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Burlington City government
There are 356 Government and Politics links for you to choose from!
Burlington officials agree now with city councilors
that Assistant Chief Administrative Officer Ben Pacy violated the law when, on three occasions, he broke the seal on the ballot box from Ward 7 in the hours following the March 4 election.
In the election, incumbent Councilor Paul Decelles defeated Democrat Steve McIntyre by 15 votes. That outcome was upheld in a recount March 10.
Pacy, when he broke the seals, was trying to resolve a discrepancy in the vote total by officials at the polls, he testified in Chittenden Superior Court during a lawsuit brought by Democratic former Councilor Jean O'Sullivan and City Democratic Chairman Jake Perkinson. The Democrats asked in the lawsuit for a new election.
Judge Dennis Pearson refused to order a new election, finding "no culpable intent" on Pacy's part, but he made clear during the initial hearing and a subsequent effort by Democrats to continue the case that Pacy had violated election law by breaking the seal on the ballot box without a court order.
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Fletcher Free Library's front doors open and close about a half-million
times a year, so any frugal Yankee would agree they should work well. They don't. They're 27 years old.
Library co-director Amber Collins, who provided the statistic of 250,000 library visitors a year, said the bottom sill is worn out.
"The door often won't close at all," she said.
That's frustrating for librarians when they try to lock up at night, and, she said, it's been a drain on the library's meager maintenance budget to call Acme Glass to come out again and again to jury-rig a temporary fix.
Collins isn't complaining. The city has created a system to list the maintenance problems in city buildings, and to prioritize the repairs over the next five years.
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An Eye for an Eye?
It s starting to sound like police are involved in a war against the street people. I was having my dinner sandwich in the outside sitting area of the Red Onion sandwich shop, when a few youths came up with tempers flaring. Justine obviously wanted to do damage to something. Justine told me how the police had assaulted their friend with mace. Justine describe a scene where they were playing their drums and hanging out and a few officers walk up and asked the two girls that were with them who they were and how old they were. They told the girls the hippies would probably rape them. When the girl told the cops these guys were her friends, they proceeded to order the kids out of the park. Justine described how his good friend Chris asked why? According to Justine, the police would not say why they had to leave, other than We decided to close the park.
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Burlington Assessor's Office's
function is to establish fair and accurate values of all taxable real estate in Burlington, Vermont. The department is responsible for the administration of all laws and regulations regarding property tax assessments.
The assessed values are the basis for the distribution of the City's annual property tax levy. The Grand List Book is an inventory of approximately 10,489 taxable real estate parcels and 904 business personal property accounts. Property assessed values are based on an estimation of fair market value.
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Burlington City Arts
strives to bring awareness of arts and culture into the City's neighborhood, schools, parks and senior centers. Its mission is to sustain and enhance the cultural life of the greater Burlington community, by organizing and sponsoring cultural events and programs and forming partnership with other organizations, which carry out community arts events and add to the city's public art.
City Arts transformed the historic Ethan Allan En-gine Company Number Four into the Firehouse Center for Visual Arts. Beside ongoing exhibitions the Firehouse Gallery offers life drawing classes, art tours for students of all ages and Summer Arts, a four-week-long children's summer art camp.
Burlington City Arts also awards Community Arts Project Grants (CAPS) to a variety of artists and community organizations, such as painting programs for seniors, site specific environmental art projects and an internet band guide showcasing local musicians.
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Burlington Community & Economic Development Office
The Community & Economic Development Office (CEDO) works to achieve economic vitality, preserve the "environment" and promote social equity within a sustainable city. CEDO works in partnership with citizens, the public and private sector, and other city departments to:
Burlington Department of Parks and Recreation's
responsibility is to enhance quality of life of all the citizens of Burlington and for the visitors to our community in the following ways:
Burlington Department of Planning and Zoning
takes care of the city's Zoning administration, Municipal Development Plan, and long-range planning areas.
