Ride-share app Uber to debut in Killington

By Evan Johnson

Skiers and snowboarders headed out for the night in Killington will be able to leave their keys at home, thanks to the popular application Uber, which will debut in January.
The application uses a rider’s location to connect the rider with drivers who use their own vehicles to transport the riders to their destination. Riders pay using the app, so no credit card information or cash are exchanged.
Uber spokesperson Carlie Waibel said the company is recruiting drivers in the Killington area to begin service in January. An official launch date has not been announced.
“Once we announce our official launch, our goal is people will be able to open the app, put in their location and within minutes have an Uber available to bring them to their destination,” she said.
Waibel said the application would be popular among weekend travelers, who may be used to using Uber in larger metropolitan areas, as well as local drivers who are looking to earn “a little extra cash.”
“We started in some larger cities across the U.S. but over the past several years, we’ve grown into smaller communities and I think there’s great opportunity there as well,” she said.
Killington would be the second city in Vermont to have Uber service, but would be the first ski town in the state to offer Uber services. Uber currently operates in the Burlington area and can bring riders to locations as far away as Montpelier, Stowe, Morrisville and Barre.
Killington sees the most traffic in the winter months, something Waibel said made it appealing to Uber. It is still unclear if Uber will remain as a year-round service.
“We’ll gauge how people in the Killington area like us,” Waibel said.

- See more at: http://mountaintimes.info/ride-share-app-uber-debut-killington/#sthash.vVpSSTTY.dpuf

Killington pastor to retire

Mountain Times

December 28, 2016

By Evan Johnson

After living in the Killington area for over 50 years and ministering to the communities of Killington and Bridgewater, Beverly Anderson said she is ready for a new adventure.
“Between the mountains and the ocean I think I can keep myself busy,” she said after a busy Christmas weekend.
Anderson joined the Sherburne United Church of Christ after moving to the area in 1964 and worked in the lodging business with her husband as the owners of the then Chalet Killington. She became the pastor in 1999 and in 2002, she became the pastor of the Bridgewater Congregational United Church of Christ.
“We chose to stay in Vermont and Killington because it was a wonderful, giving, sharing community,” she said. “It’s a small town that cares for one another and we felt like we wanted to make our lives here.”
On Sundays, she gives a service at the Sherburne United Church of Christ at 9 a.m. and then drives east on Route 4 to the Bridgewater church for another service at 11 a.m. Both churches see congregations of 15 – 20 people every week.
While the congregations at Sunday services may be small, Anderson said the church still plays a role in the community
“Sherburne United Church of Christ really does minister to the community as far as food, needs for funerals, weddings and baptisms,” she said.
In her tenure, Anderson has presided over weddings, funerals, baptisms, Easter Sunday sunrise services at the summit of Killington and more. She also assists in distributing food through the food shelf, which is housed at the church and delivers meals on the holidays. Anderson was also present as the Sherburne United Church of Christ came to share the building with the Roman Catholic Our Lady of the Mountains. Anderson said while the two groups worship separately, they share in the upkeep of the building and help with meeting the needs of the community. On Christmas Eve, the church hosts an ecumenical choir that is open to everyone.
“I feel very strongly about ecumenism and I think as best we can the Sherburne United Church of Christ and Our Lady of the Mountains live that out,” she said.
Anderson cited her age as a factor in her decision to retire.
“My reason for retiring is it’s time,” she said. “My age is certainly a factor and if there are things that I do want to do, this will give me the time to do them.”
In her retirement, she said her plans are “wide open” and she plans to spend time reading, writing and traveling. She has a daughter in Utah as well as family in Maine whom she hopes to visit.
While the church begins to look for a new pastor, Anderson will need to take some time away from the church. An interim pastor will fill in while the United Church of Christ conference will help the church in the process of finding a new pastor.
“I will definitely miss my involvement,” she said. “One of my struggles is that most of these people were my friends long before I was their pastor. I am going to miss that pastoral relationship but hopefully we can pick up our friendship.”

Beverly Andersonevan johnsonKillington

- See more at: http://mountaintimes.info/killington-pastor-retire/#sthash.anfZucAh.dpuf

Separating the golf finances

Mountain Times 

Dear Editor,

First it’s out, then it’s in, now it’s out again. According to one Select Board member a calendar year report would be better.
Who cares!!
Manage the golf course using comparative data. Make sure the data is accurate and current. Ask some smart people to study the reports and advise the board.
But donkey changing the financial reporting … you’ll just confuse everybody, including yourselves.
Keep it simple and understandable.

