News

Advocates say Wilmington's water supply is threatened by too many people staying in short-term rental properties.

Wilmington mulls limits on bedroom numbers for short-term rentals

Planning officials weighed whether to put a limit on the number of bedrooms that a short-term rental house can have amid concerns that some owners are eroding the quality of life in residential neighborhoods while threatening to overload septic systems. The Planning Commission is considering...

Wardsboro Elementary principal Francesca Palumbo

River Valleys approves budget, eyes buydown

At its meeting on Monday, March 16, the River Valleys Unified School District Board approved a budget that represents a 1% decrease in expenditures, but will nevertheless result in higher taxes in Dover and Wardsboro, even with a proposed buydown using the district’s reserve funds. In other...

Jacksonville Electric customers qualify for expanded Efficiency Vermont rebates

Customers of the Jacksonville Electric Company are eligible for exclusive rebates under current offerings from Efficiency Vermont, including those for new appliances and certain weatherization projects. Income-eligible Jacksonville Electric customers can also access heat pump rebates beyond what’...

Grace Cottage again named best place to work

For the fourth year in a row, Grace Cottage Family Health & Hospital has been named one of Vermont’s “Best Places to Work” by the Vermont Business Magazine. Grace Cottage is the only hospital in the state to have achieved this award each year for the past four years. The award, given each...

Dover will install AED devices on town properties

At its meeting on Tuesday, March 17, the Dover Selectboard approved the purchase and management of three automated external defibrillator (AED) devices for use at town properties. In addition, the board heard an update about an ongoing townwide assessment and approved the purchase of a new tool...

Maple farmers avoid predictions as season begins

On a steep, snowy hillside above Readsboro, Mitchell Holland drills the latest tap in a sugar maple tree that he hopes will eventually contribute to his annual harvest of some 200 gallons of maple syrup. Using a battery-powered hand-held drill with a 5/16-inch bit, Holland bores a single hole...

“No Kings” organizers urge support for March 28 protest

Critics of the Trump administration urged support for the latest “No Kings” protest in Wilmington Village on Saturday, March 28, but said turnout could be dampened by mud season and by a continuing shortage of young people. The event — one of more than 1,000 such protests scheduled nationwide...

Lisa Sullivan

Sullivan buys Pickwell’s Barn

Lisa Sullivan, owner of Bartleby’s Books, has a new business under her ownership. In early March, Sullivan purchased Pickwell’s Barn, the clothing and homewares store across from Bartleby’s. No major changes are planned at the store. Sullivan says she plans to maintain the store’s character,...

Nicole Pisani, left, pictured here with Betsey Reagan, in 2021. Reagan died in 2023. Pisani said Reagan's mentorship during her teenage years inspired Pisani to persevere during a two-week experience filming "Naked and Afraid".

Vermont spirit made difference for show contestant

Last spring, Nicole Pisani, who grew up in Dover and now lives in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, found herself awake in the night, and her mind wandered to Betsey Reagan, the late owner of Betsey’s Dot’s of Dover. At the time, Pisani was lying naked on the dirt floor of a boma, or shelter. She...

Kevin Wright

Victim identified in fatal house fire in Wilmington

Vermont authorities named Kevin Wright, 68, as the victim of a fire at his home on Ray Hill Road, Wilmington on February 28. Wright died from burns and smoke inhalation in the fire that broke out at about 11 pm, according to a state death certificate obtained from the Wilmington Town Clerk’s...