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Burlington Department of Public Works
is responsible for Streets, water, sewer, parking, building permits, and inspection services.
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Burlington Police Department
is committed to policing with the citizens of Burlington to achieve a safe, healthy and self-reliant community. We aspire to be the foremost police agency in the nation by embracing community policing in our philosophy, organization and strategy. The BPD advertises that its core values include integrity, service, respect, and creativity.
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BurlingtonVT Police Department
is committed to policing with the citizens of Burlington to achieve a safe, healthy and self-reliant community. We aspire to be the foremost police agency in the nation by embracing community policing in our philosophy, organization and strategy. The BPD advertises that its core values include integrity, service, respect, and creativity.
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A crackdown on ticket scofflaws is apparently paying off
for the city of Burlington.
Burlington's ticket administrator John King says police are issuing more tickets these days to people who violate the city's quality of life ordinances that prohibit loud parties, unleashed dogs, public urination, and other nuisance issues.
King says the city has had the ordinances on the books for years, but historically police were reluctant to issue tickets because the fines often went unpaid.
"People were taking tickets and throwing them in the street," according to King.
But King says collections increased dramatically two years ago after the city started going after scofflaws with arrest warrants and credit bureau notification.
King says the double-threat of jail or bad credit has paid off. Fine payments have more than doubled from 25 percent to 65 percent, while average monthly fine collections nearly tripled from ,000 to ,000.
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Although he admits that no individual
(and no one political party) can take full credit for Burlington's apparent vitality, without doubt, Clavelle deserves a good portion of the applause. With the exception of a couple of years, he has been at the helm since 1989, and before that, served six years as director of Burlington's Community and Economic Development Office under former mayor Bernie Sanders.
Clavelle can sometimes sound a bit didactic when addressing the city's issues, but his infectious enthusiasm bubbles near the surface. It's an enthusiasm he has inherited from his ancestors.
... Clavelle's father, Raymond Clavelle, also known as Moon, and his uncle Bob ran Clavelle Brothers Market on West Allen Street. "I stocked the shelves and sorted bottles and, as my father would say, ate the profits," he says with a chuckle.
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Auditors track missing garage cash
Flaws in the way Burlington's parking garages kept track of money helped former garage manager James P. Brown take nearly ,000 out of the city till, according to a private auditor's report. The city asked Sullivan, Powers & Co. to determine what went wrong under Brown's watch after noticing discrepancies. The
Montpelier auditing firm found the system had holes and relied too heavily on Brown's say-so when it came to money matters. Brown had no explanation for the missing money when confronted by Steve Goodkind, Public Works director, according to a memo written by Goodkind and Burlington's Chief Administrative Officer Brendan Keleher. The Burlington Police Department, in charge of the criminal investigation into Brown's activities, will use the auditor's findings to make its case, said Lt. Emmet Helrich. Sullivan, Powers compared the garages' daily deposits against what cash registers recorded from mid-July to late October.
Burlington announces 'renewal community'
A help-wanted sign sits in the front window of Lyle Macartney's Leather Express store on College Street in Burlington. Until Tuesday, he didn't really care where an applicant for that job might live. That changed, though, when he learned about a new program offering tax credits if he has employees who live in a newly designated "renewal community" in Burlington. Businesses in that chunk of Burlington -- much of downtown and the Old North End -- are eligible to share in billions of dollars' worth of tax breaks and financial incentives, federal and city officials announced Tuesday morning. One of the ways theprogram accomplishes that is by giving businesses in the zone a ,500 tax break per year for each employee who lives in the zone.
Burlington City Council President Kurt Wright has set aside an hour tonight
for a report from Public Works Director Steve Goodkind on the city's aging infrastructure.
In data included in the council's work packet for the meeting, Public Works said the average condition of the city's 96 miles of paved streets is "fair," but the rate of deterioration is increasing. By 2013, Public Works said, unless more money is spent on streets, the average street, using a "pavement condition index" developed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, will be in "poor" shape.
