Karen Wyman and her daughter, Kenzie, stopped at the Dorothy Alling Memorial Library for a quick visit during National Library Week. (Courtesy photo by Marti Fiske)

Congratulations to Sharon Bay of St. George! She is the winner of our National Library Week drawing for a Nook e-reader.

Youth News

Vacation Week Movie

Friday, April 27, 3 p.m.  Intrepid reporter Tintin and Captain Haddock set off on a treasure hunt in search of a sunken ship. Rated PG, 107 minutes. Grade 1 and up. Children ages 8 and younger must be accompanied by an adult while in the library.

Russian Story Time

Saturday, April 28, 10:30 am. Stories, songs and crafts for children ages birth through 5. This program is presented in Russian. English speakers are welcome. Presenters will translate and teach Russian words. Includes puppet show: “Teremok.”

Early Literacy Parent Workshop

Monday, April 30, 6 p.m. This parent workshop provides information and fun activities for promoting your two- to five-year-old child’s early reading success. Presented by Brenda Buzzell, Building Blocks for Literacy Coordinator at the Stern Center for Language and Learning. Pre-register at 878-4918.

Food for Thought Teen Library Volunteers

Thursday, May 3, 4-5 p.m. Our Teen Advisory Group meets for pizza, discussion and library projects, grades 7-12. Get ready for summer! Help make decorations for summer reading programs. First Thursday of each month.

Adult Programs 

Yoga Workshop

Saturday, May 5 from 10:30 a.m.- noon. Explore the origins of yoga, look at the sage Patanjali’s eight-limbed path, learn some techniques of pranayama, and move through an invigorating and relaxing sequence yoga asana.  Instructor: Leo Leach. Please register as class size is limited. Bring a mat or towel.

So You Have A Story, Now What? Tips for authors in a digital publishing age

Monday, May 7 at 6:30 p.m. Authors Diane McDonald Goodrich and Tim Brookes discuss how to get your work considered and some digital self-publishing options, including the Champlain College Publishing Initiative.

Story Crafters Series

Sandy Baird: Finding the Path Forward. Monday, May 14 at 6:30 p.m. Baird, Professor of Legal and Justice Studies at Burlington College and founder of The Caroline Baird Crichfield Fund for Women in Need, shares her story of how she succeeded after childhood adversities.

New Fiction

“An Unexpected Visitor” by debut novelist Anne Korkeavivi is the tale of a day-in-the-life of a British diplomat’s wife, a chance encounter and the suspense that ensues.

Rosamund Lupton, author of the bestselling “Sister,” weaves another riveting story of loss and love in the psychological thriller “Afterwards.”

New Non-Fiction

Special Agent Clint Hill reveals his story from the humble beginnings of a North Dakota orphanage to the protective detail of his secret service assignment in “Mrs. Kennedy and Me.”

Anna Quindlen reflects on the past, present and future and the ever-changing interests of women in “Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake: A Memoir.”

The Dorothy Alling Memorial Library is located at 21 Library Lane in Williston, and can be reached at 878-4918. www.williston.lib.vt.us

By Luke Baynes

Observer staff

Avery Caterer

Despite temperatures that hovered in the mid-40s and wind gusts that reached 15 mph, Avery Caterer was smiling as he stood in Williston’s East Cemetery on Tuesday afternoon, dressed only in the short-sleeved uniform of Williston Boy Scout Troop 692.

Unperturbed by the weather, Caterer plunged the faux gold-plated blade of a ceremonial shovel into the earth to mark the groundbreaking of a kiosk that will serve as a guide to locate the tombstones of the military veterans laid to rest within the cemetery’s confines.

A 16-year-old junior at Champlain Valley Union High School, Life Scout Caterer spearheaded the kiosk initiative in conjunction with the Williston Cemetery Commission as part of his Eagle Scout Service Project, which tests the leadership skills of those seeking the highest rank attainable in the Boy Scouts.

The final resting places of over 100 veterans will be indicated on the completed kiosk – at least one of whom served in the War of 1812.

“I’m really hoping that it’s going to raise awareness about how many veterans there are,” Caterer said. “Before this project, I really didn’t know how many veterans have fought for us just from this state – and just from this town, even – so learning that was a wakeup call.”

The kiosk – which will be located in the upper left corner of section 3 of the cemetery, near the border of the Johnson Farm – will measure 7 feet by 9 feet and will be set 3 feet above the ground. A Lexan cover will be installed to protect the wooden structure from the elements and hinged doors will be locked at night to guard the memorial against vandalism.

Caterer said he would like to have the project completed by Memorial Day (May 28), although it will be contingent on raising the necessary funding.

To date, he has raised $350 of the roughly $700 needed to see the project through to completion.

