Tuesday, February 9, 2021
Weinberger had asked councilors to increase the maximum roster count from 74 to 84 officers — a reversal of a council decision last June to shrink the size of the force. As soon as the mayor's proposal was introduced at a council meeting on Monday night, Councilor Zoraya Hightower (P-Ward 1) proposed an amendment to strike any reference to increasing the department cap.
After hours of debate, a slim 7-5 council majority approved Hightower's amendment. All six Progressives voted in favor, while Councilor Ali Dieng (I-Ward 7), a candidate for mayor, cast the decisive seventh vote.
The final resolution, however, passed with an 11-1 vote because it included other public safety reinforcements that had bipartisan support. Councilor Franklin Paulino (D-North District) voted against the measure.
"A yes vote for this amendment is a vote to go over the edge into that crisis, to accept it, and to welcome it," Weinberger said. "This is a vote that will be remembered by Burlingtonians for a long time."
Tags: Burlington City Council , policing , Mayor Miro Weinberger , staffing , Burlington Police Department , Web Only , Image
Friday, February 5, 2021
The City of Burlington and the developers of the CityPlace Burlington project have reached a settlement that they say will allow construction on the long-stalled project to finally move forward.
Mayor Miro Weinberger said the agreement protects the city's investment in the downtown project, which has been tangled in litigation and construction delays for years.
It also achieves Weinberger's primary goal of reconnecting St. Paul and Pine streets to the city grid at no cost to taxpayers.
"No matter what happens now with the project that the developer is pursuing, the city will get our streets," Weinberger said. "The developer's success ultimately will mean hundreds of new homes, jobs and activity in the heart of our city, which in turn will be a success for all of Burlington."
The city council is expected to review the agreement Monday night and could vote on approving the deal on February 16.
The agreement resolves the lawsuit filed by the city last summer, which alleged the project owners had violated a development agreement that promised construction would continue "without interruption" after the Burlington Town Center mall was torn down in 2017.
Tags: Burlington , CityPlace Burlington , Don Sinex , Dave Farrington , Al Senecal , Scott Ireland , TIF , tax increment financing , Web Only , Image
Wednesday, February 3, 2021
Luke McGowan was tapped to serve as a senior adviser to the White House's Intergovernmental Affairs Team, where he'll "lead the stimulus and economic recovery efforts with state and local governments," according to a press release that Mayor Miro Weinberger issued Wednesday afternoon.
The mayor appointed McGowan to the post in May 2019. He was unanimously approved by the Burlington City Council.
“There is no more important work in America today than helping the Biden-Harris administration succeed,” Weinberger said in a statement. “While I am sad to lose Luke as CEDO Director, I am grateful for his service to the City of Burlington and look forward to continuing to work with him in his new role as we rebuild from 2020 at all levels of government.”
Tags: Burlington , Luke McGowan , CEDO , Mayor Miro Weinberger , President Joe Biden , Web Only , Image
Sunday, January 31, 2021
The first campaign finance filings of the Burlington mayoral race show that Democratic incumbent Miro Weinberger has raised about twice as much cash as his Progressive challenger, City Council President Max Tracy.
Weinberger raked in $85,997 from 298 donors, surpassing Tracy's $42,441 fundraising haul. Tracy, however, pulled in 85 more donations than the sitting mayor; the vast majority who gave to Tracy's campaign donated $100 or less.
Fellow mayoral hopeful Ali Dieng, an independent city councilor representing Ward 7, raised $7,721 from 59 donors. The four other independents in the race — Haik Bedrosian, Will Emmons, Kevin McGrath and Patrick White — did not file disclosures.
Tags: elections , Town Meeting Day 2021 , Town Meeting Day , Max Tracy , Miro Weinberger , campaign finance disclosures , fundraising , Burlington , mayor , Web Only , Image
Wednesday, January 20, 2021
The council voted unanimously to place a question on the Town Meeting Day ballot that would permit marijuana sales within city limits. Councilor Chip Mason (D-Ward 5) recused himself from the vote.
Vermont's cannabis law requires municipalities to proactively opt-in to the marketplace through a public vote. Under the law, the state's existing medical marijuana dispensaries can obtain what are known as integrated licenses to manufacture and sell cannabis products to the public in May 2022. Other retail licensees can't open until October 2022.
Burlington's ballot item, however, wouldn't allow any marijuana businesses to open until October 2022.