The cost of repairs increases by 400 percent to 500 percent, the DPW report said, when pavement condition falls from fair to "very poor" or "serious."
Public Works said its past predictions of pavement conditions have proved accurate.
Spending projections show that the current paving costs of ,000 a year will not reverse the decline. The current pavement condition, DPW projects, can be maintained at a cost of .7 million annually....
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Burlington Considers Changing Anti-Begging Law
The city of Burlington is being forced to change its anti-begging law because federal courts say begging is protected under the First Amendment.
Currently, the law is one sentence long and bans any kind of begging on city streets.
The city council is considering a new five-page law that bans aggressive panhandling.
"There is the need to protect the right of free speech. What the courts have told us is people do have the right to ask other folks for money. But that needs to be balanced with the right of the citizens not to be harassed," Burlington Mayor Peter Clavelle said.
The city council is expected to vote on the issue Monday night. -- end --
Burlington faces one of its largest financial problems
in municipal memory -- a looming shortfall in the city retirement fund. Like other public and private pensions around the country, Burlington's was hit hard when the stock market slumped three years ago. Fixing the problem has become a top priority.
Firefighters and police have the most at stake in their retirement benefits because these employees do not pay into social security. The city's retirement fund is their social security. Every other city employee will be affected as well by the decisions that are made to address the shrinkage of the value of the fund.
... Keleher says the city has no problem meeting its current .6 million-a-year benefit obligation. But city officials are facing up to a growing problem for the future.
... O'Sullivan says with no caps in benefits, city taxpayers will pick up the cost. Already, more than 17 cents on Burlington's property tax rate goes automatically -- without voter approval -- to the city retirement fund.
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Burlington is embarking on a program that allows city
employees can take advantage of cheaper drugs north of the border. Though controversial, Plattsburg's mayor is considering whether a similar program could help his city too.
The CEO of CanaRX, Tony Howard, came to Burlington's City Hall today to explain how city employees can get drugs from Canada. CanaRX is the Canadian pharmacy that will dispense drugs to interested city workers.
This was just one of many meetings Howard led to help city workers understand their newest health care benefit.
Burlington's Mayor Peter Clavelle also invited Howard to the Champlain Senior Center to pitch reimportation to local residents. Even though the city program is designed for municipal employees any consumer can buy discounted drugs from CanaRx.
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Burlington is exploring an income-based tax to replace property taxes.
The new method of assessment would apply to owner-occupied homes. Several hurdles remain before such a change could be effected, but Chief Administrative Officer Jonathan Leopold said the plan is feasible and "easily doable. This is a really interesting idea," he said.
If the change were enacted, Burlington would be the first city in the state to adopt such an approach.
... Councilor Tim Ashe, P-Ward 3, has been the leading council proponent of the change. He and three other councilors sponsored a resolution in mid-May asking Leopold to conduct a feasibility study of the income-based proposal. It passed unanimously.
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Burlington learned lessons from James P. Brown,
the former parking garage manager convicted Wednesday of stealing from the city. Brown passed through the city's hiring process, worked his way up to management and ignored accounting practices with impunity until he was fired in October. On the way, he stole ,000 from taxpayers.
City managers don't want to be vulnerable again. Burlington will change the way it does business to avoid future problems, Mayor Peter Clavelle said. ... He manipulated the way money flowed through the city's garages. No one questioned missing receipts. No one balked when he barred other garage employees from handling the money. Burlington's annual audits were not set up to catch theft.
All this should change, Clavelle said. ... The city also needs to continue to review employees' histories as they are promoted, Clavelle said. Brown's background was never reconsidered when he took over one of the city's biggest money-makers.
Burlington Mayor Bob Kiss is looking for volunteers
to represent each of the city's seven wards in the interview process for a new police chief.
Tom Tremblay, chief of police since 2004, is leaving to become head of the state Department of Public Service.