Caterer noted that while the primary purpose of the kiosk is to honor both those who died for their country and those who have since passed from the earth following military service, he hopes that it will also serve as a reminder of the active military personnel who continue to put themselves in harm’s way in defense of freedom.

“I’ve met people who’ve served in Iraq and Afghanistan, and it’s kind of sobering to learn what goes on,” Caterer said. “So I figure the more recognition they get, the better.”

Those wishing to make a donation toward the construction of the cemetery kiosk can send a check to Troop 692 Treasurer, 489 Metcalf Drive, Williston, VT, 05495. Checks should be made payable to: “Williston Troop 692.”

S.D. Ireland wins bid for Old Stage Road sidewalk, water line construction

By Luke Baynes

Observer staff

This stretch of Old Stage Road is scheduled for construction of a sidewalk to connect Wildflower Circle with the small piece of sidewalk constructed several years ago in front of Adams Farm Market. Completion of the project, scheduled for Sept. 1, will complete the ‘loop’ from Old Stage, Williston, North Williston and Mountain View roads, and make it safer for pedestrians and drivers. (Observer photo by Marianne Apfelbaum)

Any Williston walker or runner knows the drill.

Traveling “the loop” formed by Old Stage, Williston, North Williston and Mountain View roads is smooth sailing on pedestrian-friendly sidewalks until one hits the bare stretch on Old Stage, between Mountain View and Wildflower Circle, and has to contend with traffic on the road’s slim shoulder.

Those days will soon be over.

According to Williston Director of Public Works Bruce Hoar, the town issued a notice of award to S.D. Ireland for the construction of the missing link of the sidewalk. Although a formal contract has yet to be signed, S.D. Ireland’s winning bid of $343,880 also includes the cost of building an extension to the town water line that runs along Old Stage Road.

Like the completion of the sidewalk loop, the water line extension will have the effect of looping the area’s water system, thus decreasing the number of affected customers should a water line break occur. In the longer term, it will improve Williston’s overall water line infrastructure, should the town construct a new water storage tank on one of two proposed sites in the vicinity of Old Stage and Mountain View roads.

The sidewalk and water line projects, which will run concurrently, are slated to begin construction in early May, with a Sept. 1 deadline for completion.

Hoar said that while the projects will likely require flaggers and one-lane traffic during certain periods of construction, at no point will traffic be shut down entirely on Old Stage Road.

Sequestration likely to take effect in January

By Luke Baynes

Observer staff

When the Budget Control Act of 2011 was signed into law by President Barack Obama on Aug. 2, 2011, after an extended period of partisan haggling, its immediate effect was to raise the U.S. debt ceiling by $400 billion – thus averting the first default on the country’s sovereign debt in its 235-year history.

Almost an afterthought to the aversion of the unthinkable were the ramifications of the government’s increased borrowing power. Namely, that the Democratic and Republican factions of Congress would need to reach an agreement on how to slice $1.2 trillion from the federal deficit to avoid triggering mandatory, across-the-board budget cuts known as “sequestration.”

To that end, the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction was created.

On Nov. 21, 2011, the co-chairs of the so-called “Supercommittee” released a statement which began: “After months of hard work and intense deliberations, we have come to the conclusion today that it will not be possible to make any bipartisan agreement available to the public before the committee’s deadline.”

Thus, barring an eleventh hour Congressional miracle in a presidential election year, the across-the-board federal budget cuts will take effect in January 2013.

VERMONT IMPACTS

While the mandatory budget cuts would affect myriad government programs, at the local level its impact would be felt most acutely in education funding.

Williston resident Shannon Hiltner, the Parent Teacher Association Federal and State Legislative Representative for Vermont, traveled to Washington, D.C. in March to discuss the potential impacts of sequestration with Vermont’s congressional delegation.

She said it was an eye-opening experience.

“It is extremely frightening to me how unaware people are of the automatic triggers that are built into the federal law, known as sequestration, that will cut more than $9 million from the education budget in Vermont alone,” Hiltner said.

Although the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a non-profit think tank, estimates Vermont’s 2013 education-related budget cuts at $10.7 million, the federal Congressional Budget Office projects a $9.1 million reduction.

Hiltner said either scenario would be devastating to local students and educators – particularly in the area of special education.

“Funding at risk includes special needs, gifted and talented, early education, teacher education and a host of other programs – and the cuts go into effect midyear,” said Hiltner. “Losing funding, in my opinion, can go one of two ways: on the back of the taxpayers to make up the shortfall, or cutting services outright.”

Vermont PTA President Rae Couillard urged Vermonters to speak out against a federal measure that could negatively impact one of the key measures of the state’s favorable livability rating.

