Monday, September 7, 2020
Off the job since June, Jennifer Morrison told officials this week that she won't return as Burlington's interim police chief, citing frustrations that city councilors "are more interested in social activism than good governance."
Morrison laid out the reasons behind her decision in an email and letter she sent to Mayor Miro Weinberger on Sunday, about a month before she was to return from an unpaid leave to care for her husband, who received a stem cell transplant this summer.
"This journey has proved uncertain, prone to dramatic shifts, and exhausting," Morrison wrote. "It would be easy to just walk away by saying that our
medical situation doesn’t allow me to return, but that would not be the whole truth."
Tags: Burlington , Burlington City Council , Jennifer Morrison , Brandon del Pozo , Jan Wright , Burlington Police Department , Black Lives Matter , Web Only , Image
Friday, September 4, 2020
They blocked portions of Main Street twice during their march and laid in the street in front of the mayor's personal residence while a speaker recited the names of Black Americans killed by police.
The names of the dead were also displayed on coordinated cardboard signs, each scrawled in dripping red strokes. Dozens of other marchers held up black-lettered signs that spelled the names of three Burlington police officers whose dismissal from the department is the protesters' most immediate demand.
It made for a stark spectacle during the dinner hour, as orange-vested volunteers stepped across Main Street and rerouted vehicles without police assistance. Protesters, many of whom were college-aged, walked from the University of Vermont campus to Summit Street, where the mayor lives.
Tags: Burlington , Black Lives Matter , Miro Weinberger , The Black Perspective , Die-in , Protest , Racial Justice , Burlington Police Department , Battery Park encampment , Web Only , Image , Slideshow
Racial justice activist Mark Hughes resigned from the Burlington Police Commission on Thursday, citing frustration that the citizen-led board is powerless and ineffective.
Hughes announced his resignation during a massive rally in front of City Hall. Protesters have been gathering since August 25, demanding that three Burlington police officers — Sgt. Jason Bellavance and officers Joseph Corrow and Cory Campbell — be removed from the force for using violence, particularly against young Black men.
Hughes says Mayor Miro Weinberger is ignoring the protests, which are led by the group The Black Perspective.
Hughes was appointed to the police commission in June 2019, a month after two young Black men said in a lawsuit that Bellavance and Corrow used excessive force against them the previous fall. At the time, the city was reckoning with the death of Douglas Kilburn, who died days after Campbell punched him during an altercation at the University of Vermont Medical Center. The state medical examiner classified Kilburn's death as a homicide.
Hughes joined the citizen-led body to "restore community trust to the department," he said at the time. Since then, Hughes has proven an influential voice in the fight for racial justice in Burlington following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis in May. As coordinator of the Vermont Racial Justice Alliance, he successfully led the push to cut the police force earlier this summer.
In his resignation letter, Hughes wrote that the commission is ineffective because the city attorney and police union undermine its ability "to provide adequate oversight."
Tags: Mark Hughes , Vermont Racial Justice Alliance , Burlington Police Commission , Cory Campbell , Joseph Corrow , Jason Bellavance , Web Only , Image
Tuesday, September 1, 2020
The city's Development Review Board unanimously voted Tuesday evening to approve Burton Snowboards' application to bring Higher Ground to an unused warehouse on its Queen City Park Road campus. Board member Geoff Hand recused himself from deliberations.
Higher Ground is envisioned as the centerpiece of Burton's planned entertainment hub, which includes a food court and factory tours. Talent Skatepark opened there earlier this year.
The project has been a source of debate for months. Burton and Higher Ground executives say the venue will be compatible with the South End arts scene, but many neighbors have argued it will bring noise and traffic to the residential area. They organized the opposition group Citizens for Responsible Zoning and have hired lawyers and sound experts to fight the project.
The DRB approved the permit with neighbors' concerns in mind, tacking on nearly 20 conditions that Burton must meet to be in compliance. One requires Burton to hire traffic control personnel to redirect post-concert crowds from the nearby Queen City Park neighborhood. The company had agreed to hire flaggers if traffic volumes proved unmanageable after the first 10 events.
Tags: Burlington , Higher Ground , Burton Snowboards , traffic , Burton Hub , DRB , Development Review Board , Web Only , Image
Jordan Atwood, 25, is not allowed to carry firearms as part of court-imposed restrictions for an unrelated pending criminal case. He was booked for violating those terms, police said.