... One representative from each ward will be chosen randomly from among those who apply. Kiss will solicit participation from other community representatives, as well as the Police Commission, Police Department, and police and AFSCME unions.
The mayor said volunteer applicants should keep in mind that the interview process will likely require at least one full day in January.
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Burlington Police Chief Alana Ennis gave out awards Monday
for exceptional work to 15 officers, 13 staff and community members, and one police dog.
The officers were recognized for specific efforts such as saving the life of an armed, suicidal man and for broader, ongoing efforts such as the arrests of heroin dealers.
Staff and community members were thanked for their work on behalf of victims and general support of the department.
The dog, Zeus, was rewarded with treats for his help locating marijuana during a traffic stop.
The awards were given out at the annual Burlington Rotary Club Police and Public Service Awards luncheon.
Burlington voters face 4 spending proposals
Burlington voters will decide Tuesday whether they want to spend hundreds of tax dollars each on police, fire and school projects.
If voters approve the four spending proposals, taxes on a ,000 house would rise more than . Voters who don't want to approve all four might have to choose between upgrading public safety and upgrading the education of Burlington's children.
Fire and police management say their departments need equipment and crews to handle changing demands for their services. School leaders say they need to borrow money to fix long-standing building deficiencies and improve technology.
The proposals to improve emergency equipment and school safety are in addition to the annual school budget. This year's .3 million budget could raise taxes more than 6 percent.
Burlington voters opt for the firefighters, not the truck
Burlington's Fire Department can afford a new ambulance crew but not an ambulance after voters Tuesday passed a tax increase and rejected a .5 million bond that would have paid for fire equipment, according to preliminary city results. The bond, which would have bought four new fire trucks and an ambulance, needed support from two-thirds of the voters to pass. The measure fell short, winning 63.6 percent approval. A tax increase that will pay for 10 police officers, six firefighters trained to operate an ambulance and other staff passed 53 percent to 47 percent. The tax should raise more than ,000 and add 5 cents per of assessed property value to the Burlington tax rate. ... The city charter mandates that general obligation bonds receive a two-thirds vote to pass, Burlington Chief Administrative Officer Brendan Keleher said. The only exception is school general obligation bonds, which can pass with a majority vote, Keleher said.
Burlington's next police chief says he'll pay a lot more
attention to young people, as well as improve the concept of community policing. Mayor Peter Clavelle announced the promotion of Deputy Chief Tom Tremblay to the chief's position today.
"He knows Burlington, he knows policing, he's a man of utmost integrity," Clavelle summed up as he announced his choice. The appointment is subject to city council approval, which is expected without dissent.
Among those congratulating Tremblay was 17- year city police veteran Steve Wark who competed for the job. Wark will continue as commander in charge of police operations, directly under the new chief.
For years Tremblay worked as a detective, then won promotion to administrative and command positions. He helped put community policing in place. Then came a spike of violence in early August, a confrontation between two groups of young men involving a smashed windshield and gunfire.
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Burlington's second full-time ambulance goes into service at 7:30
this morning.
Firefighters eagerly anticipated the ,000 vehicle, fitted with ,000 worth of gear, from stretchers to rubber gloves and oxygen cylinders. A two-person crew stands ready for the approximately 4,000 yearly calls for emergency medical service citywide.
There has long been one full-time ambulance in Burlington. With the addition of a second truck, dependence on the University of Vermont and other area emergency services should decrease, Burlington Fire Chief Michael O'Neil said Tuesday.
Burlington voters in March rejected a proposal to borrow .5 million to buy the ambulance and several firefighting vehicles. Mayor Peter Clavelle and Chief Financial Officer Brendan Keleher "sharpened the pencils" and found the money needed to pay for the ambulance anyway.