"This is a modest proposal to try to level the playing field," Councilor Sarah Carpenter (D-Ward 4) said. "We really wanted to try to be fair to all businesses and in particular, small businesses."
Tags: Cannabeat , Burlington Police Department , Burlington City Council , cannabis , retail marijuana , Burlington , Web Only , Image
Monday, January 18, 2021
Burlington city councilors on Tuesday will consider putting a non-binding question about police staffing levels on the Town Meeting Day ballot.
Non-binding means the council would not be required to adopt the change, even if a majority of voters approve it.
"The people being policed — none of them have been part of the conversation. It's only those who are vocal," said Dieng, who is running for mayor. "They speak up, and that's it. The council makes a decision. I want to hear from everyone."
Tags: Burlington City Council , Ali Dieng , Burlington Police Department , Burlington , Jon Murad , Web Only , Image
Thursday, January 14, 2021
Former Burlington police chief Brandon del Pozo resigned from the Howard Center board of trustees last month as the mental health agency wrapped up an investigation into his social media use.
In an email to Seven Days on Thursday, del Pozo said his decision to step down was unrelated to the investigation. Rather, he said, he and his family had moved out of state.
"As my work commitments gradually went nationwide I no longer had the community connections and local focus that service to the Howard Center requires," he wrote.
Del Pozo had served as a trustee for the Howard Center, the state's largest mental health and substance use service provider, since 2018. His three-year term was due to expire this year.
Following a string of employee complaints, the Howard Center board hired local law firm Paul Frank + Collins in August to "better understand the full scope of events" surrounding del Pozo's decision in July 2019 to create a secret Twitter account to troll former Howard Center worker Charles Winkleman.
Tags: Howard Center , Brandon del Pozo , social media , investigation , Charles Winkleman , Web Only , Image
Friday, January 8, 2021
Burlington High School principal Noel Green has resigned, the school district announced Friday night — the latest twist in what has been a particularly unusual school year for students and staff.
In an email to Burlington High School employees sent at 5:14 p.m. Friday evening and obtained by Seven Days, Green cited his long-term interim status as a primary factor for resigning.
“On numerous occasions, I sought an audience with the board to determine why my situation had been decided as such and was never given the opportunity, which in my opinion was highly disrespectful,” Green wrote. “As such, I determined that I would certainly have to look out for my own interests.”
Green also said that “significant external pressure this year to run BHS in a way not consistent with my beliefs in regard to leadership has left me with no choice.” He did not elaborate.
A press release the district sent at 6:46 p.m. Friday states that Green had resigned in an email to Superintendent Tom Flanagan shortly after 5 p.m., effective immediately. The decision surprised Flanagan, who had intended to nominate Green for the permanent principal role at the next school board meeting on Tuesday, the release said.Tags: Burlington High School , Noel Green , Web Only , Image
Tuesday, January 5, 2021
The 7-5 tally was one vote short of the eight needed to overturn the mayoral decision. The result was identical to last month's council vote on the original proposal, with Councilor Ali Dieng (I-Ward 7) joining all six council Progressives in support of an override.
None of the five Democrats flipped, despite pleas from dozens of callers during public forum who urged them to reconsider.
"Even for those of us who are going to be voting to sustain the veto, it's with a very heavy heart," Councilor Chip Mason (D-Ward 5) said during the virtual council meeting. "I think everyone that I'm seeing on the screen right now supports a civilian oversight body."
Tags: veto , Mayor Miro Weinberger , Burlington City Council , police oversight , charter change , Burlington Police Department , Web Only , Image
Friday, January 1, 2021
The proposal sought to form an "independent community control board" with the authority to investigate and discipline cops for misconduct. The council passed the resolution on a 7-5 vote on December 14, intending to send the charter change to the Town Meeting Day ballot in March.
Instead, Weinberger kicked the measure back to the council without his approval. In a three-page memo issued on New Year's Eve, the mayor wrote that the proposal would dismantle the city's police department and "compromise the City’s ability to ensure public safety."
"I veto the Charter Change with great reluctance, because I agree that the current charter is problematic and there is urgency to amend it," Weinberger wrote. "If we cannot find consensus now and my veto is sustained, we must find other ways to make near term progress on the issue of police discipline."
Tags: Burlington , Mayor Miro Weinberger , veto , police oversight , Burlington Police Department , Web Only , Image