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South Burlington’s Community Newspaper Since 1977
the NOV. 27, 2024
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VOLUME 48, NO. 48
SB school district preps for ‘painful’ budget discussion
Finding a new purpose
LIBERTY DARR STAFF WRITER
South Burlington school district officials and board members are beginning the steps of what seems to be a gargantuan task this year: crafting a budget. On the heels of a year that saw a third of Vermont’s school budgets fail on Town Meeting Day after the Legislature introduced a shift in the state’s education fund-
ing formula, next year is poised to be just as, if not more, difficult for the school district due to several factors outside of its control, school officials said. “I think at times we’ve talked about what programming can be preserved, but tonight, I will tell you, we don’t have the ability to preserve as we have in the past,” See BUDGET on page 13
Beta flies first electric plane from South Burlington LIBERTY DARR STAFF WRITER COURTESY PHOTO
For months, members of the Champlain Valley Lions Club have diligently collected mountains of plastic bags and packaging. The goal? To transform all that plastic into a park bench for the community. Partnering with the Trex company, known for its plastic decking, the Lions sent more than 1,000 pounds of plastic to Trex to be recycled into a durable, high-performance bench. Last month, the Lions Club bench was installed in Farrell Park, near the toddler playground and ball courts. Parents, kids, ballplayers and dog walkers now have a spot to rest, chat, eat lunch or read. Leading the project were Lions Rosella Duarte and Russ Hayden, who supervised the collection of plastic. The recycled bench program is part of the company’s initiative called NexTrex, whose goal is finding ways to reduce plastic pollution in oceans, rivers, lakes and landfills. In back, from left, Joan Mollica, Mark Hanna, Patience Merriman and Jackie Dutil. In front, Russ Hayden and Rosella Duarte.
If you were out and about on Nov. 13 in South Burlington, it’s likely you didn’t see a bird or any old regular plane flying in the sky, but the first electric plane produced at Beta Technologies’ South Burlington production facility. Just over a year after the company opened its doors to community, state and federal leaders celebrating the opening of the 188,000 square-foot facility located
off Airport Parkway, the team successfully completed the first flight of the production aircraft, the Alia CTOL, when the company’s CEO and test pilot, Kyle Clark, sailed to 7,000 feet. “It’s been a pretty remarkable year to look back on it,” Blain Newton, the company’s chief information officer. said. “Obviously seeing that aircraft come off the line was incredibly inspiring.” See BETA on page 2
Handmade Pasta Dinner Starts at 4:00 Nightly on the Church Street Marketplace
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