Auditorium), the purchasers of the equipment, Edgewood Studios will return to the auditorium in mid to late fall to finalize the setup of the equipment, designed to project films onto a large screen being purchased by the town. A special "movie" committee is preparing to decided what films will be shown and the dates for them. Pace noted that "all we need now is about $1,000 to enable us to finalize the legal requirements for displaying copyrighted films and purchase a popcorn machine to make everyone feel at home at the movies."

7. Weathersfield - Cavendish - Ludlow Home Repair Program
For Homeowners! This year, financial assistance is available to:
• Low and moderate-income homeowners to improve their homes. _
• All types of homes may be assisted under the program [income limits related to household size apply].
• The program has resources available to rehabilitate several homes in Weathersfield, Cavendish, and Ludlow.

If you are an interested homeowner, you must apply to the program. Don't put it off!
FMI: Theresa Burton Rockingham Area Community Land Trust: [802] 885-3220

8. Cavendish Events 9/17-9/24
September 17 (Friday): Farmer’s Market, Okemo Mountain School Campus on Main Street Ludlow 4-7 pm.

September 19 (Sunday): Cavendish Historical Society Museum Open 2-4 pm. Special focus on the 1940s. Be sure to visit the 1940’s Candy Store being run by the Young Historians. FMI: 226-7807

September 20 (Monday): The Cavendish Select Board will meet at 5 pm at the Town Office . The agenda will include:Open Bids for Truck Body and Plows; Discuss Water Bond finances and sign People’s United Bank Note; Update on paving

September 22 (Wednesday): Okemo Valley Chamber of Commerce’s 2nd Annual Business Showcase from 5:30-7:30pm at the Fletcher Farm School in Ludlow. FMI: Chamber of Commerce

September 23 (Thursday): The Fletcher Memorial Library will hold its Book Discussion Group at 7 pm in the Community Room on “The Shadow of the Wind” by Carlos Ruiz zafon. FMI: 228-8921
• Sit & Knit" at the Six Loose Ladies yarn shop, Pollard Building, Proctorsville Green, 2:00 -9:00 PM. Open to knitters, spinners, crocheters, hookers. Free. FMI: 226-7373

September 24 (Friday): Farmer’s Market, Okemo Mountain School Campus on Main Street Ludlow 4-7 pm.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

9/13/10 Town Meeting Handout

The following handout was distributed at the Special Town Meeting on September 13, 2010:

The legal voters of the Town of Cavendish, in the County of Windsor, are hereby notified and warned to meet at the Cavendish Town Elementary School in Proctorsville, Vermont at seven (7:00) o'clock Monday evening the thirteenth (13th) day of September 2010 to transact the following business:

Article 1: To see if the legal voters of the Town of Cavendish will approve of a town-wide appraisal update to be prepared for the 2011 Grand List. A town-wide update is not a full reappraisal with universal internal inspections, but it does include a thorough field review and updating of value tables and it would allow the grand list to be readjusted to reduce disparities and to adjust market conditions.

Dated at Cavendish, State of Vermont this 9th day of August, 2010

Information Regarding Article 1

The general purpose of a town-wide appraisal update is to closely examine appraised values for all of the properties on the town’s grand list in order to reassess those values currently listed and take into consideration current market values. The major goals of the reassessment are to reduce disparities between classes of properties and have those reassessed values reflect, as accurately as possible, fair market values.

The State of Vermont utilizes two widely used measures for evaluating a town’s assessment practices: the “coefficient of dispersion” and the “common level of appraisal.” The appraisal update is being suggested at this time because the statistics regarding the state of Cavendish’s current grand list of values are such that:

1) The Coefficient of Dispersion or COD (average amount of deviation of values from fair maker value) has increased to 19/33% and
2) The Common Level of Appraisal or CLS (average of all values as compared to fair market values has, since the last (2006) full town-wide appraisal, dropped from 107.17% to 91.75%.

The Vermont State Department of Taxes, Division of Property Valuation and Review (PVR) conducts an annual Equalization Education Property Values (EEPV) study of each town’s grand list to determine how accurately the town’s grand listing of property values match up with what they determine to be fair market values. A town with a CLS of less than 80% or a COD greater than 20% must reappraise. In the words of PVR itself, ‘In 1997 32 VSA section 4041a was enacted. It requires that a municipality with a CLA less than 80% or a COD greater than 20% must reappraise and will be ordered to do so by the director of PVR. If a municipality does not make a reasonable attempt to reappraise its grand list, all state funding to the municipality can be withheld until it complies with its reappraisal requirement.” As a result of the last annual EEPV study (December 2009) and recent real estate market trends, we have been informed that Cavendish should expect to complete a full reappraisal requirement for the 2011 Grand List.