Tags: Burlington , Burlington Police , Jordan Atwood , Black Lives Matter , Protests , Racial Justice , Battery Park , open carry , Web Only , Image
Burlington officials are exploring how city sewage might help them find the next COVID-19 outbreak. Early results are promising, they say.
The city this week is wrapping up a pilot program it quietly undertook in August to look for viral markers in wastewater. But municipal leaders are already looking for ways to expand the program this fall.
"I'm excited about this as an early warning system," Mayor Miro Weinberger said. "I think this really has the potential to give us a sense of an outbreak starting to happen at the very early stages."
Tags: Carolyn Felix , Megan Moir , Miro Weinberger , coronavirus , COVID-19 , wastewater epidemiology , wastewater COVID monitoring , Burlington , coronavirus testing , sewage , Web Only , Image
Monday, August 31, 2020
Board president Debra Stenner announced the inquiry last Friday morning in a letter to staff. The probe seeks "to better understand the full scope of events" surrounding del Pozo's decision to create an anonymous Twitter account that he used last summer to troll Howard Center employee Charles Winkleman.
The Howard Center provides mental health and substance use services and is one of the biggest employers in the state. Del Pozo has served on the organization's board since 2018. His three-year term ends in 2021.
"We believe Brandon brings unique and valuable insight and have supported him in his decision to stay on the board," Stenner wrote. "However, we recognize that there are strong feelings of harm on both sides and gaining a full, unbiased understanding of all that has happened, or continues to happen, is in the best interest of Howard Center and we believe is an imperative in order to move forward."
Tags: Brandon del Pozo , social media , Burlington Police Department , Jan Wright , Twitter , Howard Center , Charles Winkleman , Web Only , Image
Tuesday, August 25, 2020
Burlington city councilors gave Mayor Miro Weinberger their blessing early Tuesday to sue CityPlace developers Don Sinex and Brookfield Asset Management if negotiations over the long-stalled project sputter out.
The council voted 10-1 to “pursue all legal remedies” should talks with Sinex and Brookfield fail. The vote, taken just after midnight Tuesday, authorized the city to make all "necessary budget allocations to accomplish these ends." Councilor Ali Dieng (I-Ward 7) cast the lone no vote; Councilor Franklin Paulino (D-North District) was absent.
"The city is really wanting to take strong action against Sinex to make him live up to his promises," Council President Max Tracy (P-Ward 2) told Seven Days later Tuesday morning. "It's looking increasingly likely that we will pursue legal action," he added.
Tags: CityPlace , Burlington , Burlington City Council , Don Sinex , Brookfield , Web Only , Image
Thursday, August 20, 2020
The measures, very similar to those proposed on Tuesday by Mayor Miro Weinberger, are intended to reduce the risk of coronavirus outbreaks once university and K-12 classes resume.
Three councilors were not present for the final vote, but the nine who were unanimously passed the emergency resolution over objections from some downtown bar owners who said their businesses were being unfairly targeted.
"We have been completely compliant, and it's not fair to scapegoat the bar industry," said Sean McKenzie, beverage director at the Archives arcade bar on College Street, adding that he would need to lay off employees as a result.
Tags: COVID-19 , coronavirus , City of Burlington , gathering size limits , alcohol sales , Miro Weinberger , Brian Pine , Sarah Carpenter , The Archives , Sean McKenzie , Ruben James , college reopening , superspreader events , Kelly Devine , Burlington Business Association , Web Only , Image
Wednesday, August 19, 2020
“For 30 years, the Burlington community has been dreaming and imagining great uses of this unique ... structure,” Mayor Miro Weinberger told an assembled crowd of dozens at Water Works Park, which adjoins the Moran property. “Today, we have found a way to achieve many of the city’s long-held goals for this site.”
Crews have already begun stripping the five-story building’s interior and were busy in the background during Wednesday’s event. Workers will gradually strip the entire brick-encased building, leaving just the steel framework standing amid what will eventually be a city park.
The ceremony included no actual groundbreaking, though gleaming shovels leaned against a nearby chainlink fence surrounding the old coal-fired power plant. Instead, the city gave attendees old bricks from the building, adorned with a label designed by Burlington City Arts commemorating the event.
Tags: Moran Plant , Burlington , redevelopment , FRAME , park , waterfront , Web Only , Image