City considers parking pass cards
Imagine parking in downtown Burlington and using a swipe card to satisfy the meter, no scrounging around under the car seat or deep in the glove compartment for nickels and dimes. It could happen, depending on how this winter goes. Burlington's Department of Public Works will monitor about 50 new meters through the season's cold. The high-tech electronic meters can accept either swipe cards or pocket change. Public Works installed them in 2001. The trick is to see how the machines react to Burlington's harsh winter, said Public Works Director Steve Goodkind. If the electronic meters do well, it could change the face of parking downtown. ... Each electronic meter costs , compared to about for refurbished mechanical meters. The newer meters require occasional battery replacement, but can be easily reprogrammed when rates change. Mechanical meters must be recalibrated.
City expands possible uses of Trinity
Trinity College can make plans to sell the Colchester Avenue campus after a unanimous vote Tuesday night by Burlington's City Council expanded possible uses of the campus.
The college, which closed in September 2000, has to sell the prime real estate to pay off debts, said Sister Jacqueline Marie Kieslich, Trinity's president. The school could face foreclosure if it cannot unload the land in time, she said.
Trinity needed permission from the city to expand the uses allowed on the campus that was designated for educational use only. More uses should mean more potential buyers and a higher purchase price.
Trinity College's 21 acres could be available for retail, residences, offices, medical uses, health clubs, and bed and breakfasts, among other uses. The city excluded gas pumps and drive-through uses. The law is written to allow neighborhood shops, but not a major retailer.
City honors worker for following conscience
Whistle-blower Larry Tucker was formally recognized Thursday for turning in the supervisor he believed was stealing from the city coffers.
Tucker, Burlington's employee of the year, said he agonized for three weeks in the fall, debating with himself over whether to voice his suspicions. He did, and his hunch led to a state charge against James P. Brown, the former Burlington parking manager. Brown is accused of stealing city garage profits, according to court documents. ... Tucker's job has changed since he overheard his employees talking about how much money they had brought in that fall day. Tucker noticed the amount of money deposited by the garage didn't match the employees' offhand comments. He started watching the garage's daily take and comparing the amount with how much ended up in the bank.
City of Burlington Wants Out of the Sex Business.
The White Orchid paid nearly ,000 in rent to the city of Burlington. Three weeks ago police raided the spa claiming it is a house of prostitution, but it re-opened within days -- and now Burlington officials are scrambling to evict the spa to get the city out of the sex business.
Three weeks ago, police busted the three Asian massage spas located in Essex Junction, Williston, and South Burlington.
In response the private owners of the buildings housing the Tokyo Spa business in Essex Junction and the Ginza Spa in Williston evicted the women and the massage operations.
But the White Orchid massage spa on Williston Road has re-opened for business offering services from the same women who were working there when police raided.
And this building is owned by the city of Burlington.
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Downtown Burlington is not just a business district
More housing has been added, and now the city wants to encourage even more by adopting what's called a residential high density bonus. But it's a limited proposal. The measure that cleared the ordinance committee was scaled back from the proposal drafted by the planning commission. City councilor Andy Montroll, who helped write the ordinance, knows that higher density raises controversy. "One of my big concerns is not just to overbuild and then destroy the nature of the community that people enjoy so much," says Montroll. ... The city council considers the height and density ordinance at its next meeting on January 7th, where more debate can be expected on whether this goes far enough to make a difference.
Election day is less than a week away, next Tuesday,
November 5th. But thousands of Vermonters already have voted. Since early voting began three weeks ago, town and city clerks have reported a brisk business in ballots.
The city clerk's office in Burlington has an entire section set aside for elections, where 2800 absentee ballots had been requested as of Tuesday. As well, more than 2100 new voters have registered in Burlington since September.
Burlington has led the trend toward early voting since the election law was changed to permit anyone -- not just the sick or absent -- to vote this way. Deputy Secretary of State Bill Dalton says indications are that the trend will continue.
... A recent change has made voting this way even more attractive. Burlington assistant clerk Joanne Lamarche said the law now allows voters to take their ballot home. The city even gives them a stamped envelope with which to mail it back.
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FAQ: Can I park my car on the streets in Burlington during winter months?