The Vermont State Department of Property, Valuation and Review has a rule that an update can completed if it occurs within five years of the last full reappraisal. Since the last full reappraisal in the Town of Cavendish was done in 2006, this would allow us to complete an update of values for 2011. If we wait until 2012, we will be required to complete a full reappraisal, which would include full inspections of all developed properties. In contrast, an “update” would enable us to update value tables and complete a thorough field review, but without the need for interior inspections of all properties.

Only properties with recent renovations or new construction would receive the interior inspections during an update. This would mean a savings of between $25,000 to $30,000 over the cost of a full reappraisal. The full “Appraisal Update,” if approved, would specifically include: new cost tables; new land schedule; a complete sales analysis; updated condominium schedules; updated commercial appraisals; complete field review of all parcels and updates on properties with new construction or significant renovations.

The Town of Cavendish currently has funds in the amount of $46,826 in our Act 60/68 Reappraisal Fund. Budgeted for Fiscal Year 2011 is $5,500 for professional appraisal services which be put toward this expense and we anticipate an additional payment for the State of Vermont in March of approximately $11,000. This means that an appraisal update could be completed without the need for any special budgetary appropriation.

In Article 1, the Town of Cavendish is now asking its voters to consider approval of procuring professional appraisal services for an appraisal update as described and discussed above.

Saturday, September 11, 2010

Local Programming Highlights on LPCTV

Below are programming notes from LPCTV, community TV for the Black River Valley, for the upcoming week. LPCTV is on local cable TV channels 8 and 10 in the Towns of Ludlow, Plymouth, Cavendish, and Mount Holly. Local video programming can also be viewed online at www.lpctv.org.

Complete program schedule listings are also found on LPCTV's website and can
be seen on the TV Bulletin Board.

CHANNEL 8
Black River Soccer: The boys' first game of the season was cancelled this past week, but with the girls' Invitational Tournament followed by early week away games for both the boys & girls teams, volunteer cameraman Bruce Perry will be busy
bringing coverage of Black River High School soccer to local TV. Games are played on Channel 8 multiple times each week. Check the website or TV Bulletin Board for listings.

View from Ludlow: Ralph Pace delivers headlines and news briefs from the Black River Valley, in partnership with the Mountain Times newspaper.

• That Was the Week That Was: Ludlow Town Manager Frank Heald will be giving an update on the Armory
renovations and a tour of the works-in-progress in the new facilities. First scheduled playback is Thursday, September 16 at 3PM and will repeat multiple times thereafter.

• St. James Methodist Church: Volunteer producer Nancy Timmerman continues to bring coverage of the church services into local homes. New church services begin each week at 8:30 on Sunday mornings on Channel 8 and repeat multiple times thereafter.

• BRACC Update: Brigid & Paul from the Black River Area Community Coalition discuss the
upcoming "Prescription Drug Take-Back Day".

CHANNEL 10
• Local Government Meetings: Gavel-to-gavel coverage of the following local meetings & hearings will be
broadcast this week: Cavendish Selectboard (on 9/15 and 9/18), Plymouth Selectboard (on 9/16 and 9/20), Mount Holly Selectboard (on 9/17), Ludlow Development Review Board (on 9/19), and Ludlow Selectboard (9/21). Meetings play at 7PM and repeat the following day at midnight, 8AM, and 2PM.

Friday, September 10, 2010

Select Board Agenda for 9/13/10

This month's Select Board Meeting will take place at the Cavendish School's Art Room at 5 pm on Monday Sept. 13. The following items are on the agenda:

• Consider errors and omissions for Penn property located at 912 Twenty Mile Stream Road, Parcel I.D. #1R10-092-01 Town Manager to provide update on Twenty Mile Stream Road paving project

• Discussion on Town-wide Appraisal Update issue which will be the subject of a special town meeting scheduled to take place this evening.

• Town Manager to discuss recent activities regarding Town Highway Bridge #58

• Discuss Truck Body and Plow Bid Opening to take place September 20, 2010

• Update on status of Cavendish Ambulance

• Town Manager updates on various Town activities

• Town Manager to review status of Town Highway #51, Chapman Street

Cavendish Update 9/10/10 Warning/News/Broadband/Events

This issue of the Cavendish Update is made possible by Patty Derr.

