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Below are blog posts about Vermont real estate focused specifically on the Okemo and general south central vermont area.
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The Vermont Institute for Contemporary Arts Is Coming To Chester, VT

Written by:  Joseph E. Milliken, 
Publish Notes: 

Valley Business Journal Chester, Vt. April, 2011

The Vermont Institute for Contemporary Arts Is Coming To Chester, VT
The Vermont Institute for Contemporary Arts Is Coming To Chester, VT

CHESTER, VT.-The Vermont Institute for Contemporary Arts(Vtica)in Chester was realized last year and is the creative dream of colleagues Robery Sarly and Abby Raeder, who have a vision to help breathe life into and enlighten the South Central Vermont arts community. “We have been living in Andover(near Chester)for over a decade and realized that somehow, something was missing from this part of the local Arts community,” Robert Sarly said in a recent interview. The center is currently being constructed at 15 Depot Street, and is currently targeting a summer “soft opening.”


Photos courtesy of Vtica


“Chester is simply essential New England… charming, with a town green and many quaint inns, restaurants, crafts and antique outlets, and great proximity to some of the finest foliage and skiing in New England,” Sarly said. “Also, all around the Chester area there are scores of brilliant artists who had come to inhabit the raw beauty of the Green Mountains and simply escape the maddening crowds.” The institute will offer exhibit space and a performance stage, as well as space for artist workshops and other support facilities to encourage and promote creativity.”Many local artists are indeed, a little like ourselves and having found God’s green acres and have settled down to creating spiritually meaningful interpretations of their lives… and ours. Created in stone, on canvas and fabric, in colors and textures that seduce the imagination and remind us of the deeper meanings of life that is all around us.”

One of the focuses of Vtica is to provide local artists the creative center to reawaken us with deeper meanings, and have assembled a wide circle of interested supporters including watercolor and acrylic artists and oil painters, sculptors and craftspeople, live performance artists, local business leaders, in keepers, restaurateurs and others. “These are the avant garde of the new creative economy that Vermont needs to stimulate a revitalization of not just art, but the broader business community as well,” Sarly said.

Another of Vtica’s focuses is to help bring people back in touch with the power and meaningful spirit of the creative imagination. “We all have this aspect buried within our hearts and souls, but it has sometimes been suppressed or forgotten in the business of our modern, materialistic life. Vtica offers us all a place to experience and learn how important the imagination can be to survive in modern life.”

Vtica will serve and assist artists and anyone interested in exploring new ideas, or to view the various works on display, see a scheduled performance or to seek available instruction. “The impact of Vtica will grow through networking with all people with an artistic sensibility, along with other galleries, museums and art schools,” Sarly concluded. “Especially those on the State of Vermont Arts Trail, that crosses through the middle of Vermont from New Hampshire to New York.

“In our own modest way, we intend to change the world for the better by bringing the creative imagination back to the heart of life experience. We will feature local, Vermont artists, but all artists will be welcome, and the cross-fertilization of contemporary art ideas and techniques from around the country and the world should make the Vtica even more exciting than a local art gallery or museum would otherwise.

“There are already many artists who satisfy the market for classic bucolic transcription; what Vtica is trying to support is more cutting edge. We intend to strengthen and make accessible the kind of artistic interests that are more reflective of the spiritual. This is a journey of self-discovery.” To learn more about the Vermont Institute for Contemporary Arts, visit their web site at www.vtica.org.

Vermont Mountain Bike Trail Awarded Funding For Bike Trails

By Joe Milliken

    Through the partnership and hard work of the Vermont Mountain Bike Association (VMBA) and the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps (VYCC), the United States Forest Service (USFS) is allocating some $154,000 to create new and improve existing mountain bike trails, as well as increasing bike access throughout the Green Mountain National Forest.  The focus of this project is to improve sustainable mountain biking locations which are compatible with other outdoor activities in order to help diversify the states’ recreational facilities.

     The VMBA is a non-profit organization based in Waterbury, dedicated to promoting trail advocacy through education, planning, funding, establishing and maintaining multi-use trails throughout Vermont. They endorse responsible, environmentally sensible trail use and the creation of community recreation trail networks. The VYCC is also a non-profit youth, leadership, service, conservation and education organization that instills the values of personal responsibility, hard work and respect for the environment.

    The allocation comes from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and will be used to build a nine-mile mountain bike trail dubbed the Chandler Ridge-Leicester Hollow Loop Trail. The trail will start and end at the Silver Lake campground in Goshen, with the trail work taking place in Moosalamoo National Recreation Area, which is a congressionally designated area within the National Forest.