Norman Holcomb, Killington

Resolution reached

DECEMBER 28, 2016

Mountain Times

Killington Village is now able to move ahead with plans
By Karen Lorentz

It’s been a super-long haul but thanks to a mediation process, ensuing discussions, and the settlement of some complex issues, including an old lawsuit, the appeals to SP Land Company’s permit for a Village have been dropped and SP Land looks forward to receiving a revised Village permit in January.
SP Land President Steven Selbo told the Mountain Times that a mediation session among several parties held “on Dec. 8 started a conversation that led to reaching a Dec. 16 Friday night verbal agreement.” Steve Durkee had previously appealed the Village Act 250 permit and site plan approvals. The parties signed an agreement on Dec. 19.
With that agreement, two further court hearings were avoided. Durkee’s appeal of the town’s approval of Phase I of the Village Site Plan to the Environmental Court, which was to have occurred Dec. 20, 21, and 22, was cancelled. Additionally, Durkee’s appeal of the Village Act 250 permit to the Vermont Supreme Court, which had not yet set a date for the appeal hearing, was also cancelled.
By resolving various issues, the Phase I design for the Killington Village Master Plan can move ahead, Selbo said, noting there were no changes needed to the plan and it was not affected by the agreement.
The terms of the agreement are confidential at this point, since there are many fine details to work out, Selbo said.
The good news is: “The resolution did not affect the town site plan approval which stands as is, and the final Environmental Court altered ruling for Act 250 from Aug. 29 stands as is,” Selbo noted. That Environmental Court ruling was remanded to the District #1 Environmental Commission for the permit to be finalized; however, that process had been put on hold subject to the Supreme Court hearing the Durkee appeal.
The next steps are for the attorney(s) for SP Land and the District #1 coordinator to review the permit in accordance with the Court’s revisions. Changes have to be made to the original permit issued by the District One Environmental Commission Oct. 7, 2013, per rulings and findings made by the Environmental Court.
Selbo said he is hoping to see the actual revised permit issued sometime in January.
Asked if he can then pursue a developer for Phase 1, he said, “Yes, this does allow us to move our discussion forward with the development community and to a minor extent that has already begun.”
As to a timeline, he noted that these permits only present the first chapter of getting the future development off the ground. He also mentioned construction of the resort parking project has to be done first based on the existing permit conditions.
While not at liberty to discuss the details, Selbo said of the resolution, “We are happy that we are moving forward.”
Background on permit and appeals
SP Land filed an Act 250 application for its Killington Village master plan in Feb. 2012. (A second application was filed by Killington Resort for a new resort parking project, realignment of part of Killington Road, reconfiguration of the hotel parking lot and associated storm water treatment.) A 61-page permit decision was handed down Oct. 7, 2013. Appeal filings and hearings followed at the Superior Court’s Environmental Division. That court rendered a June 21, 2016 merits decision andjudgment order affirming the District #1 Environmental Commission’s 2013 permit subject to conditions that SP Land could live with. However, a July 2016 motion to alter led to an Aug. 29 amended judgment order. Durkee eventually appealed the Aug. 29 Judgement Order in September of this year. With the Dec. 19 agreement, the Village development can finally move forward.

- See more at: http://mountaintimes.info/resolution-reached/#sthash.Xyj37ocT.dpuf

SP Land and Durkee reach agreement, Ski Village to move forward

SP Land (SP) and Steve Durkee reached an agreement which will allow the Ski Village project to move forward. This is a significant step in that Durkee's appeals will be dropped eliminating the last court delays in securing permits and approvals from the state.
Details are sketchy but the parties apparently did a land swap in the area of Mountain Side Properties which will allow SP to save significantly on construction of water lines. There also may have been some cash considerations. The land swap will take about sixty days to finalize.
Rumor also has it that SP is entering into negotiations with a developer on the project and something could happen as soon as August.
This is great news for the local economy!
In other happenings there is not so good news for Killington taxpayers. Apparently on Tuesday the Selectboard voted to include a $100,000 gift to the Killington Resort in the proposed 2018 budget apparently feeling voters are going to be magnanimous in the post World Cup euphoria. Meanwhile the Board is facing a budget increase of 8%, the largest in recent memory. Why are we giving money away to a $60 million dollar a year private business?
The supposed rationale is that it is a marketing expense. Frankly it is not. The resort was going to spend what it was going to spend no matter what. Supposedly they ran over what they expected to spend and that is why Chris Bianchi in his best Christmas spirit decided to suggest this to the board and they, apparently feeling the holiday cheer as well, agreed to put it in the budget. Now mind you the only way to oppose this is to vote the whole budget down. Someone must have been to pork barrel university - maybe all three of them. What's next a bridge to nowhere? We already have a sidewalk to nowhere.

2nd man dies at ski resort

2nd man dies at ski resort

Staff Report | December 13,2016

 

KILLINGTON — A second man has died of apparent natural causes after collapsing on a ski slope.