The 9/10/10 Cavendish Update Contains
1. Warning: Special Town Meeting September 13 , 2010
2. Cavendish Related News
3. Broadband in Cavendish
4. Got Drugs? Turn in Your Unused or Expired Medication
5. Cavendish Events 9/10-9/17

1. Warning: Special Town Meeting September 13 , 2010
The legal voters of the Town of Cavendish, in the County of Windsor, are hereby notified and warned to meet at the Cavendish Town Elementary School in Proctorsville, Vermont at seven (7:00) o’clock Monday evening the thirteenth (13) day of September 2010 to transact the following business:

Article 1: To see if the legal voters of the Town of Cavendish will approve of a town- wide appraisal update to be prepared for the 2011 Grand List. A town-wide update is not a full reappraisal with universal internal inspections, but it does include a thorough field review and updating of value tables and it would allow the grand list to be readjusted to reduce disparities and to adjust to market conditions.

2. Cavendish Related News
Report: Vermont Best for Poor Students, Falls Behind Other Countries

Farms Eligible for Frost Aid

Police warn of phone and Internet scams

CVPS Reaches Deal to Purchase Wind Power

3. Broadband in Cavendish
In the recent TDS Newsletter, TDS reports that they have been approved for $123.5 million in broadband expansion projects in 20 states. Part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the funds are to be used to expand high-speed internet services to business and residential customers. According to the map and list of areas to be impacted, none of the TDS locations in Vermont are slated for the upgrade.

VTEl, of Springfield Vermont, has received $81 million in stimulus funds and an additional $35 million in government-backed loans in order to deliver high speed internet to every corner of the state. Company officials say wiring the entire state should take between two and three years. To learn more about the VTEL project go to the companies website Broadband USA Connecting America’s Communities.

4. Got Drugs? Turn in Your Unused or Expired Medication
On September 25, 2010, the US Department of Justice Drug Enforcement Administration’s Office of Diversion Control will coordinate a collaborative effort with state and local law enforcement agencies to remove potentially dangerous controlled substances from our nation’s medicine cabinets. Collection activities will take place from 10:00 a.m. through 2:00 p.m. at sites established throughout the country. The National Take-Back Day provides an opportunity for the public to surrender expired, unwanted, or unused pharmaceutical controlled substances and other medications for destruction. These drugs are a potential source of supply for illegal use and an unacceptable risk to public health and safety.
This one-day effort is intended to bring national focus to the issue of increasing pharmaceutical controlled substance abuse.
• The program is anonymous.
• Prescription and over the counter solid dosage medications, i.e. tablets and capsules accepted.
• Intra-venous solutions, injectables, and needles will not be accepted.

Illicit substances such as marijuana or methamphetamine are not a part of this initiative.

The following sites near Cavendish are collection sites:
• Ludlow Police Department 19 West Hill Rd, Ludlow
• Weathersfield Transfer Station 5024 VT Route 106, Weathersfield
• Chester Police Department 556 Elm Street, Chester
• Springfield Police Department 201 Clinton St., Springfield
• Windsor Police Department 29 Union Street Windsor

FMI: http://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/takeback/

5. Cavendish Events 9/10-9/17
September 10 (Friday): Farmer’s Market, Okemo Mountain School Campus on Main Street Ludlow 4-7 pm.

September 11 (Saturday): Southern Windsor/Windham Counties Solid Waste Management District (SW/WCSWMD) will be holding the final household hazardous waste collections at the Springfield Transfer Station and the Weathersfield Transfer Station from 9-noon. For more information http://www.vtsolidwastedistrict.org/portal/
• 1st Annual Mini Cooper Rally through Okemo Valley. This will be an untimed fun rally looking for answers to clues and a scavenger hunt component. Mostly paved road with a few good dirt roads included (it is Vermont after all!). The rally enthusiasts will assemble at Fletcher Farm at 8:30 am on Route 103 for a continental breakfast. The rally cars will leave the Farm at 10:00 am.

