Wednesday, June 23, 2021
By a vote of 103 to 47, representatives mustered the two-thirds vote necessary to force the bills into law over the governor’s objections. The 30-member Senate is expected to follow suit later this week.
The residents of the two cities had already voted overwhelmingly to change their charters to allow noncitizens to vote in local — but not statewide or national — elections. The Vermont legislature must approve all proposed local charter changes, and it did so in these cases. But Scott vetoed both measures earlier this month.
“This is the local control that Vermont champions,” Rep. Hal Colston (D-Winooski) said. “This is the local democracy that other states covet.”
Tags: noncitizen voting , Gov. Phil Scott , veto , override , legislature , Montpelier , Winooski , Web Only , Image
Tuesday, June 22, 2021
The 40 people who gathered in Battery Park cheered when he vowed to help the city “unite as a community” and “build a better Burlington together.”
But some city residents say Felker hasn’t been practicing what he’s now preaching. Shortly after Seven Days published a story about Felker’s candidacy last week, Twitter-users called him out for his transphobic social media posts — some of which were directed at the very people he now wants to represent.
He has since deleted his Twitter account, @UrOrwellianLife, and his Facebook profile, but Seven Days used the Internet Archive, a nonprofit that catalogues old versions of websites, to dig up Felker’s old tweets.
Tags: Christopher-Aaron Felker , Burlington GOP , Republican , Ward 3 , city council , Burlington City Council , special election , Web Only , Image
Following heart surgery in 2019, Jerry’s cardiologist and family convinced him to retire at the age of 81. Lois, now 80, continued driving the bus through this school year before retiring.
Earlier this month, students and staff gathered in a playing field behind the Flood Brook School to celebrate the couple’s steadfast service to their community. School district officials presented the Fosters with a Simon Pearce bowl etched with their years of service
The recognition has been “a little overwhelming,” said Lois. “You don’t realize, you know. You just take it a day at a time and … when you saw that number on that glass bowl, it was like, Wow.”
Tags: Vermont , education , bus drivers , Lois Foster , Jerry Foster , Web Only , Image
Monday, June 21, 2021
The latest report by State Auditor Doug Hoffer runs the numbers on the first three years of the state’s contract with OneCare and concludes that the start-up and operating costs far surpass any savings realized to date.
“Put simply, at this time the financial costs to run the model significantly exceed any Medicaid savings attributed to it,” Hoffer wrote in a 41-page report released Monday.
Tags: OneCare Vermont , all-payer , Doug Hoffer , auditor , Web Only , Image
Saturday, June 19, 2021
Dressed in sun hats and brightly-patterned clothing, revelers clapped and sang along to "We Have Come Into This House" as the Lake Champlain Mass Choir and Band performed under a white tent. One couple joined hands and danced near the city hall steps. Unmasked friends shared meals and hugs on the green surrounding the stage.
Such was the opening scene of the Queen City's first-ever celebration of Juneteenth. A portmanteau of June 19, the event marks the day in 1865 when enslaved African Americans in Galveston, Texas, learned they were free, more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed. Earlier this week, President Joe Biden signed legislation making the day a federal holiday.
Burlington's daylong festival offered free music, food, panel discussions and more in locations all across the city. The city chipped in $100,000 toward the inaugural event, and private sponsors kicked in another $150,000.
Tags: Juneteenth , Tyeastia Green , Burlington , City Hall Park , festival , Web Only , Slideshow , Image
A total of 169 Progs cast ballots in the ranked-choice election, which lets voters rank candidates in order of preference. The lowest vote-getter is eliminated in each round until one candidate surpasses 50 percent.
Magee squeaked out 50.3 percent, or 75 votes, after four rounds, narrowly defeating Julie Macuga, who had 49.7 percent of votes, or 74 total, according to the party's official results.
"I'm very grateful to the candidates that ran in the caucus, and I'm looking forward to building a strong campaign for working families in Ward 3," Magee said. "It's just really great that we had such an impressive turnout in the caucus, and it speaks to the strength of the party in Ward 3 and definitely a strong start going into the special election."
Tags: Joe Magee , Progressive Party , election , Web Only , Image
Friday, June 18, 2021
About a dozen members of the Burlington GOP unanimously endorsed Felker, the party's only candidate, during a meeting on Zoom on Friday evening.
The vote comes just three days before candidate petitions are due for the August 17 contest. The special election was called when former Progressive councilor Brian Pine stepped down last month to run the city's Community & Economic Development Office.
Felker said he plans to make the most of the quick, two-month race.
"We have a solid ground campaign, and it's about working and building a better Burlington together, and we can do that," Felker said. "We're going to unite our community."
Tags: Burlington City Council , Burlington GOP , Ward 3 , special election , Republicans , caucus , election , Web Only , Image
Thursday, June 17, 2021
Elmwood Avenue resident July Sanders, who participated in last week's candidate forum, has dropped out of the race. Sanders told Seven Days that she has family commitments that require her to leave town often, and she realized it wasn't the best time to serve.
"Seeing just the great slate of candidates, I didn't feel that it was so bad that I step away," Sanders said.
Thursday evening, a new candidate had emerged in Chris Haessly, a College Street resident who volunteered himself for the seat at the party's nominating caucus.
"I wasn't really planning to be here today," Haessly told the small crowd gathered in the Sustainability Academy parking lot in the Old North End, noting that several residents encouraged him to run. "I've always considered myself a longtime, big P Progressive, so I figured I'd throw my hat in the ring."
Tags: Ward 3 , special election , Burlington City Council , Ryan Addario , Julie Macuga , Joe Magee , Chris Haessly , Owen Milne , Vermont Progressive Party , Web Only , Image
Tuesday, June 15, 2021
In an emotionally charged Zoom meeting attended by around 150 people, board members reviewed revisions to the policy made in the past several weeks and asked questions of Superintendent Beth Cobb and Erin Maguire, the district’s director of equity and inclusion.
The policy, which the district’s 12 principals endorsed, lists 13 “indicators” that will show it is working, including a more diverse curriculum and staff; mandatory staff training around bias, stereotypes and equity; and teaching about the past in a way that dismantles “revisionist frameworks that perpetuate inaccurate portrayals of people in privileged and subjugated positions.”
Board chair Kim Gleason launched Tuesday’s discussion by stating that the policy was the result of nine months of work by the school district and incorporated feedback from hundreds of community members. It was written by a group of 20 community members who identify as Black, Indigenous or people of color.
Tags: Essex Westford , equity , policy , critical race theory , opposition , Liz Cady , culture war , school district , Web Only , Image
Milne was the only candidate to file by the party's deadline last week and is expected to earn the party's official endorsement at its caucus on Friday, according to party chair Adam Roof.
Milne, the executive director of the Lake Champlain Sailing Center in Burlington, described his leadership style in a virtual Q&A event on Tuesday evening, saying that he would aim to be a true public servant.
"That's the job of city council. You answer the call, you listen intently, you ask the right questions, you understand the root of the problem, and then you roll up your sleeves and you act," Milne said. "Sometimes people consider that to be the part of the job that is less interesting or less glamorous, but ... that's the part of the job that I love the most."
Tags: Ward 3 , special election , Burlington Democratic Committee , caucus , candidate forum , Owen Milne , Burlington City Council , policing , housing , F35 , Web Only , Image