Vermont State Police said Walter E. Gorgas, 80, of Wappinger Falls, New York, collapsed at the “Header” trail at Killington Ski Resort at around 2:30 p.m. He was taken to Rutland Regional Medical Center, police said, where he was pronounced dead a short time later.

Police said there was no indication that Gorgas had — an experienced skier and an instructor at the resort — collided with anything and that his death appeared to be “a natural event.”

Gorgas’ death comes just two days after William P. Cusano, 65, of Lagrangeville, New York, died after collapsing on an unidentified intermediate trail. Similarly, Cusano was described as an experienced skier and there was no indication he had collided with anything.

Police investigate untimely death in Killington

WPTZ

Man dies while skiing

Updated: 9:46 PM EST Dec 10, 2016

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Eliza Lennon 

News Producer

KILLINGTON, Vt. —

Vermont state police are investigating the untimely death of a skier who collapsed on a trail at Killington Ski Resort.

William Cusano, 65, was skiing an intermediate trail at the mountain when he collapsed on Saturday afternoon, police said.

Cusano was brought to Rutland Regional Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.

A preliminary investigation shows no sign that Cusano was involved in any crash. Police said his death appears to have been a natural event. 

Cusano was an experienced skier visiting Vermont from Lagrangeville, New York, police said. An autopsy will be performed to determine his cause of death. 

World Cup: Big business for Killington, competitors

Mountain Times

December 7, 2016
By Karen D. Lorentz

It can cost a million dollars or more to host a World Cup ski event, with the total expense varying by the number of events and competitors as well as any extra expenses (i.e., not required under FIS World Cup rules) that a host resort takes on.
A host resort like Killington, venue for the recent Audi FIS Ski World Cup Giant Slalom and Slalom events, is responsible for the overall costs with a smaller fixed contribution coming from the National Ski Association, which is the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association (USSA) in the case of events held in the U.S.
USSA — also a parent organization of the U.S. Ski Team — decides which venues it would like to see host World Cup events. “The normal process is that USSA works directly with FIS, as well as USSA’s desired host sites, in the months leading up to the finalizing of the World Cup calendar,” USSA Vice President Tom Kelly explained in an email.
The 2017-18 World Cup calendar will be finalized next May.
During World Cup action at Killington, Kelly told the press that USSA had been eager to bring Alpine World Cup races back to the East. Indicating the appropriateness of an Eastern venue, Chief of Race Ted Sutton noted “50 percent of all the athletes in the whole USSA program come from the East.”
Powdr Vice President Herwig Demschar, who was chairman of the Local Organizing Committee, and Killington President and GM Mike Solimano were positive about the success and smooth running of Killington’s first World Cup events. Demschar noted that even the coaches and competitors would like to come back, citing the record-breaking crowds, which inspire confidence among racers and organizers.
While a host area benefits from the publicity and prestige of providing a successful event — it was broadcast to 2.1 million people in 60 countries — they still must weigh the expense, work involved, and benefits prior to discussions with USSA and the International Ski Federation (FIS) regarding future events, which is what Killington is currently doing in concert with Powdr officials.
Costs, considerations behind decision-making
To get a better understanding of what goes into that decision-making, it is interesting to consult the FIS rules and regulations that dictate everything from how to make applications to hosting a World Cup to course requirements to a long list of other expenses a host site must pick up—the list even includes what foods must be served to the teams and when.
One of the biggest expenses is the preparation of the race course and training runs. Killington began snowmaking in October whenever temperatures permitted and was able to lay down the requisite base that allowed the FIS to give the green light for the races on Nov. 17. While some thought it crazy to attempt an early season race, Killington’s snowmaking expertise, plus additional, expensive air compressors the resort brought in, made it doable. By contrast, the Dec. 2-4 Birds of Prey Men’s Downhill, Super G and GS racers were cancelled at Beaver Creek, Colo., for lack of the early season requisite cold to make snow and had to be rescheduled to Val d’Isere, France.
Another major expense is the tab for competitor accommodations rooms, meals, transportation and various extras like meeting rooms and places to tune skis. Those costs extend to the racers’ entourage of trainers, coaches, and technicians, per an FIS allotment formula based on number of team members competing; and they include training days as well as event days. Solimano noted that the requirement of providing free lodging at the Grand Hotel meant the resort had to pay the owners of the rooms for their use, as Killington does not own the rooms.
Killington Resort also incurred costs for the festival village — tent rentals, set ups, et cetera — and paid for O.A.R. to perform a free concert after the GS race; the latter was not an FIS requirement but was provided as an extra, Solimano said.
Add costs for bleachers, security, emergency medical support team, shuttle buses, and a media center — equipped with everything broadcast and print journalists and photographers needed to file stories — as well as a press area for post-race interviews, and the expense list adds up!
These expenses are in addition to Killington staff and the prize money, for which Solimano said the resort was also responsible.
Competitors’ share: $240,412
FIS rules require a host venue to provide 120,000 Swiss francs ($120,206 US) per race with the top 30 finishers getting a share of that in decreasing amounts.
The winner of each event got $45,077; second place, $20,034; third, $10,017; fourth, $7,012; fifth $5,009; and so on with last place (30th) receiving $501.
Mikaela Shiffren’s fifth in GS and first in Slalom earned her $125,215 for about four minutes of race time (plus weeks of training, travel, et cetera).
Demschar said top competitors can make $4-$5 million a year so no wonder four-event speedster Lara Gut took her giant slalom DNF in stride! The top competitors can make $300,000 to $600,000 in prize money annually, while their total take can add up to millions given sponsorships and endorsement deals.
Beyond the money, future events
Audi is the official World Cup sponsor, and there were Audi autos displayed along the Access Road as well as several models on exhibit at the festival village.
However, Stephan Maeder, owner of the Audi, Volkswagen, and Subaru dealerships in Rutland, said he was “not required to participate by Audi but as a businessperson I wanted to support the races; I was excited to be part of the biggest event this state has ever seen,” he added.
Asked if he expected to see more business from the exposure, Maeder said he might, but he participated because “It was the right thing to do.”
As a former ski racer and now an Alpine official for the Bromley Outing Club, Maeder said his ski racing family also attended, staying in a condo for the weekend and going out to eat.
Calling Killington’s hosting a “win-win-win for the region, racers, and resort,” Maeder isn’t alone in hoping the World Cup will return.
If Killington does decide it would like to host future events with USSA, there needs to be an opening in the FIS World Cup schedule to be considered. With USSA officials like President Tiger Shaw and Kelly wanting to see Alpine World Cup events continue to be held in the East, it is possible (and maybe even likely) that a Killington repeat might happen.
Either way, the success of the events has reinvigorated the region and, hopefully, re-injected confidence in the New England ski and snowboard industry. And the value of that is priceless.

