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While VTDigger publishes thousands of daily stories about politics, public policy, and state and community news, this year, as in the past, VTDigger’s investigative stories have topped the list.
Stories about Vermont Yankee, David Hall’s NewVistas project and passage of a bill licensing dental therapists made the readers’ list. But 6 out of 10 stories are about the EB-5 scandal in the Northeast Kingdom. VTDigger has covered the story closely since the Securities and Exchange Commission brought charges against the Jay Peak developers in April.
Here is the lineup:
1. Entergy used kiddie-style pools to store contaminated water at Vermont Yankee, a now defunct nuclear power plant. After the VTDigger story was published, the company held the water in secure containers which were shipped out of state for disposal.
ENTERGY GRAPPLES WITH GROUNDWATER INFILTRATION AT VERMONT YANKEE
24,215 readers
2. The Securities and Exchange Commission charges brought against the Jay Peak developers for allegedly defrauding EB-5 immigrant investors. Federal regulators say Ariel Quiros and Bill Stenger misused $200 million in investor funds.
UPDATED: FEDS CHARGE QUIROS AND STENGER WITH ‘PONZI-LIKE’ SCHEME
21,532 readers
3. A Utah entrepreneur started buying up properties in the Upper Valley this year in an effort to create a Utopian community based on Mormon principals. David Hall, founder of NewVistas, hopes to bring 20 million people to four small towns in Vermont. Local residents say the project is out of scale.
21,210 readers
4. VTDigger reported that the Shumlin administration asked to delete the emails of Alex MacLean, a former gubernatorial aide and key Jay Peak liaison, when state officials were apprised of SEC charges against the Jay Peak developers.
UPDATED: GOVERNOR’S OFFICE ASKS THAT OLD EMAILS OF FORMER TOP AIDES BE DESTROYED
17,384 readers
5. The top floor of Hotel Jay at Jay Peak Resort was known as the Penthouse Suites. While the developers, Bill Stenger and Ariel Quiros said they would build an additional 46,000 feet for 65 EB-5 immigrant investors. The developers, however, only constructed an additional 8,300 square feet.
EB-5 INVESTOR SAYS JAY PEAK DEVELOPERS DOUBLE-SOLD HOTEL JAY
16,355 readers
6. The House of Representatives passed legislation that allows for the licensing of dental therapists. The bill, which was fought by the Vermont Dental Association, was signed into law by Gov. Peter Shumlin. Advocates say the therapists will provide dental care to Vermonters who don’t have access to dentists.
HOUSE PASSES BILL TO LICENSE DENTAL THERAPISTS
15,749 readers
7. When charges were brought by the SEC against Bill Stenger, the former president of Jay Peak, said he didn’t do anything wrong. Stenger settled with the SEC in August. VTDigger takes a look at his role in the largest alleged EB-5 fraud in the nation.
DEPOSITION DETAILS STENGER’S ROLE IN ALLEGED FRAUD
14,061 readers
8. Michael Goldberg, the court-appointed receiver for properties owned by the Jay Peak developers, told investors in August he would no longer be employing Bill Stenger, the president of Jay Peak. Stenger would be kept on as a consultant for special projects, Goldberg said.
JAY PEAK RECEIVER SAYS STENGER NO LONGER WORKING FOR RESORT
13,760 readers
9. Bernie Sanders’ wife, Jane, was heavily involved in the Vermont senator’s run for president in 2016. In this report, we look at Jane’s connection to a media firm that made millions of dollars in media buys for the Sanders campaign.
SPECIAL REPORT: SANDERS CAMPAIGN MILLIONS GO TO MYSTERY FIRM
13,688 readers
10. In May 2012, Douglas Hulme, a former business partner at Jay Peak, warned Lawrence Miller, the secretary of the Agency of Commerce and Community Development, about the improper handling of finances at the ski area, which was using $282 million in EB-5 investor funds to expand the resort. It was later revealed that the developers used investor monies to purchase the Jay Peak ski area as part of what became a Ponzi-like scheme
DOCUMENTS SUGGEST STATE IGNORED WARNINGS ABOUT JAY PEAK IN 2012
13,565 readers