The Rally will finish at Echo Lake Inn covering about 80 miles. A banquet/Gourmet Buffet will follow. You need not buy the Buffet to attend the Banquet. (Buffet cost is $33 per person including tax & gratuities). FMI: Okemo Valley Chamber of Commerce

September 12 (Sunday): Cavendish Historical Society’s Proctorsville Walking Tour. Begins at 1 pm in front of the Proctorsville War Memorial, opposite the Proctorsville Green. Sixteen places will be visited. Wear comfortable shoes, some steep grades to the two Proctorsville cemeteries. The CHS Museum is open 2-4 pm. Special focus on the 1940s. Be sure to visit the 1940’s Candy Store being run by the Young Historians. FMI: 226-7807
• Facilitated Meditation - Cultivating quiet awareness that brings forth the power and peace of Presence in our lives, from 4-5 p.m. Free. Please rsvp with Robin Timko at 226-7736,
• Mini Cooper Rally concludes. See September 11 for more information

September 13 (Monday): Select Board Meeting, 5:00 pm in the Art Room of the Cavendish Elementary School.
• Town Meeting Town Meeting, 7 pm at the Cavendish School. To see if the legal voters of the Town of Cavendish will approve of a town- wide appraisal update to be prepared for the 2011 Grand List. A town-wide update is not a full reappraisal with universal internal inspections, but it does include a thorough field review and updating of value tables and it would allow the grand list to be readjusted to reduce disparities and to adjust to market conditions.

September 14 (Tuesday): Cavendish School Board Meeting at the Cavendish School. Meetings are televised on LPC-TV and minutes are posted on the school’s http://ctes.wswsu.org/ctesboard/
• Tentative date for the Cavendish Elementary School Open House. FMI: 226-7758.

September 15 (Wednesday): Parenting Course at Cavendish Elementary School in Proctorsville. FMI: 226-7758
Okemo Valley Chamber of Commerce Golf Tournament 2010 at the Okemo Valley Golf Club.
• Cavendish Homeworkers II meeting at the Proctorsville Fire Dept. building starting at 10:30. The program will be Nancy Timmerman telling about her travels. A pot luck lunch is held after the program with the husbands invited to lunch.

September 16 (Thursday): Proctorsville Community Luncheon, 11:30 at St. James United Methodist Church, Proctorsville. Luncheon will be lasagna, tossed salad, garlic bread, apple pie and hot coffee or iced tea or lemonade. Suggested donation of $3.00 for seniors or $4.50 for those under 60 years helps offset the cost of this nice hot meal.
• Emmet Dunbar will speak on the Localvore movement at the Fletcher Library in Ludlow. FMI: 228-8921
• Sit & Knit" at the Six Loose Ladies yarn shop, Pollard Building, Proctorsville Green, 2:00 -9:00 PM. Open to knitters, spinners, crocheters, hookers. Free. FMI: 226-7373

September 17 (Friday): Farmer’s Market, Okemo Mountain School Campus on Main Street Ludlow 4-7 pm.

Friday, September 3, 2010

Local Programming Highlights on LPCTV

Programming notes from LPCTV, community TV for the Black River Valley, for the upcoming week. LPCTV is on local cable TV channels 8 and 10 in the Towns of Ludlow, Plymouth, Cavendish, and Mount Holly. Local video programming can also be viewed online at www.lpctv.org. Complete program schedule listings are also found on LPCTV's website and can be seen on the TV Bulletin Board.

CHANNEL 8
• Kids Play: Okemo Valley Hot Spots: A summer camp collaboration among LPCTV, BRACC, and Ludlow Parks & Rec
resulted in this video highlighting kids' favorite summer locales.

• Black River Soccer: Another high school soccer season is underway and volunteer cameraman Bruce Perry is once again covering the games. Starting on Friday 9/10, LPCTv will be broadcasting the first boys' game of the season, vs MSJ, followed shortly thereafter by the girls' BR Invitation Tournament games.

• View from Ludlow: Ralph Pace delivers headlines and news briefs from the Black River Valley, in partnership with the Mountain Times newspaper.

CHANNEL 10
• Local Government Meetings: Gavel-to-gavel coverage of the following local meetings & hearings will be broadcast this week: Village of Ludlow Board of Trustees (on 9/8 and 9/13), Plymouth School Board (on 9/9 and 9/12), River Valley Technical Center Board (on 9/11), and the Ludlow Development Review Board (on 9/14). Meetings play at 7PM and repeat the following day at midnight, 8AM, and 2PM.

• Sen. Bernie Sanders Town Meeting in Putney: Senator Bernie Sanders continues his Town Meeting-style public hearings.

