Nightmare VT Haunts Abandoned South Burlington Cul-de-sac

    Talk about a ghost town: The houses on South Burlington’s Picard Circle, just minutes from the Burlington International Airport, sit deserted — and have for a while. Their proximity to the airport made the former residents eligible for a federally funded program that allows the airport to purchase homes within a 65-decibel-and-above noise zone, says Robert McEwing, the airport’s director of planning and development. 

Owned by the airport for a couple of years now, the abodes are “marked for removal” that “probably won’t occur until spring,” says McEwing, because they need to be checked for asbestos and lead before deconstruction. So, the houses continue to sit empty.

Burlington Police: No Signs of Break-In at Murder Victim's House

Burlington police said this morning they found no evidence of a break-in at the Park Street home where Kathleen Smith was found murdered Monday morning.

"There's no obvious signs of forced entry," police spokeswoman Lt. Jennifer Morrison told reporters at an 11 a.m. news conference. "We do have a lot of evidence that we continued to sift through. A lot of it has been shipped off to the state lab for processing. Until we know who did this and the exact circumstances, we'll refrain from making a conclusion on that."

Smith's body was discovered in her home, 154 Park St. in Burlington's Old North End, at 9:30 Monday morning by a colleague who came to find out why she hadn't shown up to work. Smith was 50 years old.

Morrison told reporters that police have received "few tips" about Smith's vehicle since releasing photos and information about it to the media yesterday. Her car, a 2000 Hyundai Sonata, was found 60 miles away in the town of Hancock. Morrison said the car was involved in some kind of a collision near the intersection of Routes 100 and 125 in Hancock, sometime over the weekend. The accident sheared off the front bumper and license plate.

New Leak Found at Vermont Yankee

Entergy Vermont Yankee is working to plug a pinhole leak on a one-inch drain line. The leak is located in a safety-related system used to inject water into the reactor if the plant suddently shuts down.

The leak was discovered on September 24 when an operator, during normal rounds, observed a puff of steam coming off a drain line in the High-Pressure Coolant Injection (HPCI) system, said Neil Sheehan, a regional spokesman for Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

"That system would be used if the reactor had to shut down suddenly. Since high pressure levels would remain inside the reactor vessel, the HPCI system can be used to inject water inside despite those conditions," said Sheehan. "The system, and the drain line, are located inside the reactor building. As such, any leakage is captured by a sump and sent to a radioactive liquids treatment system."

Despite the location of the leak, the NRC and ENVY consider it to be of "low safety significance." Only after media inquiries did the leak become public knowledge.

"It's of low safety significance because it's a small leak on a one-inch drain line and does not affect operability of the HPCI system or, more broadly, the plant. In other words, the HPCI system could continue to perform its function despite the leak," said Sheehan.

Sheehan was unsure if the plant will have to power down in order for a repair to be made.

What I Want From My Governor

During this election season, I've been thinking a lot about what I want from my politicians, and in particular, from my governor. Now, this is dangerous since I know somewhere between not much and absolute bubkes about politics. OK, that's not necessarily true — I work for a newspaper, so I'm not totally out of the loop — but I'm no wonk. Or Wonkette. Whatever.

If you ask most people what they want to see from their politicians, they'll likely say honesty, integrity, forthrightness and fresh breath. Oh, and the willingness to cut taxes. And the ability to keep their wieners under control. 

But not me. I'm looking for something a little more basic from my governor. Below is a list (illustrated with helpful photos) of things I want my leaders to be good at. If Shumlin and Dubie can handle these tasks, then I'd be happy to throw either man my vote. 

McCain: Britton vs Leahy is 'Sleeper' Race of 2010

U.S. Sen. John McCain spent a few hours in Vermont on Friday. He was here stumping for U.S. Senate candidate Len Britton at a public rally, to try to help the longshot GOP candidate oust incumbent Democrat Sen. Patrick Leahy.

About 250 people — many of them veterans — gathered inside a hanger near the Burlington International Airport. Of those, roughly 100 people paid $125 for a private reception with McCain held before the rally, said Britton campaign spokesman Bradford Boyles.

The public event was held to honor veterans and members of the military. But, it as also clear that McCain was here to get the crowd behind Britton's candidacy.

"There is a lot of anger sweeping the country right now," McCain told a few reporters before the event. "I think that Len Britton's candidacy is one of the sleeper candidates in this election."

Only Republican U.S. House hopeful Paul Beaudry joined the crowd Tuesday afternoon. No other statewide Republican politician, or candidate, was in the room — not Gov. Jim Douglas or Lt. Gov. Brian Dubie.

