2007 Year in Review [3]

Here's some of what else made news around the area in 2007.

JULY

July 3: In the face of unexpected and intense opposition, the Brattleboro Area Community Land Trust withdrew its proposal to build an affordable housing complex in downtown Putney. BACLT wanted to a build 38 units across from Basketville, but fears over the impact of having up to 100 new residents in town scuttled the project.

July 12: Joseph M. Bailey, 24, of Swanzey, N.H., received two consecutive 7-to-14 year sentences, the maximum allowed, for a fatal crash in Swanzey in September 2006 that took lives of Kelsey Wells of Brattleboro and Kevin Squires of Guilford.

July 14: WTSA Radio announced it was moving its studios back to Putney Road, the place where the station got its start in 1950, after 14 years on Western Avenue. It was part of the sale of the station by John and Michelle Kilduff to Bill Corbeil. The sale was finalized on Dec. 1, and with the completion of the sale, Corbeil fired Kilduff and John Ashley from their on-air positions.

July 13: The ashes of First Lt. Mark Dooley of Wilmington were interred at Arlington National Cemetery, Dooley, who served with the Vermont Army National Guard, was killed outside Ramadi, Iraq, on Sept. 19, 2005. He was the first Vermonter killed in the war to be buried at Arlington.

July 20: Hinsdale Greyhound Park announced it would end year-round greyhound racing, starting Sept. 1. A lack of interest

by bettors was cited for the change. The track remained open for simulcast betting and poker.

July 22: Brattleboro Police shot and killed a black bear that was roaming in a residential area off Putney Road. Witnesses said police used excessive force, but the state Fish & Wildlife Department said the Brattleboro officers acted properly since the bear posed a danger to the public.

July 23: Lillian Farber of Newfane, an artistic force in Windham County who served on the boards of a number of

arts, educational and social service institutions, died at age 86. Her husband, longtime civil liberties advocate Bern Freidelson, died three months later on Oct. 22 at age 84. Together with photographer Fred Picker, they founded and ran Zone VI Studios.

July 30: World renowned flutist and composed Louis Moyse died at age 94. He was a co-founded of the Marlboro Music Festival and the Brattleboro Music Center.

AUGUST

Aug. 2: In the wake of a deadly bridge collapse in Minneapolis, the Vermont Agency of Transportation ordered inspections of similarly-designed bridges in the state, including two bridges on Interstate 91 in Brattleboro and Rockingham. These bridges passed their inspections, but the AOT said that 53 bridges in Windham County were on the state's "structurally deficient" list.

Aug. 3: A bolt of lightning struck the steeple of The Church on Main Street, blasting off chunks of granite to the sidewalks below. There were no injuries and repairs to the steeple continued through the remainder of the year.

Aug. 17: Vermont Electric Power Co. and Central Vermont Public Service announced plans in June to build a new 51-mile transmission line between Vernon and Cavendish. Part of the proposed right-of-way ran through a parcel of forest land in West Dummerston. After weeks of protests, VELCO and CVPS decided to reroute the $329 million line through an abandoned gravel pit in Newfane. The plans were formally filed with the state Public Service Board in November.

Aug. 17: James G. Galanes Jr., a longtime Brattleboro businessman, died at age 76. He owned and operated Galanes on Main Street for six decades, first working for his father, then later running the sporting goods store with his brother Philip.

SEPTEMBER

Sept. 3: After organizers announced in May that they were canceling the 2007 edition of the Guilford Fair due to a lack of money and volunteers, another group of townspeople stepped up and created the first-ever Guilford Old Home Day. The new event was well-attended and judged to be a success.

Sept. 4: Windham Northeast teachers and the BFUHS Board found themselves at odds for most of the summer over disciplinary actions taken against a teacher removed from her job in 2005 for violating

the school drug and alcohol policy. The dispute threatened to upend contract talks, but a strike by BFUHS teachers was averted at the last minute and an agreement was reached with the BFUHS Board.

Sept. 5: The Vitale family of Athens learned that it was selected for an "Extreme Makeover" of their house as part of the ABC-TV program. Volunteers from all over the state descended upon the tiny town to tear down the Vitales' old house and build them a new one in just one week. The episode of "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" that featured the Vitales aired on Dec. 9.

Sept. 5: After nearly 15 years at the helm, Brattleboro Savings & Loan President and CEO George Haynes announced his retirement, effective Dec. 31.

Sept. 11: Bellows Falls interim Police Chief Sgt. John Durfee resigned after questions arose about two investigations being conducted by state police. The investigations led to the department being sanctioned by the Vermont Department of Public Safety for misusing the state's computer aided dispatch system to help a town official beat a traffic ticket.

Sept. 11: Aaron "Iggy" Snell, 22, of Dover, died at his home. He had returned from Iraq in June after two combat tours with the Marines in Fallujah, Ramadi and Baghdad and had been wounded during his first stint in Iraq. The 2003 BUHS graduate was buried with full military honors.

Sept. 15: Over the summer, questions began to be raised about the safety of the Harmony Lot after a series of fights, robberies, assaults and general disorderly conduct were reported. Some said the popular downtown hangout was attracting a different and more violent crowd. This prompted business owners and other downtown residents to form the Harmony Neighborhood Association to begin to address the many concerns about safety and noise. Sept. 20: Windham County State's Attorney Dan Davis announced his retirement. On the job since 1988, his office prosecuted nearly 50,000 cases, the most of any county in the state. Tracy Shriver, who had worked for Davis for eight years, was appointed as his successor.