You can park on City street during the Winter months EXCEPT during parking ban alerts. A Parking Ban will be in effect when the flashing snow lights are turned on. Vehicles must be off the street by 10pm once the snow lights are activated, and shall remain off the streets until the lights are shut off. Towing will be enforced only from 10pm to 7am during the alert. Does the City really need a parking ban ordinance for snow removal? Yes, snow must be removed and pushed back to the curb. Many streets in the older part of the City are narrow. In order for a snowplow to have access to the street, cars must be removed. Snow which lies under cars when not pushed to the curb has a tendency to be dragged out into the travelway days after a storm causing slippery conditions. Snow which remains on the street will deter drainage and accelerate road deterioration. Public Works studies show that plowing operation costs double when cars remain on the street.
Fire Truck Fleet Facing Faltering Future
The Burlington fire department historically has won the backing of city voters when it needed a bond issue to upgrade equipment. But it's been a long time since the last fire bond vote, and competing for the taxpayers' dollars are two tax hikes on the Burlington ballot this town meeting day, Tuesday, March 4th. When a fire in 1982 destroyed the old Chittenden county court house, the fire department had the same problem it faces today -- aging equipment. Back then, the ladder on an older fire engine that had just been lent to South Burlington collapsed under the strain. ... Another ladder collapsed that same day. It would be another six years -- 1988 -- before Burlington replaced its main fleet of fire trucks with the ones still in service today. That was fourteen years ago, and now the city is asking voters to approve a two-and-a-half million dollar bond issue to replace four trucks and buy a new ambulance and support vehicle.
Fired police officer seeks reinstatement.
Former Burlington Police Cpl. James Brigham went before the city's Police Commission on Tuesday, asking the four-person panel to reverse a decision last month by then-Chief Tom Tremblay to fire the 14-year veteran officer.
Brigham's lawyer, William Norful, has claimed Brigham was fired because the department wrongly thought he was hiding information during an internal investigation of a colleague whom a Colchester officer chose not to arrest for allegedly driving drunk in November.
Brigham was not involved in the Colchester incident but was questioned about it because he was friends with a relative of the Colchester officer.
"All my client is guilty of is hearing a rumor," Norful said during an interview last month. Norful said when Brigham was slow to remember a recent conversation with the friend, also a Burlington officer, he was accused of lying.
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Former garage chief says he was framed
The man who Burlington officials say stole nearly ,000 from the city told police he was "being set up," according to court papers released Tuesday.
James P. Brown, former head of the city's four parking garages, would not say who he believed was framing him, because he had no proof, the affidavit said. ... Assistant Manager Larry Tucker detected a problem after hearing a cashier brag about how much money the garage earned in one day, the affidavit said. Investigators said Tucker noticed the deposit, after Brown went through it, was far less than the cashier had bragged about bringing in. The mechanically kept cash register reports, which would have verified the day's transactions, were missing, according to court documents. ... Brown has a history of financial trouble. He filed for bankruptcy protection twice, once in 1977 and once in 1995.
Four new Burlington police officers pledge
to uphold the meaning behind their badge. They're still probationary-- The department's struggling to find new recruits.
"It's a pervasive problem," says Burlington Deputy Police Chief Mike Schirling.
Departments statewide and nationwide are competing for a smaller pool of applicants, as federal agencies like the CIA, FBI, and homeland security have boosted their ranks in a big way following 9/11. Plus, the dangers and rigors of law enforcement can be a turn-off.
"We are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, weekends and on holidays. We haven't closed in 143 years. That can take its toll on folks," says Schirling.
Even with these new officers, Burlington still needs at least seven more to reverse short-staffing. So the department hopes to get applications from people looking for a career change, even from folks with no criminal justice background: English or biology majors are welcome, too.
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Human Resources Department
will be a catalyst, enabling all City of Burlington employees to contribute towards the success of our organization and work to create a workplace that encourages and supports inclusion for all people. This mission will be achieved through a teamwork philosophy that encompasses individual and unified excellence, trust, respect, open communication, and the ability to have fun. Our work will be worthwhile, and geared toward the improvement of the quality of life in the City of Burlington.
