Williston Observer

By Colin Ryan
Observer correspondent

Officials, artists, and about 30 members of the public gathered last Wednesday in Maple Tree Place to launch the renovation of the 53,000 square foot green in the middle of the retail and office complex.

On a stage in the green, surrounded by orange construction fencing, various public figures offered remarks in honor of the commencement of this project. Behind the fencing were mounds of dirt and holes in the ground, the beginnings of the two-phase renovation project.

The first phase, targeted for a November 2007 completion, includes the creation of two diagonal walkways that intersect at a central square (which will have park benches and a mounting place for a Christmas tree), the installation of new lighting and flagpoles, and the foundation for a band shell. The second phase, which will feature the construction of the band shell as well as various landscaping measures, aims to be done in time for next summer’s Groovin’ on the Green outdoor concert series.

The design was submitted by Judy Goodyear and Williston resident Mary Jo Childs, who won the 2006 Maple Tree Place-sponsored landscape design contest.

“Last February, we saw footprints of people who had cut across the green,” Goodyear said. “This inspired us to incorporate paths into our design. But since the green isn’t quite square, we needed a central square to create better angles. We worked night and day for three weeks to address the many questions of this project, and it paid off. It was a real collaborative effort, both beautiful and utilitarian – the result of two different ways of looking at design.”

By the time it is finished, the process of revamping the green will have taken more than two years. Since the design was approved in February 2006, the company had to draw up a budget and gain various zoning approvals.

“We had some design issues with the gazebo that required tweaking,” said Niall Byrne, senior vice president of Inland Western Retail Real Estate Investment Trust, Inc., the owner of Maple Tree Place. “The project is really a transformation of the green, so it’s a natural process that requires extra time. But we’re excited. I think it’s a great place, and every time I come up here, I get a strong sense of community, which is the way it’s meant to be.”

Last week’s celebration was introduced by a tune from Don “The Junkman” Knaack, a Vermont musician who has appeared on “Late Night with Conan O’Brien” and National Public Radio’s “Here and Now.” Knaack plays percussion music on junk and recycled materials.

“He’s making beautiful music out of throwaway junk,” said Byrne. “And I think that makes the point here. We’re thrilled to have this begin.”

Officials had high hopes for the green, which they said they hoped would serve as a gathering place and an economic stimulator.

“Part of our job is to position Vermont as the best place to work and play,” said Tom Torti, President of the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce. “We talk most about forming a sense of place. Surrounded by beautiful brick, in this quiet, contemplative place, this green will help to create that unique sense of ‘where you are.’ And it will spur economic development, which we all need.”

Williston Town Manager Rick McGuire also weighed in at the celebration.

“This will serve as a meeting place for the community, and the benefits will be seen by the businesses of Maple Tree Place as well,” McGuire said.

The speakers then gathered beside the stage as they each directed a ceremonial shovelful of dirt onto the base of a maple tree. The green will have several unique features that capture the developers’ environmentally minded attitude as well as the community focus. In the southwest corner, diagonally opposite from the band shell, there will be a place where it will be possible to purchase and install a memorial brick for a loved one.

In addition, Martin Smith’s creation, Obelisk Earth, will stand in the green. The piece, which is made out of computer keyboards, e-waste computer parts, and fast food children’s toys, is Smith’s attempt to remind of the dangers of technological waste.

“This whole thing is made out of oil, and promotional snippets pretending to be toys,” Smith said. “Technology has a dual role – it can help us, but in the process it produces waste materials, some of them toxic. This piece highlights the waste produced by technology, as well as puts the Earth back on a pedestal where it should be.”

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By Colin Ryan
Observer correspondent

Joan O’Gorman sits cross-legged, surrounded by engrossed children as she tells a story about the first apple tree. She punctuates the narrative with silly expressions, wide-eyed enthusiasm, and at all points wears a big smile on her face. The kids nod their comprehension as she concludes, “Just like the apple tree, God gave each of us things that make us unique.”

Something unique about O’Gorman: not only is she the first female pastor of Williston Federated Church, she is one of the first female pastors in Williston.

“I didn’t know it till I got here,” she recalls with a laugh. “It felt daunting at first, and humbling. I know it’s a challenge – especially for people who have never had a female pastor before. But I’ve been fortunate because most of the people I’ve ministered to have had a very positive previous experience with a woman pastor, or a woman as an associate pastor, or Christian educator. So I’m very blessed by the women who have gone ahead of me over the years. And that’s part of what I try to do as well, for the women who will surely come after me.”

“We’re thrilled with Joan,” said church member Charlie Magill. “And not just because she’s a woman, but because of the kind of woman she is.”

In O’Gorman’s pastoral study, on a packed bookshelf, sit two unusual items. The first is a wind-up nun that spits fire, a joke stemming from her former days as a student in Catholic school. The second is a model of a yellow taxi.

