The Addison County Solid Waste Management District will host a free “repair fair” at the American Legion Post 27 at 49 Wilson Road in Middlebury on this Saturday, April 20, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Enjoy refreshments, learn basic repair skills, and get your favorite items fixed by your neighbors. If you have repair skills related to electronics, appliances, sewing, mending, woodworking, bikes or other items, you can sign up to be a volunteer fixer by going to AddisonCountyRecycles.org/repair-fair. Go to that same address to register to get an item fixed. Questions? Send an email to emily@acswmd.org, or call Emily at 802-388-2333.
Come watch the most exciting two minutes in sports — the Kentucky Derby — and support your local healthcare hub in the process. The Porter Auxiliary on May 4 will hold its annual “Derby Day,” from 5-7:30 p.m. at Middlebury College’s Kirk Center near the golf course off Route 30. There will be live music, dancing, specialty cocktails, ample hors d’oeuvres and prizes. Tickets are $60 per person, which includes a drink ticket. Proceeds support Porter Medical Center. Make sure to dress to impress, with an award given to the most festive attire. There will be a raffle, also benefitting PMC. Raffle tickets are $10 and could land you a Vermont handcrafted cherry wood desk, among other wonderful prizes. Dance floor and music by Jenni Johnson & the Junketeers. Buy tickets at tinyurl.com/mushfyvj.
Four Addison County towns will share in more than $8.6 million in federal grants through the Vermont Agency of Transportation’s Transportation Alternatives and Municipal Highways and Stormwater Mitigation programs. Recipients included Bridport, which received $776,880 toward the construction of new culvert along Middle Road; Bristol, which netted $240,000 toward construction of a new ADA-accessible sidewalk along Airport Road, which leads to the rec park and Mount Abraham Union High School; Ferrisburgh, $500,000 toward construction of “multiple sidewalks” along Route 7; and Middlebury, $232,000, to help pay for stormwater treatment infrastructure in the Adams Acres neighborhood (near Boardman Street and Wilson Road). “These diverse projects will help continue to enhance and expand Vermont’s transportation infrastructure,” said Vermont Transportation Secretary Joe Flynn. “Improvements to sidewalks, bike paths, and shared-use paths provide Vermonters more transportation options and improve their quality of life.”
Here’s a reminder: With summer approaching quickly, farmers markets will open soon. And beginning in May, SNAP customers again will be able to multiply their benefits at farmers markets with Crop Cash. What is Crop Cash? For every dollar of 3SquaresVT and/or Vermont Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) you spend at a participating farmers market, you can receive a dollar of Crop Cash (up to $10) to spend on fruits, vegetables, herbs and culinary seeds and plant starts. Anyone who receives 3SquaresVT/SNAP benefits, as well as folks who still have P-EBT benefits, is automatically eligible to get Crop Cash at a farmers market — there’s no additional application for this program.
The Lake Champlain Maritime Museum in Ferrisburgh will kick off its 2024 season on Saturday, May 16. And just as was the case last year, admission is free through the Oct. 16 closing. The museum offers a wealth of information and exhibits detailing the lake’s rich environmental and historical assets. Exhibits include “Key to Liberty: The American Revolution in the Champlain Valley,” “Steam to Gasoline,” “A Noble Failure: Prohibition in the Champlain Valley,” the Hazelett Small Watercraft building, and more. See all exhibits that will be open at www.lcmm.org/exhibits. The museum will be open daily, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
The Lewis Creek Association will hold an event at Cota Field in Starksboro on May 5, from 2-4 p.m., in collaboration with the Starksboro Conservation Commission. The goals are to educate the community about how to identify Japanese knotweed, how to use iNaturalist to map its location in the Lewis Creek watershed, and to discuss upcoming demonstration projects in Ferrisburgh and Starksboro. Mike Bald (consultant from the business called Got Weeds?) will be there to discuss eradication strategies. Herbalist Sophie Cassel will also speak about how she uses knotweed to make medicine. The conservation commission will be recruiting volunteers for control of this plant in Starksboro. Light refreshments provided. Please fill out this form (tinyurl.com/3axpnur2) to be added to LCA’s knotweed mailing list, or feel free to just show up.
Average gasoline prices in Vermont rose 4.8 cents per gallon during the past week to $3.42, according to GasBuddy. Prices are 14.8 cents higher than a month ago and 5.2 cents lower than a year ago. The cheapest station sold at $3.21 this week, the most expensive at $3.60. Meanwhile, the national average price of gasoline rose by 3.1 cents to $3.60.
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