- See more at: http://mountaintimes.info/world-cup-big-business-killington/#sthash.LoEBz1nX.dpuf

Board Scrutinizes First Draft of Killington Budget

Board Scrutinizes First Draft of Killington Budget 

12/8/16

By Curt Peterson

Standard Correspondent

KILLINGTON — The town-owned Green Mountain International Golf Course presented another wrinkle resulting from Killington’s change from a calendar year to a fiscal year. The select board invited William Hall, an accountant with R. H. R. Smith & Co. of Buxton, Maine, to come and explain their options regarding their audit of the two entities.

When the town and the golf course were both operated on a calendar year they were audited at the same time and appeared as one report. But the town opted to have a one-time eighteen-month budget year in order to align with the New England Municipal Resource Center fiscal year accounting system. The Board decided to leave the golf course on a calendar year basis because of its seasonal nature – on June 30, the end of a fiscal year, the golf course will have had most of its expenses and very little of its revenue. It was thought that December 31 would give a more accurate picture of its financial year.

Now, faced with their first June 30 audit, the select board has to choose – should they audit the golf course effective June 30, or effective Dec. 31?

The last Green Mountain audit was done Dec. 31, 2015 – the last town audit was done December 31 2014.

Hall recommended two audits, one calendar-based for the golf course, and the other a fiscal year audit for the town. He explained this would require moving two assets, one a reserve fund set up for a golf course debt balloon payment due in 2022, and another for capital improvements, and the golf course’s debt out of the town’s accounting results.

“We will have to provide an ‘adverse report’ in the town audit,” Hall said, “which means there will be a note stating the figures pertaining to the golf course, that had been reported as part of the town’s audit in the past, are not included and have not been audited as of this date.”

He said the note would also offer an explanation as to why that was the case. Ironically, he noted, a “qualified report” is much worse, in accounting terms, than an “adverse report”.

The board voted to accept Hall’s recommendation — and Town Manager Deb Schwartz agreed to engage the Smith firm to complete the separate golf course audit as of Dec. 31.

Schwartz announced that the first draft of the town budget for 2017-18 indicates an increase over interpolated previous 12-month figures by 8 percent.

“Some of the increases,” she said, “are caused by adjustments for underfunding in previous budgets.”

She cited as examples, legal costs and workers compensation insurance. On closer examination the Board decided to trim the legal budget estimates considerably from the $40,000 Schwartz had calculated using last year’s expenses and what she considered “possible future obligations” involving an ongoing lawsuit against the Select Board by resident M. B. Neisner.