“A lot of people don’t know that I was a cab driver in New York City,” O’Gorman said. “That’s how I put myself through college. Being a minister is a lot like driving a taxi cab, in that you’re taking people to a place they’ve asked to go, but you may not be taking them in the same direction that they think is the best way. You have to earn their trust. And once you do, for some reason when people get into that backseat, they want to tell their story. And I absolutely love stories.”

O’Gorman preaches with intelligence, wit, and compassion. This is only her third week at Williston Federated Church, and she communicates comfortably with the congregation of more than 100, often succeeding at calling on individuals by name.

“I love her,” said Ashley Dubois, an Autism Interventionist for the South Burlington school district, and one of the senior high youth group leaders. “She brings us an opportunity to grow in places where we are ready to grow. She has been very welcoming to the youth and excited about what we’re doing. And the youth are excited to have the connection with her as well.”

At 58, O’Gorman has been a pastor for 27 years, beginning in Bangor, Maine. She and her husband, Gary, a lay preacher, have four children. Most recently, she served for 17 years as the pastor of East Arlington Federated Church in Arlington, Vt.

“I was attracted by the dynamics of this church,” said O’Gorman of her move to Williston. “They’re welcoming, mission-oriented, and really reaching out to families and children.”

In a region in which the attendance in mainline Christian churches is declining, the church remains unconcerned, focusing more on service than on their own expansion. This past May, members of the church went down to Van Cleve, Miss., to help rebuild in communities that were damaged by Hurricane Katrina.

“I cannot imagine a life apart from community, or apart from serving,” O’Gorman admitted. “I just don’t think Christianity is a ‘me religion’ – it’s a ‘we religion.’ Growing our church doesn’t just mean growing this particular congregation. We’re already forming partnerships with churches down in Van Cleve. We’re hoping to grow this church by helping the folks down there rebuild their lives. God didn’t call us to count his sheep, but to feed them. The question is not ‘how big is our church?’ but ‘how great is our mission?’”

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Laura Reeves named sportswoman of the year

By Greg Elias
Observer staff

Williston resident Laura Reeves has long been more than a little advanced for her age.

At 11, she was ranked a level 9 gymnast, just a step below those who compete on the national team. The next-youngest Vermonter holding that rank at the time was 16 years old.

Laura started taking college classes when she was 12. Now, two years later, she is helping with coaching and bookkeeping at the gymnastic center co-owned by her parents.

So it is perhaps no surprise that she was recently named Sportswoman of the Year by USA Gymnastics, the sport’s national governing body. The award covers Region 6 of the organization, which includes all six New England states as well as New York. It recognizes academic achievements and community service as well as gymnastic skills.

“I’m just really honored to receive it,” Laura said.

Erika Reeves said such low-key statements are typical for her modest daughter. She said Laura has taken on adult-size responsibilities, helping run their business, Hruska Gymnastics Academy in Winooski, while she studies her schoolwork and practices gymnastics.

“It’s not just me but everyone she meets who thinks my daughter is just a remarkable human being,” she said of Laura, one of six children she has with her husband, Tom.

Laura said she is at the gymnastics center five or six days a week, practicing for hours most days and studying through a home-school program.

Laura is using a ninth- and 10th-grade curriculum, her mom said, and is particularly advanced in math. Two years ago, she passed an admission test and enrolled in classes at the Community College of Vermont. She now has completed four courses.

Her classmates were a little surprised when they learned her age. “It was fun,” Laura said. “People really didn’t realize I was so young. A few people I met figured I was a high school student just taking classes.”

At about 5-feet-4 and with an unusually mature demeanor, Laura could indeed pass for an older student. Over the past three years, she has grown considerably, her mom said. That growth spurt has made it more difficult to perform some gymnastic skills, but Erika Reeves figures her daughter will adapt.

Asked if she wants to compete at the elite level, Laura seemed ambivalent. She said she plans to continue competing, but her ultimate goal is to be a gymnastics coach. Her own coach is Stefan Hruska, who is a partner in the gymnastic center with the Reeves.

Erika Reeves acknowledged that to compete on the national stage her daughter would have to train with an elite, out-of-state gymnastics program. She said doing that would have been too great a disruption for Laura and the entire family.

“We always wanted her to have a normal childhood,” she said.

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Eight-lot project proposed in rural area

By Greg Elias
Observer staff

Patrice Clark wants to keep her 172-year-old farm operating for another generation. She hopes developing a piece of the land will make that happen.

Clark, co-owner of River Hill Farm, recently filed plans for a subdivision containing eight lots on 21 acres, a small fraction of the farm’s total acreage.