    The new trail will also be accessible from Branbury State Park in Brandon and the Blueberry Hill Ski Center in Goshen, while the VMBA will continue to provide project management and oversee all of the crews performing the construction of the trails. They have been partnering with the USFS for over three years on the project and are looking towards a completion date of fall, 2012.

   “We have been partnering with the USFS for three years on this project and we saw good progress in 20010, through the hard work of VYCC crews and we are delighted with this funding allocation for 2011,” VMBA Executive Director Patrick Kell said in a recent press release statement. “We expect to see the Chandler Ridge-Leicester Hollow Loop Trail completed or close to it, by the fall of 2011. A big thanks to the USFS for their vision in developing this trail.” The new trail will offer a unique destination, due to the combination of trails along the shores of Silver Lake, a ridgeline trail on Chandler Ridge, fascinating geology in Leicester Hollow and camp ground facilities at Silver Lake, with the aforementioned additional access from Branbury State Park.

    The Vermont Department of Tourism is also jumping on the bike trail theme, realizing the potential in which mountain biking promotes the Green Mountain State.”Mountain bike tourism is the perfect fit for our Vermont Brand,” Megan Smith stated in a recent press release. Smith is the Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Tourism.  “It encompasses the use of our natural landscape while promoting good health and family fun. As we expand our venues for mountain biking we will be contributing to local economies in areas that might not have already had a focus on outdoor recreation, therefore, bringing in new types of business.”

   The VMBA works very hard to not only create new mountain bike trails throughout the state, but also to improve existing trails. Some of the other current VMBA projects include the Adams Camp Ride Center in the Stowe-Waterbury area, Rocky Point Chandler Ridge Trail and the Riverside Farm Trails in Pittsfield. To learn more about the Vermont Mountain Bike Association visit www.vmba.org or the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps at www.vycc.org. Photo courtesy of the Vermont Mountain Bike Association  Joe Milliken is a freelance writer based in Bellows Falls, Vt. Contact Joe at www.jemwriting.com

Bellows Falls Football Reveals State Championship Banner

By Joe Milliken

The Bellows Falls Union High School football team recently
revealed their newest championship banner, after winning the 2010
Vermont Division III state title last fall. The Purple Gang players and
coaches also received championship jackets for their accomplishments.
The banner was unveiled before the start of a recent BF boys’
basketball game at Holland Gym in Westminster.
    During a convincing tournament run the Terriers’ first defeated
Oxbow at home, 33-8, before traveling to Castleton State College and
beating rival Windsor in the final game, 39-22. Bellows Falls went 8-3
overall on the season. The championship was the schools’ 11th state
football title  and the first for head coach Bob Lockerby, who took the
reins five seasons ago, after the retirement of long time Terrier coach
Bis Bisbee. Only Mount St. Joseph has more high school football
championships (12) in the state.
    The Terriers will certainly be looking to pull even with MSJ in the
football championship department, as the Purple Gang will return several
key players from this season’s title team, including quarterback Jeremy
Kilburn, running backs Joe Aslin, Bruce Wells, Cooper Long, Forest
Coleman and defensive back Will Bourne, among others. They also have
several up-and-coming players that got a taste of varsity football this
season, which should go a long way towards helping them create an impact
next season.
    “This is just a great night for the players and coaches,” coach
Lockerby told the crowd before the banner was unveiled. “These kids
worked extremely hard all year, and it’s a great feeling to bring
another football championship back to Bellows Falls.”

     Joe Milliken is a freelance writer based in Bellows Falls. Visit Joe at

REDUCED! Vermont Farm House on the Okemo Shuttle Route!

Cute and Cozy Vermont Farm House!  3 bedrooms, New front Porch approx 4 years. Standing Seam Roof (98). Wood Floors thoughout. Large EIK with custom cabinets. Post and beam barm offers expansion possibilities – On the shuttle bus route to Okemo. Walk to Post OFfice, Bakery and Singletons.. Priced to sell at $164,900. Owner Licensed Realtor in Vermont.