Burlington Police Investigate Possible Homicide; Signs of Struggle in Park Street House

 *** UPDATE 5:42 p.m.: Update: Burlington police have released surveillance photos of an unidentified "person of interest" in the case, and are asking for the public's help in identifying him (at right). Police do not consider this individual a suspect, but says he "may have important information related to this case." Anyone with information is asked to call the police tipline: 540-2222.

The BPD is offering a "substantial cash reward" for information "that is of material aid" in the investigation.

Meanwhile, police have confirmed the identity of the apparent homicide victim as Kathleen Smith, age 50. The cause of death is still pending. ***

Burlington police still aren't identifying the 50-year-old woman found dead in her Park Street house yesterday, but a makeshift memorial bidding farewell to "Kathleen Lady of the Lake" has sprung up on the sidewalk outside the victim's home.

The Burlington Free Press is reporting the home is owned by Kathleen M. Smith. Hand-written notes left on votive candles on the greenbelt at 154 Park St. had messages such as "Through my tears every bit of beauty reminds me of you."

At a news conference inside police headquarters this morning, Burlington Police spokeswoman Lt. Jennifer Morrisson revealed that investigators found signs of struggle in the home. Morrison said the victim was found motionless on the floor at 9:30 a.m. yesterday, by a colleague who came over to see why she hadn't shown up to work. The victim was pronounced dead when emergency crews arrived.

Police are treating the death as a homicide, saying it was "highly suspicious," but the cause of death won't be determined until an autopsy is completed later this afternoon, Morrison said. Police have no information on the cause or manner of death, Morrison said, or whether the victim knew her attacker. However, Morrison said police have had contact with "numerous persons of interest."

As for the victim's identity, Morrison said, "We believe we know her name. But until her identify has been confirmed by autopsy we are not going to identify the victim. We have been in contact with the family of the probable victim."

Police are "uncertain" as to the level of risk to the community right now, Morrison said, though the department is urging the public to "be careful" and take reasonable precautions. She urged anyone with information to call a special tips hotline: 540-2222.

Theater Review: SLaM Misses Goal

I wanted to like SLaM: The Hockey Rock Opera, I really did. As someone who is often caught without a rhyme while making up goofy songs on the fly with my boyfriend, I loved creator Lauren Walker's boldness: She actually recorded the ditties she made up with her boyfriend while traveling through Europe and turned them into a full-length musical, which runs through next weekend at Montpelier's City Hall Arts Center.

There's probably a reason most of us don't get that far. 

The story is charming: Silky LaMouche (Micheal Henderson) is a 38-year-old hockey player living in Canada, playing for a farm team, dreaming of the big leagues and pining for his artist girlfriend, Steamy (Taryn Noelle). She's living in New York City, painting, strumming sad ballads on her guitar, enduring angry tirades from her landlord, and drowning in rejection letters from art galleries.

Alice Eats: Vermont Sports Grill

1705 Williston Road, South Burlington, 802-860-2009

I believe in second chances. If I try a new restaurant and it's less than great, I give it some time to grow before deciding its place on my very busy dining dance card. Often, there's not much change. Luckily, that was not the case when I made my second visit to the Vermont Sports Grill this Saturday.

The major attraction of the Sports Grill that night was simply that it was open. It was 10:30 p.m. and I was hungry. I asked the hostess how late they served food, expecting her to say they had already stopped. "Until around one a.m." she said. Who does that? Barely any downtown Burlington restaurants serve past 10, let alone those in suburban South Burlington.

Most late night food is strictly of the "open a bag and throw something in the fryer variety." Not at Vermont Sports Grill. My meal started with a bowl of freshly-popped corn, which my server happily refilled as needed. Most entrées at the Sports Grill fall somewhere between $6.99 and $11.95. That includes soup or a trip to the salad bar, and of course, unlimited popcorn.

Though it was hard to resist chicken pot pie soup, I chose to hit the salad bar. It might not be the most inspiring array of veggies I've seen, but the mix of greens, fresh cucumbers and both orange and yellow carrots did the trick, especially when lightly splashed with tangy Italian dressing.

"Parody" Video Claims VT is Better. Than Everything.

Some dude sent this to 7DHQ this morning. Apparently, living in Vermont is better than living in a place with fast food and smog. Who knew? 

 

DUI Lawsuit Tossed From Federal Court

U.S. District Court Judge Christina Reiss threw out portions of a lawsuit pertaining to  whether the state police played political favorites by releasing copies of some roadside video stops and not those of others.

At an hourlong hearing in federal court in Burlington, Reiss determined that the court didn't have jurisdiction over whether the state violated Vermont's public-records laws, but she did reserve the right to rule on other aspects of the complaint brought by attorney John Franco. Largely, she said she'd be willing to determine whether the state ran afoul of the First Amendment by playing political favorites in releasing the records related to one person and not another.