“That’s why people come and live in Vermont – because we’re known to have a good education system,” Couillard said. “It’s really going to be cutting a lot out of special education.”

Based on Congressional Budget Office estimates, $4.4 million in budget cuts are projected at the state level from ESEA (Elementary and Secondary Education Act) programs, while $2.3 million is slated for cuts from IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) programs. In addition, $1.2 million is projected to be cut statewide from Head Start, a program that provides education, health and nutrition services to low-income children and parents.

CSSU PERSPECTIVE

Elaine Pinckney, superintendent of the Champlain South Supervisory Union – which includes the Williston School District and Champlain Valley Union High School – said that officials from the Vermont Department of Education have indicated that a 10 percent reduction in CSSU-allocated federal funding should be expected if sequestration occurs.

The irony, Pinckney noted, is that the educational area that will be hit hardest by the congressional gridlock is special education programs – the same programs that are required by federal law to maintain a certain budgetary standard.

“What I do know is it will be a hardship for us to figure out, and we will need to take (funding) from other programs,” Pinckney said. “We’re kind of between a rock and a hard place.”

By Luke Baynes

Observer staff

It’s called the Addison Natural Gas Project, but the largest pipeline expansion project in Vermont Gas’ history will need the participation of several Chittenden County towns – including Williston.

According to Steve Wark, director of communications for Vermont Gas, Williston is vital to the success of the project’s preferred route.

“Why am I here tonight?” Wark posed at the April 16 Williston Selectboard meeting. “I’m here tonight because Williston plays a critical role. Frankly, it would be very difficult to do this project without the Circ communities of Colchester, Essex and Williston.”

The preferred route for the pipeline – which would bring natural gas to Vergennes, Middlebury and other parts of Addison County – would bypass Burlington by following the route of the unrealized Circumferential Highway from Colchester to Williston. After passing underneath the Winooski River, the pipeline would follow Interstate 89 to the Vermont Electric Power Company (VELCO) substation off Sycamore Street. From there, it would track south to Addison County by following Vermont 2A to the “VELCO corridor” between U.S. 7 and Vermont 116.

The long-term plan of Vermont Gas – which gets its natural gas from Alberta via the TransCanada pipeline – is to service Rutland and points south, and to eventually connect to the U.S. natural gas supply.

“Essentially, Vermont is an outlier. We are connected to the Canadian system, but we don’t connect to any part of the U.S. system,” Wark said. “So what that does is it puts us at the very end of this Canadian system, and one of the reasons that we’ve started to think about expanding our system is not only to serve other people in Vermont, but ultimately, we’d love to be able to probably 20-25 years from now connect to the U.S. system and have access to a different source of gas.”

Citing the 450 Jericho residents who reduced their annual carbon dioxide emissions by 900 tons by converting to natural gas, Wark said Vermont Gas’ growth vision complements Vermont’s vision of becoming a greener state.

“Our vision is that because natural gas is clean and supportable … it’s poised to be really a great fuel resource for not only the country, but in particular, Vermont,” said Wark. “We believe that it can help reduce this dependence – or overdependence – on foreign oil, and it can also reduce the greenhouse gas emissions profile in the state.”

However, the high pressure pipeline running beneath the town’s surface wouldn’t translate into increased natural gas services for Williston residents, due to the fact that the town lacks a “gate station” to step down the pressure of the gas transmission to a level suitable for residential use.

Selectboard Deputy Chairman Jeff Fehrs addressed that shortcoming by asking Wark what tangible benefits Willistonians can expect to receive from the project.

“What do we get out of it?” Fehrs asked. “It sounds like there will be no benefit in terms of providing additional gas to Williston.”

Wark responded that in addition to providing increased reliability to existing natural gas customers, the pipeline would offer tax benefits to the town. Although he was unable to provide specific figures during the project’s conceptual stage, Wark noted that natural gas transmission lines are generally valued between $1 million and $1.5 million per linear mile and would be subject to municipal taxes on an annual basis, based on that assessed value.

Wark added that the project should be looked at in terms of its benefit to the state as a whole.

“I see this as a greater good project. I see this as a way to help other Vermonters, and sometimes, it doesn’t always help the person that you’re immediately going through their area,” Wark said. “It will help people in Addison County to lower their bills, it will reduce carbon, and that money comes back into the economy.”

In an April 19 letter to Williston Town Manager Rick McGuire, Fire Chief Ken Morton wrote that the proposed natural gas transmission line would require increased training for emergency responders and more sophisticated metering equipment for detecting and quantifying gas levels.

However, Morton also noted: “When compared to other fuel transport options, pipelines rank among the safest modes of transporting fuels, and/or natural gas.”