Mill River Gets Win Over Bellows Falls Vermont By Joe Milliken

The Bellows Falls Union High School girls’ basketball team recently
hosted Mill River and looking for their second win of the year,
but Mill River had other ieas, taking an early first quarter
lead and never looking back in an easy but low-scoring, 39-17 win over
the Lady Terriers.
    However, this one was close early, as the Bellows Falls played a
solid 2-3 zone defense that helped keep the much bigger Mill River front line
out of the paint. Lady Minutemen senior guard Chelsea Bagly scored two
early baskets on drives to the hoop and junior forward Alyssa Turgeon
scored on a put-back for an early 8-point lead, before Bellows Falls
sophomore Enny Mustapha scored two baskets of her own on the inside, one
on a post-up move and the other off an offensive rebound.
    Because of good inside defense by BF, the Minutemen started swinging
the ball back outside for 3-pointers from senior captain Amanda Ley and
Bagley to extend the lead to 14-6 after a lay up from up-and-coming BF freshman
Emily Dufault halfway through the quarter.
    When Dufault had to sit down with her second foul and then
Mustapha with her second infraction, Mill River started hitting their free throws
and Bellows Falls started to lose the battle in the paint. “Emily
and Enny having to sit down with foul trouble early really hurt us
under the boards,” Bellows Falls coach Justin Aube would later say after
the game. “We started losing the rebound battle after we got in foul
trouble.”
    The Lady Minutemen continued to move the ball around well, taking jumpers
when they were there, and dumping it inside when the Terriers stretched their
defense. But after a Kya Coursen lay up with a minute left, the Lady
Terriers were alive going into the second quarter trailing 12.

     Early in the second quarter the Terriers squandered several
opportunities by turning the ball over on four straight possessions,
while the Minutemen turned three of those possessions into points on a
3-pointer from Taggart, a lay up from sophomore Trisha Burden and a
jumper from sophomore Nicole Ames. The lead had been pushed to 20-10,
causing the Bellows Falls to call a time out to stem the tide.
    After the time out, however, the sophomore Taggert would hit
three-of-four foul shots to end the half, giving Mill River a 23-10
lead. Taggert had seven points at the break for the Minutemen, while
Dufault had six for Bellows Falls, despite limited minutes.
    At the start of the third quarter, Turgeon and Bagley scored on
consecutive possessions and after another Bellows Falls turnover,
Ames hit a baseline jumper and the lead was up to 14 points halfway through the
quarter. Then things got a little rough when Terrier junior Emma Shaw was
was hit with a technical foul for a push after the whistle. One
free-throw was made and after a BF junior Sarah Dumont hit a 3-pointer
with time winding down, the score was 31-14 heading into the final
quarter.
    The Lady Minutemen would continue to move the ball around the parameter,
effectively taking time off the clock while also creating good shots,
taking a 39-15 lead halfway through the quarter after another Ames’
3-pointer with a defender right in her face.
    Bellows Falls would keep working hard, getting four points down
the stretch from Coursen on a short jumper and two free throws, but it
would not be nearly enough as the Lady Minutemen came away with a 39-19
win.
    “I think we did a pretty good job defensively, only giving up 39
points to a very good team, Bellows Falls coach Aube said after the game.
“Losing Emily (Dufault) early really took her out of her game for a
while, and then losing Enny (Mustapha) for a while at the end of the
first quarter was also tough to overcome.
    Nicole Ames led the way for Mill River with 10 points, while
Chelsea Bagley and Maureen Taggart each pitched in with six. Enny
Mustapha led the way for Bellows Falls with six points.
     Joe Milliken is a freelance writer based in Bellows Falls, Vt. Visit Joe at

I am pleased to announce that my friend

I am pleased to announce that my friend Joe Milliken will be contributing to my blog weekly about local sports and happenings in Vermont…A bit about Joe; Joe Milliken is a freelance writer, music journalist and local sports writer, living in Bellows Falls, Vt with his wife Kelly, son Nate and daughter Erin. Visit Joe at http://www.jemwriting.com.

Why Buying a Home Is Better Than Renting in South Central Vermont

The economic state we’re in at the moment has certainly affected the real estate market. Now more than ever, many of us have concerns about the future and whether or not to buy a home. If you are ready to move from your current residence, you may be asking yourself if it is better to buy or to rent a home. Questions like “Should I take the leap and buy a home now while interest rates and home prices are at an all time low”

Low Home Prices and Interest Rates

If it is economically feasible for you, you should consider a home now while home prices, including interest rates, are at fantastic lows. Not only will you get a whole lot of home for the price, it is possible that you could benefit from potential tax breaks. Also, if you take the time to itemize your federal income tax return, your mortgage interest and real estate property taxes could be deductible.