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

Warning Special Town Meeting 9/13/10

Town of Cavendish
Warning: Special Town Meeting September 13 , 2010

The legal voters of the Town of Cavendish, in the County of Windsor, are hereby notified and warned to meet at the Cavendish Town Elementary School in Proctorsville, Vermont at seven (7:00) o’clock Monday evening the thirteenth (13) day of September 2010 to transact the following business:

Article 1: To see if the legal voters of the Town of Cavendish will approve of a town- wide appraisal update to be prepared for the 2011 Grand List. A town-wide update is not a full reappraisal with universal internal inspections, but it does include a thorough field review and updating of value tables and it would allow the grand list to be readjusted to reduce disparities and to adjust to
market conditions.

Dated at Cavendish, State of Vermont this 9 day of August, 2010.

Cavendish Update 9/1/10 News/Calendar/Election Results

This issue of the Cavendish Update is made possible by the Cavendish Historical Society www.cavendishhistoricalsocietynews.blogspot.com

The 9/1/10 Cavendish Update Contains
1. September Cavendish Calendar
2. Cavendish Election Results
3. Cavendish Related News
4. Make TV & Help Support Your Community Station: LPCTV Membership Drive

1. September Cavendish Calendar
September 1 (Wednesday): Planning Commission Meeting, 6:30 pm at the Cavendish Town Office.

September 2 (Thursday): Sit & Knit" at the Six Loose Ladies yarn shop, Pollard Building, Proctorsville Green, 2:00 -9:00 PM. Open to knitters, spinners, crocheters, hookers. Free. FMI: 226-7373

September 3 (Friday): Farmer’s Market, Okemo Mountain School Campus on Main Street Ludlow 4-7 pm.

September 4 (Saturday): Ludlow’s Firemen’s Auction, starts at 8 pm, 59 Pond Street Ludlow.

September 5 (Sunday): Cavendish Historical Society Museum Open 2-4 pm. Special focus on the 1940s. Be sure to visit the 1940’s Candy Store being run by the Young Historians. FMI: 226-7807

September 6 (Monday): Labor Day. Schools and Town Office closed.

September 7 (Tuesday): Cavendish Library Board Meeting, 5 pm at the Library. FMI:226-7503 or Kwelch@wswsu.org

September 8 (Wednesday): Parenting Course at Cavendish Elementary School in Proctorsville. FMI: 226-7758
• Okemo Valley Chamber of Commerce mixer at the Bryant House in Weston.

September 9 (Thursday): Sit & Knit" at the Six Loose Ladies yarn shop, Pollard Building, Proctorsville Green, 2:00 -9:00 PM. Open to knitters, spinners, crocheters, hookers. Free. FMI: 226-7373

September 10 (Friday): Farmer’s Market, Okemo Mountain School Campus on Main Street Ludlow 4-7 pm.

September 11 (Saturday): 1st Annual Mini Cooper Rally through Okemo Valley. This will be an untimed fun rally looking for answers to clues and a scavenger hunt component. Mostly paved road with a few good dirt roads included (it is Vermont after all!). The rally enthusiasts will assemble at Fletcher Farm at 8:30 am on Route 103 for a continental breakfast. The rally cars will leave the Farm at 10:00 am.

The Rally will finish at Echo Lake Inn covering about 80 miles. A banquet/Gourmet Buffet will follow. You need not buy the Buffet to attend the Banquet. (Buffet cost is $33 per person including tax & gratuities). FMI: Okemo Valley Chamber of Commerce

September 12 (Sunday): Cavendish Historical Society’s Proctorsville Walking Tour. Begins at 1 pm in front of the Proctorsville War Memorial, opposite the Proctorsville Green. Sixteen places will be visited. Wear comfortable shoes, some steep grades to the two Proctorsville cemeteries. The CHS Museum is open 2-4 pm. Special focus on the 1940s. Be sure to visit the 1940’s Candy Store being run by the Young Historians. FMI: 226-7807
• Mini Cooper Rally concludes. See September 11 for more information

September 13 (Monday): Select Board Meeting, 6:30 pm at the Cavendish Town Office.

September 14 (Tuesday): Cavendish School Board Meeting at the Cavendish School. Meetings are televised on LPC-TV www.lpctv.org and minutes are posted on the school’s website
• Tentative date for the Cavendish Elementary School Open House. FMI: 226-7758.

September 15 (Wednesday): Parenting Course at Cavendish Elementary School in Proctorsville. FMI: 226-7758
Okemo Valley Chamber of Commerce Golf Tournament 2010 at the Okemo Valley Golf Club.