Selectman Chris Bianchi pointed out $5,400 of last year’s legal costs

were for negotiations regarding Schwartz’s employment contract, and much of the contingent fees she had included for the Neisner suit were unnecessary.

“The law says if we exceed our budget on any expense during the year, we must make it up in the subsequent year’s budget,” he said. “We can’t charge the taxpayers for unexpected expenses we may never incur.”

“And I assume we are not going to be spending any more legal fees on your employment contract,” he added.

Another large increase occurred on the line item for “property and casualty insurance”, which appears to have gone from $37,000 to $67,000 from last year to this year. Schwartz had no explanation other than that she and others had reviewed building values and exposures with the insurance carrier prior to receiving the cost estimate. The town is insured by Passive Insurance Co., as provided through the Vermont League of Cities and Towns. Most Vermont towns use this carrier.

Select board chair Patty McGrath thought the appearance of such a large increase might have something to do with the 18-month budget. Schwartz agreed to discuss the increase with VLCT insurance representatives.

Bianchi made an impassioned plea to include $100,000 of revenue from the options tax as a town sponsorship for the effort to bring the FIS World Cup Women’s Ski Races back to Killington next year. He said it’s an appropriate way to invest the tax funds, which are meant to support local businesses.

“This year’s event was a huge success,” he said. “Killington businesses benefitted significantly. If we can help bring the same result next year I think it would be the right thing to do.”

McGrath said Mike Salimano, president and CEO of Killington Resort, told her the event had a bigger negative financial result than they had expected, and he worries they can’t afford to lose that much every year. She thinks in that light Bianchi’s suggestion is a good idea.

“The options tax covers 20 percent of the town’s budget every year,” she said. “The money comes from work and services provided by our local businesses, and their success is what we should be investing it in.”

Bianchi acknowledged that the voters might turn down the investment at Town Meeting, but he thinks it should be proposed.

“Just a few years ago the people in town said it was high time for the Resort to show some action and not just words,” he said. “Well, now the Resort has stepped up with action and it’s time the town did the same.”

Comment: Has the Selectboard lost their minds? We're facing an 8% increase in the budget and they want to fork over $100 grand to the resort. WTF!! The resort spent the money full well knowing the benefit from the World Cup was not immediate profits from the event itself but from the international and media exposure it received from it. This in turn stimulates demand for its services and provide long term financial reward. 
And how much did the town spend on supporting the event itself this time?
SELECTBOARD STOP IT, QUIT TRYING TO FLEECE THE TAXPAYERS!!!

Killington budgets make further progress

Mountain Times

December 7, 2016

By Evan Johnson

The various town departments of Killington are hammering out the details of budgets for fiscal year 2018. At the Nov. 29 Select Board meeting, heads of the roads and maintenance, police, fire, events and marketing departments presented budgets for the coming year, along with the town office, including the clerk, treasurer and town manager.
Before the presentations, Town Manager Debby Schwartz spoke about some of the drivers for this year’s budgets.
“These budgets reflect actual expenses and needs,” she said. “They also reflect capital needs. Our goal in working to build these budgets is to have a viable and affordable budget.”
Schwartz said the current budget lacks FEMA funds, medical insurance, legal services and passive premiums from the Vermont League of Cities and Towns.
More budget meetings will be held on Dec. 6, Dec. 12 and Jan. 3.

Highway and Facilities Department
Director Chet Hagenbarth presented a budget from the previous meeting that corrected addition errors. The budget reflects combined winter and summer road maintenance costs even though the department has different wage structures for the two periods.
In the salaries line item, the budget has a $36,000 increase to accommodate overtime hours, which have fluctuated in the past years. Hagenbarth said he arrived at the total by averaging the past five years’ overtime hours and adding the cost of living adjustment.
Hagenbarth said overall, the budget would remain mostly flat. “Between the salaries and the operations, these are very much actual budget line items,” he said.

Town Clerk/Treasurer
Lucrecia Wonser presented budgets for her role as the town clerk, treasurer and Board of Civil Authority (BCA). In the clerk’s budget, Wonser is requesting a salary increase for the assistant town clerk, to bring her from 30 hours per week to 35 hours a week at an increased rate of $16 per hour. The increased hours will allow Assistant Town Clerk Barbara Loeliger-Myers to keep up with more work with record-keeping and property transfer work. The proposed budget represents a 6.3 percent increase.
Wonser said she is spending more than her allocated 10 hours per week as the treasurer due to the number of transactions she oversees as residents pay taxes and fees. Residents are able to pay via credit card or electronic check.
“In the month of August alone, we saw 74 transactions and it was $126,102 total,” she said. While being able to use credit cards may be convenient, she added that it hasn’t always been financially wise. “I have seen people choose to pay $3 with a credit card, knowing that they’ll be charged a $3 fee,” she said.
Wonser said she is managing the transactions, but said more hours are needed. Without more hours added, the budget for fiscal year 2018 is $11,325.
Killington will have one election in 2017 and is budgeting for $3,000—half of what it spent last year—for costs associated with the election including costs to print ballots and the tabulator.