Better Sense of Community, Stability, and Security

Something to consider if you’re thinking about renting instead of buying a home is that most popular neighborhoods and their communities have limited rentals available and more often no rentals at all. By now you should have done your homework and have a good idea of the community you’d like to live in. Be it because of the schools, the small town feel, the city life, the amenities or the commute, you may have no other choice but to buy to have the opportunity to live in the area of your choice.

Another thing to keep in mind if you are considering renting is that rental properties are a transitional part of their communities. Your neighbors more than likely change frequently making it impossible to create a community bond. If you buy a home you automatically become a permanent member of your community. You can build relationships with your neighbors; your children can make life long friends and you will connect with community businesses.

Better Deal to Own than to Rent

With the current all time low interest rates and spectacular home prices, the amount of money you would pay as a renter could often times be around the same or sometimes even more than the amount your mortgage payments would be if you were a homeowner. With the tax benefits that may be available to you, the savings could be significant.

Homeownership is a smart choice if you have arrived at a stable place in your life. You’ve chosen a life path and are choosing the actions you will need to achieve it. You have amassed a sufficient amount of savings or have gotten to a point in which your cash flow is secure, and the dangers of defaulting on a loan and damaging your credit rating is minimal. If this is where you are, the advantages of owning a home far outweigh the disadvantages, and you are prepared to begin shopping for the perfect home and the right loan for you and your family.

Pricing your house to sell – The Basic Six!

Why does one house sell quickly for a stellar price while another has a “For Sale” sign in the yard for months? Is it luck? Probably not. The sales price and length of marketing time are determined by six basic factors. And you, as the seller, control four of them.

Location – Your neighborhood and your home’s location within the subdivision are important. Does your lot border a golf course or a busy street?

Condition of Property – Is your home updated and well-maintained or does it need redecorating and repair? Is it “staged” to show at its best?

Terms – Can you carry a second mortgage? Is your loan assumable? Can you be flexible with closing and occupancy dates?

Market Conditions – How does the number of available homes (new and resale) compare with the number of buyers? Interest rates always affect the number of qualified, motivated buyers.

Price – Is your property priced correctly? A new listing receives the most activity during the first 3-4 weeks, so be sure to price your home correctly right from the beginning. Price is a very important factor that can offset other deficiencies.

Your real estate professional – The agent you select will make a difference. As an experienced, knowledgeable real estate professional, I will price your home correctly, market it extensively, and negotiate effectively on your behalf. If you’re thinking of selling, please call me.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Bean Group finish

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Bean Group finishes 2010 with a 21% increase in total sales volume over 2009, surpassing one billion dollars in real estate sales, and sets a new record of visitors on its flagship website, http://www.beangroup.com

Portsmouth, NH January 10, 2010 – Bean Group announced today that it finished 2010 with an impressive growth of 21% over 2009 and after only 7 years in operations surpassed $1,000,000,000 in closed real estate transactions. In addition, Bean Group’s customer-friendly flagship website attracted a record 1,300,000 unique visitors and served up over 46,000,000 pages of content.

“As the fastest growing real estate brokerage of the top 5 in NH I’m pleased to see the continued attraction of home buyers, sellers and progressive agents to our business model,” said Michael Bean, President and CEO of Bean Group. Bean continues “As the other 4 brokerages of the top 5 demonstrated meager or negative year over year growth, Bean Group is well positioned for even greater growth opportunities in 2011 and beyond”.

“A major contributor to our growth continues to be our investment in our Internet presence and technology. With a full time, dedicated web development team focused on continual innovation, we are well poised to capture a majority of the 90% of home shoppers searching for a home in New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine and Massachusetts that start their home search on the internet”, said Paul Ringuette, Vice President of Sales and Marketing”.

About Bean Group

Bean Group (www.beangroup.com) is a leading independent real estate firm that combines a team of customer-focused real estate agents with online tools for making the process of buying or selling a home easy. Bean Group agents assist its customers with every facet of the transaction, including tours, pricing analysis, negotiations, inspections and closings.

For the second consecutive year, Bean Group has been named to the prestigious Real Trends 500 Largest Brokers in the United States. The Real Trends 500 annually identifies the 500 largest real estate brokerages in the US ranked by closed transactions and closed sales volume.

With 250 agents and growing, Bean Group continues to be the clear destination of choice for real estate professionals looking to expand their career trajectory.

For additional information, contact:

Paul Ringuette

Vice President Sales & Marketing

Bean Group

72 Mirona Road, Suite 17

Portsmouth, NH 03801

Ph: 603-766-1980

E: [email protected]

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