September 16 (Thursday): Emmet Dunbar will speak on the Localvore movement at the Fletcher Library in Ludlow. FMI: 228-8921
• Sit & Knit" at the Six Loose Ladies yarn shop, Pollard Building, Proctorsville Green, 2:00 -9:00 PM. Open to knitters, spinners, crocheters, hookers. Free. FMI: 226-7373

September 17 (Friday): Farmer’s Market, Okemo Mountain School Campus on Main Street Ludlow 4-7 pm.

September 19 (Sunday): Cavendish Historical Society Museum Open 2-4 pm. Special focus on the 1940s. Be sure to visit the 1940’s Candy Store being run by the Young Historians. FMI: 226-7807

September 22 (Wednesday): Okemo Valley Chamber of Commerce’s 2nd Annual Business Showcase from 5:30-7:30pm at the Fletcher Farm School in Ludlow. This is a free event open to the public. FMI: Okemo Valley Chamber of Commerce

September 23 (Thursday): The Fletcher Memorial Library will hold its Book Discussion Group at 7 pm in the Community Room on “The Shadow of the Wind” by Carlos Ruiz zafon. FMI: 228-8921
• Sit & Knit" at the Six Loose Ladies yarn shop, Pollard Building, Proctorsville Green, 2:00 -9:00 PM. Open to knitters, spinners, crocheters, hookers. Free. FMI: 226-7373

September 24 (Friday): Farmer’s Market, Okemo Mountain School Campus on Main Street Ludlow 4-7 pm.

September 26 (Sunday): Cavendish Historical Society Museum Open 2-4 pm. Special focus on the 1940s. Be sure to visit the 1940’s Candy Store being run by the Young Historians. FMI: 226-7807

September 29 (Wednesday): Inservice for teachers. No school for GMUHS and Cavendish Elementary

September 30 (Thursday): Sit & Knit" at the Six Loose Ladies yarn shop, Pollard Building, Proctorsville Green, 2:00 -9:00 PM. Open to knitters, spinners, crocheters, hookers. Free. FMI: 226-7373

2. Cavendish Election Results
The August 24 Primary Election results for Cavendish are listed below. No progressive party election ballots were filed. Results are given for positions where more than one person was running for office

Democratic Party
• U. S. Senator: Leahy (87); Freilich (32)
• Governor: Markowitz (40); Shumlin (28); Racine (23); Dunne (21); Bartlett (8)
• Lt. Governor: Howard (54); Bray (46)
• Secretary of State: Merriman (54); Condos (41)

Republican Party
• Representative to Congress: Stern (45); Mitchell (16); Beaudry (14)
• Lt. Governor: Snelling (49); Scott (29)
• Secretary of State: Gibbs (41); Roy (31)

High Bailiff: Pace (76); Mainly (17)

3. Cavendish Related News
Private Landowners Hold Key to Vermont’s Future

Betting on Wireless: Vermont’s Internet Future

Farmer’s Almanac Predicts Kinder Winter with a Cold Slap to New England

4. Make TV & Help Support Your Community Station: LPCTV Membership Drive
LPCTV, the Black River region's community television station and media center, is asking its producers, friends, and supporters to renew their memberships for the 2010 - 2011 year. Any individual or organization wishing to take advantage of the media-making tools and training at LPCTV must first become a member. With expanding operations and increased activity, memberships help LPCTV stay organized. "We ask our patrons to become members mainly because it helps us track our resources, stay connected, and keep it all together and up-to-date", says Executive Director Patrick Cody. "By maintaining an updated database, we are able to maximize our efficiency, avoid redundancy". Cody explains that one of LPCTV's goals is to build community and it does this by connecting its members with one-another, based on areas of interest. "We foster collaboration and that, in turn, will make members' projects bigger, better", he said.

As a small non profit organization, LPCTV strives to in part be volunteer and member-supported. Last year, the station had 57 active members, many of these being the producers who make the shows that air on Channels 8 and 10. Others are volunteers. Cody adds "in today's world, the media plays a vital world. And we're here for the local community to come join that world, to actually become the media".

Each member is asked to make an annual contribution, which helps offset the operating costs of maintaining equipment and buying supporting supplies and materials. Individuals are asked to donate $25 and organizations $50. "Every little bit helps", Cody says. This may especially be the case now, since LPCTV is focused on generating more funds while planning to cover its increased expenses once it moves into its new facility in the former Ludlow Armory tank barn. Last year, less than 1% of LPCTV's operating revenue came
from membership contributions.

LPCTV membership forms are available for download on its website -www.lpctv.org/membership. They can also be picked up in person at the station during business hours (Monday - Thursday from 10-7 or on Fridays from 9-4).