Golf Course
Golfers will have to get another year out of the carts at Killington’s Green Mountain National Golf Course. During a budget portion of last week’s Select Board meeting, golf course General Manager David Soucy presented a preliminary budget of about $100,000 that is intended to keep the golf course in the black.
Maintenance is up $14,000 over last year, due to cost of living adjustments for two full-time employees and other expenses. Other significant increases include $4,000 in golf cart repair.
“Cosmetically they still look pretty good,” Soucy said, describing the carts. “It’s just a few things with the operations. Sometimes they don’t always start as well as they should but there is a fairly easy repair for that.”
The golf course also plans to spend $4,000 on sand and fill and $1,500 on soil testing.
This year, they spent $10,000 on electricity for irrigation, a number that could vary depending on the weather. They’ve budgeted the same number for next year.
The golf course’s property taxes have gone down for this year. When the town transitioned to a fiscal year calendar and the golf course kept using a calendar year, six months of property taxes were paid ahead of time. This year, property taxes will be $1,600.
“For one year, we get a break on that,” Select Board Chair Patty McGrath said at the meeting.

Killington Fire Department
By cutting costs in building and equipment maintenance costs, operating supplies, new equipment and small tools and equipment, the Killington Volunteer Fire Department has designed a budget cut from $217,951to $208,950—a 5 percent decrease. Fire Chief Gary Roth said he’s confident in his first draft.
“We like to put our best foot forward and be done,” he said.
Roth said a separate meeting would be needed to finance replacing equipment such as trucks and oxygen bottles. The fire department has two pieces of equipment, one due for replacement in 2015, the other in 2019. The department plans to replace both of those apparatuses with one truck. Roth said the replacement would create savings in the cost to purchase the piece, the cost-per-square-foot to store it in a new fire station and maintenance costs.
“We’re due for shortening the fleet,” Roth said. “Functionally, we can definitely operate with a combination piece of a equipment rather than a platform and another engine. The shape of our membership and our response times indicate it would be a better add for us than to replace two pieces of equipment.”

Killington Police Department
Killington Police Chief Whit Montgomery presented a budget of $126,000 that is nearly 7 percent higher, but would be offset by increased revenues of 12 percent.
In revenues, the police department has taken in $5,000 in tickets paid online, and Montgomery said he’s budgeted $5,000 for next year. Montgomery said the department has received $3,500 in grants so far and has budgeted for $5,000 for next year.
Montgomery added a $1,000 line item for field officer training for those that have just graduated from the academy. “There might be some potential there for us as a town,” he said.
He also suggested offering “use of force” trainings for officers and self defense classes for the public as a revenue source.
In expenses, Montgomery has increased the salaries of part-time officers who work 30 hours per month by $100 to $6,500. The salary for full-time officers has been increased to $43,700.
“That’s to try to be competitive in recruiting other officers,” Montgomery said, adding that the department has received applications for new officers.
The Killington Police Department is planning to add its own phone line and internet for $1,200, which it lacks.

Events and marketing
Interim Events and Marketing Director Kim Peters said the overall budget for next year will be close to this year—just 1 percent larger.
In the past two weeks, Peters has gone through each event and updated whether or not it will repeat the next year. Many of the same events, including the Cooler in the Mountains music festival, the Spartan Race, Downhill Throwdown and Witchcraft are in contract to continue. Peters said no events have been canceled or have been taken off the calendar yet, but Peters will reach out to different coordinators to check in the next two months.
For marketing those events, Peters said the 2018 budget will be close to this year’s. Some introductions will be with the Killington Valley initiative to promote events to Rutland County. Peters has budgeted $19,000 for graphic design and public relations, but noted that only $7,000 was spent last year. Many of the materials can be reused in the future, which can yield more savings. “I kept it the same because I’m still looking into it,” she said.

- See more at: http://mountaintimes.info/killington-budgets-progress/#sthash.7eQVUv0y.dpuf

Cops: Motorist hits utility pole; no injuries reported

Rutland Herald

December 03,2016

PITTSFIELD — Police say nobody was injured in a one-car crash in Pittsfield Friday afternoon.

