Lyndon landmark fighting for its life

Vermont is often accused, fairly or unfairly, of being a "Godless" state. Three congregants are facing that challenge head on as they try to save their church.

The First Congregational Church on York St. in Lyndon is calling on volunteers to help the remaining congregants restore the 180-year-old building. The building has many structural problems. The steeple is leaning, the roof is leaking, the paint is peeling and the wood is deteriorating.

The top priority of the project is fixing the roof. Water intrusion through the roof is causing further damage inside the church. For now, the holes in the roof are being covered with tarps. Another major priority is fundraising for the project. Costs of the restoration are expected to top $200,000.

*Information from the Caledonian-Record was used in this post.

Lyndon Center residents demand town action

A Lyndon Center couple has had enough with cars crashing into their home.

Bill and Mary Cote live at the corner of Back Center Road and Center Street in Lyndon Center, just down the street from Lyndon Institute. The design of this intersection makes it extremely dangerous, as evidenced by the most recent accident at the Cote family's home.

In late March, a pickup truck failed to negotiate the intersection, and plowed straight into the Cote's living room. William told the Lyndonville Select Board that if the accident had occurred a couple hours either earlier or later, he and his wife would've been sitting in the exact spot where the truck went through the wall.

The Cotes would like the town to make long-term changes to make the intersection safer for students and pedestrians who walk through the area, as well as for drivers who are unfamiliar with the intersection.

The select board voted to install warning signs to get drivers' attention. Selectmen will be in contact with the police department to see if these signs are actually making a difference.

*Information from News 7's John Gallagher was used in this post.

LI community shocked by hunting accident

Vermont's turkey hunting season got off to a tragic start yesterday morning. This weekend, the Lyndon Institute community is looking for answers.

17-year-old Jacob Kadamus, a sophomore 2-sport athlete, was killed early yesterday morning while hunting turkeys with his father Kevin in Wheelock. The elder Kadamus shot at what he thought was a turkey, but hit his son instead. He did not know that Jacob had left into his hunting area and moved into Kevin's. Despite his father's best efforts, Jacob died at the scene.

LI Headmaster Rick Hilton called a special assembly to inform the student body of Jacob's death. The students, some of whom were visibly grieving, were then dismissed for the remainder of the day. All LI athletics events scheduled for this weekend have been cancelled.

Captain Ed Ledo of the state police said in a press conference yesterday afternoon that there's no such thing as an accident in hunting. Ledo said the case will be reviewed by the Caledonia County State's Attorney's office after the Fish & Wildlife Department and state police detectives complete their investigation. It is unknown at this time if charges while be filed agaisnt Kevin Kadamus.

Video from the press conference and the funeral can be found at http://news7newslinc.net/.

*Information from News 7's Michelle Frizalone was used in this post.

Philly cuisine arrives in NEK

Opening a new business anywhere in America is not easy in this economy. It's even more difficult when trying to do so in a rural area, and two of your competitors are within sight of your establishment, and a third is less than half a mile up the road.

George Frank is attempting to do just that, and in exactly these circumstances.

The Philadelphia native held a grand opening for his new business last week. George's Deli is located at the recently reopened Valero gas station on Broad St. in Lyndonville, right next to the Miss Lyndonville Diner and across the street from the Bagel Depot. However, his menu offers something that his competitors don't: tastes from the City of Brotherly Love, featuring everything from the classic Philly Cheesesteak to the Blue Devil Sandwich.

Frank's business has been open for just over a month now. He says that if you can start a business in a bad economic climate, you have a leg up on the competition for the future. He also says that he and his employees look to be in for the long haul.

*Information from News 7's Krista Oberholtzer was used in this post.

School cafeterias going private?

3 CNSU schools may be turning to private food service providers in an effort to save money and improve their cafeterias.

CNSU officials met with bidders from three private food service companies two weeks ago at the Lyndon Town School to discuss if privatizing the schools' food services departments would actually cut costs for the schools. Such a move in the past has proven successful in Vermont's larger schools.

Operations Manager Tom Petit says the bidders were looking at Lyndon's kitchen to see how efficient it is and how they could make it more efficient in terms of serving kids and managing costs.

The CNSU will be receiving more bids from food service providers in the coming days before making an official decision.

*Information from News 7's Scott Jaeger was used in this post.

Lyndon Town School still not making the grade

Student test scores at the Lyndon Town School still aren't meeting state standards. For the 5th straight year, test scores were below the level set by Vermont's Adequate Yearly Progress goals. These are goals set by the federal No Child Left Behind Act.

Students with learning disabilities and financial troubles continue to struggle in reading tests, while all students are struggling in math, according to the test scores. CNSU Superintendent Victoria Scheufler says that there needs to be more consistency between programs and from classroom to classroom.

Staff members and special educators will go through training so they can bring their students' learning up to where it should be.

Lyndon is currently in its third year of corrective action, which means the school must continue to implement measures to improve student test scores. It will take two consecutive years with improving numbers to be taken off the corrective action list.

*Information from News 7's Dan Hollis was used in this post.

Lyndonville Water Quality Report Released

The town of Lyndon has released its annual water quality report. The only change in the town's water supply is a minor increase in turbidity. Turbidity is a measure of how clear the water is based on the amount of suspended particles in the water. There are a number of sources that can cause turbidity, ranging from storm water runoff to bottom-feeding fish which stir up the sediment. Turbidity is not hazardous to human health.