Sept. 20: Former Lt. Gov. John Burgess of Brattleboro died at age 87. After serving as state's attorney from 1952 to 1957 and as a state representative from 1966 to 1970, he was elected lieutenant governor and served two terms from 1971 to 1975.

Sept. 24: Former state Sen. Rod Gander of Brattleboro died at age 76, following a four-year struggle against lung cancer. Before entering state politics, Gander was chief of correspondents at Newsweek for 13 years, then served as president of Marlboro College.

Sept. 24: After nearly two years as editor, Sabina Haskell left the Reformer to take a job as communications director for the state Agency of Natural Resources. Tom D'Errico was named her successor.

Sept. 24: Rescue Inc. personnel sought to oust executive director David Dunn. A petition signed by more than half of the volunteers and paid employees accused Dunn of poor management and asked for a vote of no confidence by Rescue's board of directors.

Sept. 27: Russell "Rusty" O'Dell, a retired police chief from Cornwall, N.Y., was offered and accepted the job of Bellows Falls' chief of police. He changed his mind a few days later, citing financial woes and a perception that officers were leaking information to the press. Former state police officer James Cronan was eventually hired as interim chief.

Sept. 27: Robert "Clint" Barnum reached a plea bargain in the slaying of Ritchie M. Lynch in Jamaica in December 2006. Barnum agreed to plead guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to a 7-to-15 years in prison on Dec. 21.

Sept. 29: Vermont Army National Guard Spc. Troy Revis of Guilford got a unforgettable homecoming as most of the town turned out to celebrate his safe return from Iraq. Revis served with the 131st Engineers in Iraq on a 15-month combat tour.

OCTOBER

Oct. 1: After Rescue Inc. volunteer Effie Mayhew wrote a column for the Reformer that was critical of David Dunn, Dunn lashed out at Mayhew with a post on the local news blog iBrattleboro.com that, among other things, accused Mayhew of having an extramarital affair with a Rescue board member. The post sparked a furor that led to Dunn's resignation on Oct. 8 and to Mayhew filing a libel suit against Dunn and iBrattleboro in November.

Oct. 2: At a special town meeting, Vernon approved the switch to the Australian ballot for school budget voting by a vote of 54-48.

Oct. 6: George Temple of Brattleboro, an Army Air Corps navigator during World War II, was presented with the Legion of Honor by the French government. Temple, who flew bombing missions over France with the 44th Bomber Group, was one of eight surviving members of the unit to receive the medal.

Oct. 7: Mount Snow canceled its proposal to pump 484 million gallons of water from Somerset Reservoir as part of an ambitious expansion of its snowmaking operation. The plan was backed by area selectboards, but local environmentalists were vehemently opposed.

Oct. 13: James L. Oakes, former senior judge on the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals for 36 years, died at age 83. Oakes was also a state senator from 1961 to 1965 and state attorney general from 1967 to 1969.

Oct. 19: The Common Ground Restaurant, which re-opened with great fanfare in the fall of 2006, announced it would close its doors again on Nov. 2. Slow business and heavy financial losses were blamed. At year's end, plans remain in the works to reopen the space as a dance club.

Oct. 19: A $2 million renovation of the Bellows Falls rail tunnel was celebrated with state and local dignitaries. The tunnel now can accommodate taller rail cars and double-stacked containers and opens new opportunities for increased rail traffic.

Despite a telethon and other fundraising efforts, the Harris Hill Organizing Committee found itself $125,000 short of what it needed to complete the reconstruction of its ski jump. The committee decided to postpone the 2008 competition, but continued work on the hill while it sought more money to finish the job.

NOVEMBER

Nov. 8: A five-decade old Brattleboro tradition ended when Sam's announced it would no longer serve its Hunter's Breakfast on the first day of the rifle deer hunting season. Stanley "Pal" Borofsky said that the event, which benefited Rescue Inc., cost more to put on than it raised.

Nov. 9: Dave Mulholland of Westminster got a surprise when the CBS "Early Show" chose him for a trip to India. Mulholland was honored for his work toward establishing a center to treat war veterans and civilians suffering from traumatic brain injury. The issue was personal for Mulholland, who was badly injured in a 1995 car crash and battled back from his own brain injury.

Nov. 13: Tom Salmon announced that he was resigning from the Rockingham Selectboard, effective Town Meeting Day 2008. He say his decision was based on the growing demands of his job as state auditor and the possibility of being called up to active duty with the Navy's Seabees in Iraq next year.

Nov. 16: About 200 BUHS students walked out of classes to protest the Iraq war. A similar protest was held at Leland & Gray Union High School. The BUHS students eventually were handed detentions for participating in the walkout.

DECEMBER

Dec. 1: John Nirenberg, a retired professor, decided he was fed up with the inaction of Congress regarding impeachment. He decided to walk from Fanueil Hall in Boston to the Capitol building in Washington, D.C., to personally appeal to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to begin the process.

Dec. 9: Gerald Peterson, 22, of West Dover, was struck and killed by two state police cruisers on Route 100 in Dover. Reportedly, Peterson was lying in the roadway when he was struck. An autopsy showed that Peterson had been killed by the first cruiser that struck him, but it was unclear how Peterson ended up in the roadway and why the troopers failed to see him. The two troopers involved in the incident, John Waitekus and Frank LaBombard, were placed on administrative leave while the investigation continues.

Dec. 13 and 16: A pair of snowstorms left nearly two feet of snow on the county as residents saw the return of normal winter weather after a relatively balmy December in 2006.