Vermont State Police troopers from the Rutland barracks responded to the crash at the intersection of Route 100 and  South Hill Road around 4:45 p.m. Police said Susan April, 67, of Waterbury, was traveling north on Route 100 with her husband William April, 67, when she fell asleep while driving. Their 2012 Ford Focus traveled off the east side of the road and struck a utility pole.  The crash severed power lines and caused them to lay across the road.
 
Both were taken by ambulance to Gifford Medical Center for evaluation and it was later determined neither were injured.
 
Troopers were assisted on scene by the Pittsfield Volunteer Fired Department, Killington Volunteer Fire Department, White River Valley Ambulance Service and Green Mountain Power.
Anyone who witnessed the crash is asked to contact the Vermont State Police at 802-773-9101.

Killington dept. present 2017 budgets progress

Mountain Times

December 1, 2016

By Evan Johnson

KILLINGTON—The Killington Select Board has asked town departments to present budget proposals for fiscal year 2018 and departments are busy crunching the numbers. At a Nov. 15 meeting, board members heard budgets from the library, planning, recreation and roads departments. All of these budgets will be presented to voters in the spring on Town Meeting Day.
Sherburne Library
The library budget for FY2018 is being slated for 208,448.50, representing a $2,918—1.4 percent—increase due in part to a $1,000 increase in the proposed programs and events line item. Library Director Jane Ramos said more people have requested adult programs in addition to the children’s programs.
Ramos added there could be another increase in the future if the library chooses to pursue a new automated cataloging system. The database software charges between $800 to $1,000 per year. If the library connected with other libraries around the state using the software, that cost would increase to between $2,000 and $2,500 while making more titles available to library patrons.
“It is a matter of changing every barcode in the building,” Ramos said. “It would be a good idea down the line but we’re not in a rush this minute.”
Planning
Town planner Richard Horner explained at the town meeting on Nov. 15 that there are no significant changes from last year’s budget, but proposed the creation of a “planning grant expense” line item to reserve funds intended for matching grants. Without the earmarking, any unused money could be used in another area of the town budget. The town planning and zoning administration budget for the coming year is $67,312, while the Planning Commission budget is at $11,485.
Recreation
While expenses for the Parks and Recreation Department will be about $20,000, or 15 percent higher for next year, revenues will more than recover the amount spent, thanks to the 10-week summer camp that is expected to bring in revenues of up to $55,000, an increase of approximately $30,000.
Recreation Director Kim Peters said she is certified to to teach lifeguarding, CPR and first aid, which will create additional revenues. “As we get larger, we’re going to have to be teaching more staff,” Peters said.
The department has also been able to save money on programs by reusing materials, which has lowered the cost of popular events such as the Chili Cook-off.
Roads
In the past, the facilities budget has been split between winter and summer seasonal costs for materials and manpower. In a proposed budget for the entire year, Highway and Facilities Department Chair Chet Hagenbarth is proposing a $5,000 increase in truck maintenance but will otherwise keep the budget relatively flat compared to this year.

- See more at: http://mountaintimes.info/killington-dept-present-2017-budgets/#sthash.J78AJECH.dpuf

Trapped in gondola, woman gets $750K `

Rutland Herald

By Patrick McArdle

Staff Writer | December 01,2016

A Rutland County Civil Court jury on Wednesday awarded a Pittsfield woman $750,000 in damages after she was trapped midway to the top of the mountain for about five hours at Killington resort in Oct. 2011.

Nadine Price had gotten into a gondola at the resort around 3:15 p.m. Oct. 1, 2011. The lift usually closes at 5 p.m., but on that date, it was closed just before 3:30 p.m. because of inclement weather.

Price was trapped in the gondola for hours.

In 2011, Killington First Constable Scott Bigelow told the Herald they had been called to the K-1 Lodge around 8:30 p.m. by a friend of Price’s who said she had not returned as planned from a hike she told him she was making to the summit.

Two town constables and Killington staff members had no success searching trails near the Snowdon Triple trail where Price had started her hike, and began shining lights into cars on K-1 Express Gondola and found Price in one of the cars not far from the summit.

Price, an avid skier, was not physically injured.

However, lawyer William Meub, of the Rutland law firm, Meub, Gallivan and Larson, told the jury in Rutland civil court that Price had suffered post-traumatic stress disorder based on her ordeal.

On Wednesday, Meub reminded the jury they had heard Price talk about having frequent nightmares and waking up in a panic since being trapped in the gondola.

Meub asked the jury to consider an award of at least $500,000, but after deliberating for about three and a half hours, the jury made a unanimous decision to award Price $750,000.

Meub said he would offer a brief comment and said his client was “too emotional” to speak on Wednesday evening.

“Justice was done, and the jury did a great job,” he said.

