w w w. v n ew s . c o m

Thur sdayJU LY 16, 2020

$1.50Volume 69 — Number 38

THE NEWSPAPEROF THE

UPPER VALLEY

Copyright ©2020 Valley News

ONLINE : For more stories, photos and video from the ‘Valley News’ staff, visit www.vnews.com.

WORLD & NATION

COVID -19OUT OF CONTROLFace-covering mandates,lockdowns, health checksand quarantine ordersunderscored the reality thatthe number of infections iscontinuing to tick upward inparts of the world. Page B1

PRIMARY SOURCE

VLS MURAL FLAPAn artist said he is intalks with VermontLaw School to avoidhaving a mural aboutthe UndergroundRailroad painted over.VLS says the mural’sdepiction of slaves is problematic. Page A2

WE ATHER

P.M. SHOWERSPOS SIBLEHighs 75 to 81Page A8

I N S I DEClassified B4Comics B7Editorial A7Local&Reg. A2

Obituaries A4Sports B8Television B6World&Nation B1

By AAMER MADHANI and KEVIN FREKINGAssociated Press

ATLANTA — President Donald Trumpannounced Wednesday that he was rollingback a foundational Nixon-era environmen-tal law that he says stifles infrastructureprojects, but that iscredited with en-suring decades ofscrutiny of majorprojects and givinglocal communitiesa say.

Trump was inAtlanta to an-nounce changes tothe National Envi-ronmental PolicyAct’s regulationsfor how and whenauthorities mustconduct environ-mental reviews,making it easier tobuild highways,pipelines, chemi-cal and solarplants and otherprojects. The 1970law changed envi-ronmental over-sight in the UnitedStates by requiringfederal agencies toconsider whether aproject wouldharm the air, land,water or wildlife,and giving the public the right of review andinput. The president said the final rule willpromote the rebuilding of America.

“Together we’re reclaiming America’sproud heritage as a nation of builders and anation that can get things done,” Tr umpsaid.

Critics called the Republican president’sefforts a cynical attempt to limit the public’sability to examine and influence proposedprojects under one of the country’s bedrockenvironmental protection laws.

“This may be the single biggest give-away to polluters in the past 40 years,” saidBrett Hartl, government affairs director atthe Center for Biological Diversity, an envi-

Changes rein inenvironmental oversight

Tr u m paims to

speed upp ro j e c ts

INFR ASTRUCTURE

By LIZ SAUCHELLIValley News Staff Writer

NORWICH — DanielHaedrich and his wife, Ann, werealways curious about electric bi-cycles, but it wasn’t until the Up-per Valley E-bike Library rolledthrough Norwich that they de-cided to purchase one of theirown.

“Her goal is not to be sweatywhen she arrives at work,”Haedrich said of his wife, whoworks at Dartmouth-HitchcockMedical Center and commutesfrom their home in downtownNorwich. “You hit the (Ledyard)bridge and you immediately startclimbing. With a pedal assist it’s

so much easier. You don’t have toput as much effort in. You arrivefeeling pretty clean and dry.”

The Upper Valley E-bike Li-brary is a collaboration betweenBurlington-based nonprofit orga-nization Local Motion, whichaims to connect people with e-bikes through bike rentals, andenergy committees in Norwich,Hartford, Hanover, Thetford, Cor-nish, Plainfield and Hartland, toallow residents to try out the bicy-cles.

“Our whole goal is to introducepeople to e-bikes and ultimatelyhave them be able to hopefully de-cide to integrate them into how

E-bike library hopes transportation option will catch on in the area

Checking out a new way to ride

GREEN UP AND GOVALLEY NEWS

PHOTOGRAPHS —JENNIFER HAUCK

Laura Sibley,left, and herwife, Jessica

Mitchell, ofNor wich,listen toC h a rl i e

Lindner ofthe Norwich

Energ yCommit teetalk aboutthe e-bike

Mitc hellwas taking

out for a testride in

Norwich onWedne sday.

Below: AaronLamperti ofthe Norwich

Energ yCommit tee

disinfect sone of the

three e-bikesava i l a b l e

to try.

By TIM CAMERATOValley News Staff Writer

LEBANON — Plans to redevelop two lotson Bank Street near Colburn Park with a totalof 40 apartment units are on hold, at leasttemporarily, after city officials denied the de-velopment several key waivers this week.

After hearing opposition from dozens ofneighbors in recent months, the PlanningBoard voted Monday night to reject Hanover

developer Jolin Kish’s request for threewaivers sought in conjunction with a proposalto construct two buildings across Bank Streetfrom the AVA Gallery and Arts Center.

“I don’t think that this project, as it’s cur-rently being presented to us, meets the regu-lations of being harmonious to the neighbor-hood,” Planning Board member Laurel Stavistold colleagues before they denied thewaivers Monday night, in a series of votes,only one of which was unanimous.

Kish last year proposed razing a boardinghouse at 14 Bank St. and replacing it with athree-story apartment building containing sixunits.

Behind that, she hopes to build a 29-unitstructure with three floors of apartments andtwo floors of parking.

In all, the site would have 40 units when theexisting apartments at 10 Bank St. are fac-

City balks at waivers for apartment projectLEB ANON

By ANNE D’INNOCEN Z IOAP Retail Writer

NEW YORK — Walmart will require customers towear face coverings at all of its namesake and Sam’sClub stores, making it the largest retailer to introducesuch a policy that has otherwise proven difficult to en-force without state and federal requirements.

The company said Wednesday that the policy will gointo effect on Monday to allow time to inform cus-

Walmart latest retailerto require masks for all

PANDEMIC RESPONSE

CONCORD MONITOR — GEOFF FORESTERBoscawen police officer Glen Chislett and his policedog Saint patrol the area near the Hannah Dustonstatue daily to prevent more damage to the site.

NH statue poses dilemmaPROBLEMATIC PAST

By MARY STEURERConcord Monitor

BOSCAWEN, N.H. — As a na-tional conversation erupts over howour country honors historic figures,the Hannah Duston Memorial inBoscawen will remain standing —albeit with a few changes.

State officials are in discussionwith Abenaki leaders and aca-demics about a number of additionsto the site to make it more histori-cally accurate. The initiative comes

not long after the statue was van-dalized in May with splatters of redpaint, but it follows decades of inde-cision by the state on what to dowith the monument to Duston, awhite settler who is shown holdinga hatchet and the scalps of NativeAmericans she killed.

Denise Pouliot, of the CowasuckBand of the Pennacook AbenakiPeople, is helping to lead the pro-ject. Pouliot said she hopes the pro-

Among themajor changes:limitingwhen federale nv i ro n m e n ta lreviews aremandated, andcapping howlong federalagencies andthe public haveto evaluateand commenton anye nv i ro n m e n ta limpact of ani n f ra s t r u c t u rep ro j ec t .

SEE S TATUE A3

SEE E-BIKE S A8

SEE LEB ANON A5 SEE T RUMP A4

SEE WALMAR T A4