Click here to read more.
It will be months before Burlington voters see the fruits
of Tuesday's election.
Three of four city voters approved borrowing up to .5 million to buy six new vehicles for the fire department. Those trucks should arrive next fall, Burlington Fire Chief Mike O'Neil said Wednesday.
"This is huge," O'Neil said.
Nearly 70 percent of voters said "yes" to borrowing for a million expansion of the airport garage and terminal. Construction on the garage would begin in the spring, Airport Commissioner Robert Miller said.
The projects are critical to city operations, Burlington Mayor Peter Clavelle said. Voters in March rejected the .5 million bond for fire equipment, which needed a two-thirds vote to pass.
The fire department must finalize its spending plan before it can order the fire trucks, support vehicle and ambulance, O'Neil said. The department will also attempt to sell the equipment it plans to replace, he said.
O'Neil hopes to order the new equipment by the end of the month.
Moran plant development was chosen over demolition of the plant.
Burlington voters gave Mayor Bob Kiss a resounding endorsement Tuesday, approving three administration ballot items by large margins.
At the top of the list was the mayor's plan to remodel the waterfront Moran plant -- the hulking generating plant, which was decommissioned more than 20 years ago.
The Kiss plan was approved by 65 percent of the voters. The city total was 7,585 in favor of redevelopment and 4,016 opposed.
In 2005, voters in every ward rejected a plan by former Mayor Peter Clavelle to sell the plant to the Greater Burlington YMCA. Tuesday, the outcome was the reverse, and the Kiss plan won by large margins in all seven wards.
The million development plan calls for the building to be developed by a private company, Ice Factor....
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No Town Meeting In Burlington
Plenty of voting in Burlington, but no meeting. Vermont's largest city is left out of this New England tradition that dates back to 1633.
That's because Burlington is too large to hold such a community wide discussion.
Ward 5 Election Overseer, Rob Backus say it would be nice, but he's not sure how to do that with 26,000 electors in Burlington.
"We don't have a stadium."
Linda Ayer in Ward 6 agrees, "it's too bad, you loose the intimacy that you get with a town meeting."
Instead of that dialog between town folk, polling places in Burlington get a lot of voters that aren't up to speed on the issues and the candidates.
Operation Tattletale is part of expanded community policing policy
and is based on the age-old notion that kids should never do anything they wouldn't be proud to tell their mom.
... Teenagers who misbehave in Vermont's largest city now have more to fear than the police.
Burlington police are now notifying naughty teenagers' parents as part of Operation Tattletale.
Starting this week, police will send a notification letter to the parents of teens aged 17 and under who get a warning or ticket for any traffic violation or municipal ordinance violation. Police say the letters will go out automatically, at no added cost, thanks to a new computer program.
The first 100 letters will be mailed this week for teens who were warned or ticketed since March first.
Deputy Police Chief Walter Decker says sporadic parental notification of teenage problem drivers overt the years has convinced him that Operation Tattletale will deter bad behavior.
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Retirement Administration
maintains records on each member, vested member, and retiree. From these records, data is sent to the actuary for the annual system valuation. The valuation produces the amount of City contribution to the Retirement System for the following year. Also from these records, annual statements are sent to each active member of the system.
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Seven fire departments in Vermont received federal grants
for operation, firefighter safety and fire prevention.
The awards were:
-- Burlington Fire Department: ,650.
Some Champlain College students are helping Burlington's
finest keep an eye on things.
Sounding the Alarm for Safety
The city of Burlington may turn up the heat on landlords in the Queen City; forcing them to install new hardwired smoke detectors in their rental apartments. About 10,000 units would need the upgrades at a cost that could run into the millions. But one fire official says its worth every penny. There have been twenty fire fatalities in Burlington over the last eighteen years. Half of them in rental apartments. Burlington Fire officials say some of those deaths could have been prevented had there been working smoke detectors within earshot of the sleeping victims. A new proposal in the Queen City would make that mandatory in ALL rental units, except those that are owner-occupied. The proposed ordinance also calls for the installation of smoke detectors that run off batteries AND electricity.