Andrew Maass, of the law firm Ryan, Smith & Carbine Ltd. in Rutland, the attorney who represented Killington, declined to comment after the jury’s verdict.

During his closing argument, Maass said he knew what he was telling the jury was hard because it involved “some callousness” but said despite the “unfortunate event,” Price did not need medical attention and Killington had reached out to Price.

Meub called many of Maass’ arguments “distractions from the key point.”

“This is a case about getting stuck in a gondola and the torture, and I really believe it’s torture, to be stuck up there for five hours. … One minute when nothing is going on is a long time. One minute when you believe you’re going to die is a long time,” he said.

Meub said Price was shivering and unable to feel her feet and hands while the gondola was immobile.

“When it turned dark, the despair. Beginning to be aware that you’re losing your consciousness, knowing that you have to stay awake, fighting to do that. Getting up and marching in place when you can’t even feel your feet, the fight to survive. Imagine if she hadn’t been able to scream out when she saw the headlights going by. Imagine if she had been lying there and hadn’t been able to fight to keep herself awake. We’d be here for a whole different kind of case,” he said.

In 2011, a spokeswoman for Killington told the Herald that an internal investigation found their procedures weren’t followed when the lift closed early.

“We did conclude that Nadine Price was not at fault and the lift closing procedure was not followed properly,” she said.

Price sued the resort, saying their negligence had caused her emotional distress. The jury agreed that Killington had been negligent but made no finding that the negligence had caused Price emotional distress.

Price’s lawsuit also alleged that Killington had interfered with a contract she had to work as a ski instructor and that the resort had defamed her character, but the jury found she hadn’t proved those claims.

Huge Crowds Swarm World Cup at Killington

Vermont Standard

Staff Report
12/1/16

The U.S. Ski Team started looking 10 years ago for a place to host the World Cup in the East.

“Putting an event on is a big business risk so we wanted to partnership with someone we knew,” said U.S. Ski Team Vice President of Communications Tom Kelly. “You have to find that right combination, that right resort.”

He said Killington’s ability to make snow and its historical early season opening contributed to the decision to name Killington the host of the World Cup last weekend — the first time the event was hosted on the East Coast in 25 years. It was held in New Hampshire in 1991.

It’s unclear if the World Cup will return to Killington next year. A November World Cup date hasn’t been assigned to a resort yet.

Kelly said officials were pleased with Killington’s ability to pull it off this year.

It was a gamble to take on an event of this magnitude in the early season. Temperatures hovered in the 60s the weekend before the event, then dropped cold enough to make snow just in time.

“Our team would have been a little less stressed out in January,” said Killington President Mike Solimano.

Killington blasted 140 guns on the Superstar trail, dumping 16 million gallons of water. Killington officials haven’t said how much the event cost. Kelly estimated a few million dollars go into putting on a World Cup.

“It’s a big financial commitment,” he said, acknowledging that the estimates could be higher with Killington being a new host.

Killington resort officials haven’t yet given a cost estimate. Killingtonspokesperson Michael Joseph said the mountain is “above and beyond” its typical snowmaking and marketing budget this year.

He expects there to be long-term payoff and added marketing value. Killington would welcome another World Cup, despite the challenges.

“We overcame pretty much everything that was thrown at us,” said Joseph.

Killington has put on a number of large events.

“This one is a whole other level,” Solimano said on Friday before the race. “It’s been incredible, the com- plexity.”

Killington drew one of the largest crowds the women’s World Cup has ever seen. There were 16,000 at the resort on Saturday and an estimated 30,000 the entire weekend.

It was the first resort to ever sell tickets at a World Cup. Killington sold 500 VIP tickets each day for $350 each and sold 2,500 bleacher seats each day for $20 each in addition to welcoming free admission.

“This is a really successful endeavor so far,” Kelly said on Saturday.

Chris Caproni, from Massachusetts, booked his hotel room a year ago, when he first heard the World Cup was coming to Killington.

His 14-year-old daughter is a ski racer.

“It was a great feeling when Mikaela (Shiffrin) came down,” he said after the first run on Saturday as he stood in line for autographs.

Alice Merryweather, an East Coast skier who grew up in Massachusetts, fell down after her first run, but she didn’t stop smiling after her race on Saturday.

She posed for pictures with every single person who came up to her.

The poor weather wasn’t getting Shriffin down on Friday.

“We say it’s easy to love skiing in the West,” said Shriffin, who won the slalom on Sunday. She practiced in classic New England weather on Friday.

“It’s raining, snowing, sleeting; everything in an afternoon in one day,” she said. “You’re wiping off your goggles and it’s wet and it’s soggy and I was like, ‘This is amazing!’”

A crowd of about 16,000 people on Saturday came to watch the World Cup in Killington.

Rick Russell Photo