Clark said when she and her husband Wright divorced, he did not want to continue farming. Clark bought his share of the farm, taking out a short-term mortgage to finance the transaction. Her ex-husband’s sister also owns a share of the farm.

She said the subdivision will allow her to pay off the debt and fund renovations to farm buildings. The idea is to eventually pass the farm down to her 25-year-old daughter, Cameron.

“I only have so many options available to me,” Clark said. “Our desire to keep farming is a lot bigger than my ex-husband’s. If we can’t raise capital and sell houses, we’ll wind up having to sell it anyhow.” She said the cash infusion would also fund renovations at the farm.

The farm has been in the Clark family since 1835. It comprises 579 acres of rolling landscape along Governor Chittenden Road, which runs off U.S. 2 near French Hill.

The farm is particularly scenic, with a mixture of hills and pastures near the banks of the Winooski River. Grazing horses dot the landscape, which is framed by the Green Mountains.

“It’s a beautiful spot for sure,” Clark said. “You are close by things, but removed from all the madness at Taft Corners.”

Williston planners say the land is located in the most environmentally important area in town. It contains wildlife habitat and river frontage.

“It’s probably the best single piece of land in the entire town from a conservation point of view,” said Town Planner Lee Nellis. Because of that, he said, the proposed subdivision’s significance “is way beyond the number of units being proposed.”

The farm has 135 cows, about half of which are milked, Clark said. She grows hay for feed as well as some corn. The farm also has a horse stable and sells firewood.

The proposed subdivision would have eight lots ranging in size from 1.9 acres to 3.7 acres on the east side of Governor Chittenden Road, according to the application filed at Town Hall. Plans call for a ninth lot containing 127 acres that will remain undeveloped. The lots would be served by individual or shared driveways running off the main road.

“In all, over 85 percent of the parcel will be unchanged …,” the application states. “This will allow the existing agricultural uses of the property, primarily as a riding stable, to continue unabated, while still allowing the owner to develop.”

Clark said she is unsure if she will use a developer or sell the lots herself. She said several people previously expressed an interest in building homes on the land. She said it’s too early to determine home prices.

The proposal must receive a subdivision permit from the town of Williston before anything can be built. Hearings before the Conservation Commission and the Development Review Board have yet to be scheduled.

Subdividing the land is the only viable way to keep the farm operating, Clark said. Even if she sold all the land, Clark said no buyer is likely to continue farming it.

Developing a portion of the farm is the best way to ensure her daughter gets to be the eighth generation of Clarks to work the land, she said.

“We love it here,” she said. “It’s my daughter’s heritage, so this gives us an opportunity to continue.”

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By Greg Duggan
Observer Staff

Williston will soon age 18 years.

At least, it will appear to do so as the Department of Public Works changes the date of the town’s charter on welcoming signs at town borders. The signs give the founding date of Williston as 1781, but the town was actually established in 1763. The mistake has slipped past residents and town officials since the installation of the signs more than 10 years ago.

On Tuesday, DPW employees visited the four affected signs to scrape off the vinyl stickers marking the date. DPW worker Truman Isham said it could take at least two weeks to have new numbers ordered and made.

Town Clerk and Treasurer Deb Beckett first noticed the mistake almost a month ago on sweatshirts being sold by Families as Partners to raise money for the school system. She soon traced the source back to the signs.

“We wanted to put the date the town was chartered on the sweatshirts,” said Bethe Ogle, a Families as Partners parent who helped print the shirts. “I did research on the town Web site, and saw 1763. Driving into Williston from all three points, the signs say 1781. I thought if the signs say 1781, that must be what it is. When Deb Beckett came to the farmers market, and saw 1781, she said, ‘That doesn’t look right.’”

The Williston Business and Professional Association, a now-defunct group, installed the signs, Beckett said. Neither Beckett nor DPW Director Neil Boyden remembered the exact date of the installation, but put the timeframe at a minimum of 10 to 15 years ago. Beckett, who belonged to the association, could not recall why the date 1781 appeared on the signs.

“I went through the town records, and nothing even big was happening in 1781,” Beckett said.

Though Beckett had heard that Richmond may have been established in 1781, Richmond Town Clerk Linda Parent put the charter date at 1794.

Another former member of the Business and Professional Association named by Beckett, who now lives in Essex Junction, did not return phone calls by press deadline.

Families as Partners had only printed a handful of shirts to use as samples before Beckett caught the error. Ogle said the new shirts have the correct date, as well as the tag line “Old town charm, new town spirit.”

The sweatshirts have a faded look. Ogle said Families as Partners wanted a way to raise money for the schools without asking parents to organize another fundraiser, and decided that sweatshirts could go to everyone from grandparents to tourists.

The sweatshirts will be available at the next two farmers markets, and Ogle expects the schools to send home order forms with students.

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