The city of Burlington has a new police chief.
On Monday, the city council confirmed the appointment of deputy chief Michael Schirling as Burlington's 25th police chief.
Mayor Bob Kiss said Schirling is a police officer "with significant experience and proven abilities."
The council vote was unanimous.
The 37-year-old Schirling succeeds Thomas Tremblay, who became Vermont's commissioner of public safety.
Schirling said he will concentrate on recruitment and retention of officers and strengthen the department's community policing program.
The results of yesterday's elections were a victory
for many Burlington city officials who've spent months lobbying voters for money.
Both the fire department and the airport bond issues have been approved by large margins, and city residents will soon be seeing the new additions.
Six new fire trucks and an expanded airport parking garage are slated for Burlington, thanks to city voters.
... The .5 million fire measure was passed by almost 7 thousand votes, with 9,705 voters voting yes, over-riding the 2,912 that voted no.
The second question posed to voters was whether to approve .8 million in airport revenue bonds for improvements to the parking garage and a terminal expansion.
That measure garnered 8,611 "yes" votes, to 3,873 "no" votes.
Now building plans will be tackled for the parking garage and city officials are promising job growth from the expansion.
... Now that the fire bond has gone though, there will be six brand new fire trucks added to the city's fleet.
Tow trucks were busy in the city of Burlington Saturday night
and early Sunday morning, December 17th.
Saturday was the first official snow emergency of the season in the Queen City. That meant that cars could not be parked on city streets. It allows snow plows to get around easier.
Not everyone complied. Burlington police say 340 cars had to be towed and their owners were hit with a -dollar ticket.
"I won't say it's the busiest," Burlington Parking Manager John King said. "It's the roughest, in that people are new, they forget, you have to explain the process. As we get into the winter, as we get more, they'll go down."
King says his department is thinking of new ideas to better prepare residents for parking bans -- including e-mail notification of snow emergencies. -- end --
Vermont's largest city plans to proceed full speed ahead on
a plan to let city employees buy re-imported prescription medicine from Canada, in spite of a court ruling against the practice.
Americans can buy drugs from Canadian pharmacies at far lower prices than they pay here in the U.S. Thursday, a federal judge ordered an American company that re-imports drugs to shut down because the practice violates federal law. The government says it's a matter of safety. But Mayor Peter Clavelle, P/D-Burlington, says he doubts that's the issue.
... Clavelle says the mayor of Springfield, Massachusetts, will visit Burlington later this month to explain that city's re-importation program. Clavelle is due to present his own plan to the city council in December.
Meanwhile, Governor Jim Douglas, R-Vermont, said Friday that the state will do whatever is legal to reduce prescription costs. He notes that state employee insurance already covers the cost of Canadian drugs when purchased by individual state employees.
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Voting should be done at the polling places.
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Waterfront Transformations
is a plan to transform a parking lot on Burlington's waterfront into a multi-million dollar development. The eight million-dollar proposal for the site, includes an inn, two movie theatres and a restaurant. The developer hopes to create a showcase for the arts, which will draw a lot of foot traffic downtown.
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Most college students spend their summers life guarding or waiting tables to earn money,
Half a dozen criminal justice majors are capitalizing on their free time by working for the Burlington Police Department's Parks Patrol.
"I want to get a job doing something with police work," said Chris Alting. "I don't want to work in a restaurant washing dishes for the summer."
Along with five of his classmates Alting, who will be a junior in the fall, tries to keep the peace without carrying a gun or making arrests.
"We're mainly a visual deterrent. We deal with juveniles a lot. We talk to them about loitering."
But some say these young guns do some loitering of their own.