Municipal Administrator Dan Hill says that the report is a compilation of a series of water quality tests required by the state. Hill also said that the turbidity test hadn't been done in a few years because of low counts in the past.

Residents can pick up a copy of the report from themselves at the Lyndonville Municipal Building.

*Information from News 7's Phil Viens was used in this post.

Police stepping up patrols around Bandstand Park

Local youth who spend their free time in Bandstand Park later this spring and summer may want to think twice about cranking up their stereos.

Lyndonville police will be increasing their patrols around the park because they're finding that most of the noise complaints occur during the summer. This is because more people have their windows open during that time, so they're more likely to hear the loud noise and music, according to police chief Jack Harris.

Some sources of the noise complaints are vehicles passing by with their stereos blasting, as well as people hanging out in the park.

*Information from News 7's Brian Howe was used in this post.

Stop sign still causing confusion

The stop sign that was installed at the corner of Broad and Depot Streets is still causing problems for motorists in downtown Lyndonville. Long backups during peak hours have become common. In fact, the stop sign has confused drivers so much that the village trustees have approved the installation of a blinking red light on top of the sign. The trustees made this decision last month.

According to Municiapl Administrator Dan Hill, the hope is that the light will get the attention of drivers so that they'll stop going through the sign.

Lyndon Town School Principal Resigns

Dave Cobb, the principal of the Lyndon Town School for the last 4 years, has handed in his resignation to the school board.

A veteran of 30+ years in education, Cobb was hired as assistant principal at the school in 2003. He was promoted to principal two years later. Cobb is a member of the Vermont Principal's Association's Executive Council. He has served on the VPA's basketball committee, and is the head of Lyndon Youth Basketball.

In addition to teaching at the Lyndon Town School, Cobb has also taught at Lyndon Institue(where he served as Assistant Headmaster), as well as K-8 in Waterford. He also previously worked in the admissions offices at Johnson State College, Champlain College and Norwich University.

The school board has formed a search committee to find a qualified replacement for Cobb. His resignation is effective June 13. The new principal will start on the job July 1. Both the school and Caledonia North Supervisory Union are declining further comment at this time.

*Information from News 7's Alejandra Leonard and the Lyndon Town School website was used in this post.

Australian Ballot for Lyndon School Budget?

For the second consecutive year, a Lyndonville resident will circulate a petition to change the way residents vote on the Lyndon Town School's budget.

Carol Fischer, the former owner of All-Around Tanning & Body Salon, was upset with the school board after they failed to take up her previous petition. She circulated a petition to residents asking them to switch from voting on the school budget by voice vote to Australian ballot. Each of the last two years, a budget of more than $10.5 million was passed by an assembly of 100 people or less. Fischer feels that it's important for everyone to have a chance to vote on the budget.

Caledonia North Supervisory Union Superintendent Victoria Scheufler explained that the school board did not take up Fischer's petition because it was submitted less than a month before Town Meeting Day, and because of some unclear wording. Scheufler explained that information for forming and circulating a petition is available online through the Secretary of State's web site.

Lyndon Town Meeting Results

It's not unusual to have a little controversy at town meeting here in the Northeast Kingdom, or anywhere else in the state. However, the general budget for the town of Lyndon was a sore point for some residents.
The overall budget for fiscal year 2010, which stands at a total of nearly $2.6 million, included an appropriation of nearly $29,000 for the hiring of a third officer for the police department. This item sparked an hour-long debate, which got very heated at times, on whether or not the town and village really need a third police officer. According to police chief Jack Harris, he and Officer James Hemond have to cover 36 square miles when they're not getting coverage from the state police barracks in St. Johnsbury.
Resident Reed Garfield motioned to amend the budget by removing the money for the third officer. The motion was voted on by paper ballot, and was defeated 117-49. The overall budget then passed in a voice vote.
Chief Harris was very relieved that he was finally able to get another officer for his force.

*Information from News 7's Alejandra Leonard was used in this post.

Kinney Drugs & Its Impact on Traffic

The process to build a new Kinney Drugs Store on Route 5 is underway.

The building's developer announced that it will be conducting a traffic study on the stretch of Broad Street where the proposed lot is located. The purpose of the traffic study will be to determine what improvements may need to be made to improve traffic flow and safety in the area. Interestingly enough, state officials declared that a traffic light would not be needed to control the flow of traffic on this stretch of Broad Street.

The lot where the building would stand sits next to Community National Bank, across from Rite Aid. The building would cover 11,500 square feet.

*Information from News 7's Josh Kidd was used in this post.

Lyndon Town School Meeting

The Lyndon Town School is coming off a major construction project, which was the source of much discussion during the school portion of last year's town meeting. Voters approved three separate articles appropriating $285,000 to pay for the replacement of the school's roofs. The construction was needed after ice dams caused water to back up underneath the roofs, causing water and mold damage to classrooms on the upper floors of the school. The project was delayed midway through by the early onset of last winter. The project was completed at the end of last summer, just before the start of the school year. According to Principal Dave Cobb, the new roofs, which are made of a composite rubber material, should last approximately 15-20 years before they'll need to be replaced. One of the articles on this year's warning asks voters to allow the school board to take $110,000 out of the Tax Stabilization Fund to pay off the remaining bill for the project. The other major item on the warning is the overall budget for the school. The proposed budget is nearly $10.75 million, up 1 percent from last year.