Thursday, February 14, 2019
In a decision issued Thursday, the hearing panel concluded that Macias, who is on leave from his job, was guilty of three out of seven alleged licensing violations that were leveled at him last year.
He shouted at one employee, ridiculed another and "unreasonably impaired" colleagues' ability to perform their duties, which constituted misconduct, the panel determined.
Macias also showed incompetence and inability to perform the basic duties of his job, another violation, according to the panel. Macias further violated standards by inappropriately engaging in conversation with a student about the licensing charges against him, the panel found.
Tags: Mario Macias , Burlington , guidance director , Burlington High School , licensing , revoked , Dan French , Agency of Education , Image , Web Only
The recently released Vermont Department of Health data offers "measurable evidence we are in fact advancing as a community," Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger said. About two dozen health officials, law enforcement officers, politicians and nonprofit leaders touted the progress at a press conference in the Queen City.
At the same time, the total number of Vermonters who died of an opioid overdose continued to increase. The state tallied 110 such deaths in 2018, up from 108 the previous year. The total sets a new record for opioid-related deaths in Vermont.
Tags: Brandon del Pozo , Miro Weinberger , Mark Levine , Sarah George , Bob Bick , opioids , Image , Web Only
Monday, February 11, 2019
Mohamed Jafar vowed to stay in the race for Burlington's South District city council seat despite a VTDigger.org story published Monday that described a series of sexist tweets the candidate had sent as recently as January 2016.
"I sincerely apologize to those I’ve offended. I sincerely apologize to those who were really surprised" by the tweets, Jafar, 22, told Seven Days. "My personality and character have evolved since then."
The messages of 140 characters or fewer included misogynistic statements and allusions to violence. “Somebody hold my earrings, I’m about to beat this bitches ass,” Jafar wrote on Twitter in 2015, when he was a sophomore at Colby-Sawyer College.
“I’ve never hit a women before but I’m bout to make you my first…the closest thing to a women I’ve ever hit is my sister," he tweeted in 2013.
Tags: Mohamed Jafar , Shay Totten , Rights & Democracy , Burlington City Council , elections , Town Meeting Day , South District , Image , Web Only
Wednesday, February 6, 2019
She racked up about $3,350, including donations from entrepreneur Russ Scully ($500); real estate mogul Ernie Pomerleau ($450); businessman Pat Robins ($450); and fellow City Councilor Chip Mason (D-Ward 5), who gave $200. Former city councilor Ed Adrian gave Shannon $118.
Progressive Mohamed Jafar, who is challenging Shannon, raised $1,700. Only one of his donors contributed more than $100; those who give less than that amount are not required to be identified in Vermont campaign finance filings. The other candidate in the race, Republican Paco DeFrancis, didn't file a report.
Tags: Joan Shannon , Mohamed Jafar , Jane Knodell , Perri Freeman , Richard Deane , Jack Hanson , Kienan Christianson , Franklin Paulino , Ericka Bundy Redic , Paco DeFrancis , Jared Carter , Town Meeting Day , Burlington City Council , Image , Web Only
Tuesday, January 29, 2019
Queen City voters will not get a chance to weigh in on the future of City Hall Park.
The Burlington City Council declined on Monday night to put a question on the Town Meeting Day ballot that would have asked whether voters wanted to cancel the $4 million project to renovate the downtown green space.
The 6-6 vote was a defeat for the citizen group Keep the Park Green, which has fought the park plans for nearly three years. Under council rules, a tie vote means the measure fails.
The vote means the future of the park is decided. Construction on the current plan, which includes a splash park, wider pathways and more seating, is slated to begin in the spring.
Tags: Keep the Park Green , Burlington City Council , Miro Weinberger , Kurt Wright , Town Meeting Day , Image , Web Only
Tuesday, January 22, 2019
That was the message from a representative of real estate firm Brookfield Asset Management who sat before the Burlington City Council Tuesday to allay concerns about the stalled 14-story project.
"We want to assure the community that the plans for CityPlace Burlington are moving forward," the company's vice president of development Chase Martin told the council. "Right now, all focus is getting this project up and running." Construction is expected to begin this spring, he added.
Tags: Don Sinex , Brookfield Asset Management , CItyPlace Burlington , Miro Weinberger , Chase Martin , Image , Web Only
The route marks a new westernmost destination for BTV travelers and better access to the West Coast, said Nic Longo, the airport's deputy director of aviation.
Denver International Airport hosts nonstop flights to more than 200 destinations and is a hub for United Airlines and Frontier.
"It's huge for us to have that connection," Longo said.
Flights to and from Denver will run on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, according to Frontier. The airline plans to use the 180-passenger Airbus A320 for the route. It's the same big-for-Burlington aircraft that Frontier is using for direct flights to Orlando, Fla., that begin in February.
BTV boardings increased by 14 percent last year, Longo said, after seven years of declining figures.
Tags: btv , Burlington International Airport , Nic Longo , Denver , Frontier Airlines , Image , Web Only
Vermont Secretary of State Jim Condos is siding with a man who sued the Burlington Police Department over the hundreds of dollars it wanted to charge him to view an officer's body camera footage.
The state's primary public records custodian filed an amicus brief with the Vermont Supreme Court last week asserting that public records should be free for members of the public to inspect. A lower court ruling in favor of the police department "serves to cloud the transparencies in Vermont government" well beyond police video, Condos wrote.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Vermont sued the department last year on behalf of Reed Doyle, a Burlington man who claimed to have witnessed a Queen City officer use excessive force against young teens in Roosevelt Park in 2017. Doyle sought a court order requiring the department to allow him to view body camera footage from the incident without charge.
Tags: Burlington , police , ACLU of Vermont , Jim Condos , Secretary of State , Brandon del Pozo , Reed Doyle , Image , Web Only
Friday, January 18, 2019
The longtime incumbent Burlington city councilor announced Friday that she will seek another term on the council, this time as an independent. Her decision comes after she lost the Progressive nomination for the Central District seat to Perri Freeman, a 27-year-old community organizer. She'll also face Jared Carter, a Democrat.
Since the January 6 Progressive caucus, some moderate Progs have urged the former council president to run, circulating a news release listing supporters and putting up "Run Jane Run!!" signs around the Old North End.
Tags: Jane Knodell , Perri Freeman , Jared Carter , Burlington City Council , Town Meeting Day , Image , Web Only
Wednesday, January 16, 2019
They contend that Nectar's employees acted in a "profoundly irresponsible" and "outrageous" manner when they returned a handgun they'd seized during a dispute between bar patrons and told Rashad Nashid to "take it outside."
He did, and, according to police, he and another man got into a fight, then drew guns. Nashid allegedly shot bystander Chelsi Parker, 27, who police said was nearly killed.
Tags: Nectar's , shooting , Chelsi Parker , Noel Donnellan , Rashad Nashid , Image , Web Only