Friday, March 6, 2020
In the only contested Burlington School Board race Tuesday night, newcomer Aden Haji knocked off Keith Pillsbury, the incumbent who'd served 23 nonconsecutive years on the board since 1987.
Haji, 25, earned about 58 percent of the votes (533) to Pillsbury's 41 percent (371) en route to winning the Ward 8 seat.
“I know everybody brings something new to the table, but I felt like my voice was really needed due to the experience that I’ve had,” Haji said.
Pillsbury, a retired Essex middle school teacher, said he's offered to help Haji in any way he can. While the loss is bittersweet, Pillsbury said serving on the board is a big time commitment, and he was looking forward to having more time to himself.
"I have done my community service," Pillsbury said. "Aden is a success story of the Burlington school system. I wish him all the best."
Tags: Town Meeting Day , Aden Haji , New American , Somali Bantu , election , Web Only , Image
Tuesday, March 3, 2020
Political newcomer Zoraya Hightower, a Progressive, unseated 32-year incumbent Sharon Bushor, an independent, in a three-way race in Ward 1. Until this election, Bushor had been endorsed by the Progs every year since she first ran for city council in 1987. She also sought, and lost, the Democratic nomination.
Hightower earned more than twice as many votes as Bushor, notching 912 to Bushor’s 408. The Democratic contender, University of Vermont student Jillian Scannell, won 369 votes.
“I’m incredibly excited,” Hightower said at the Progs' party at Rí Rá Irish Pub on Church Street. “I think it’s a huge vote of confidence to have more than half of the voters vote for me. I know I have big shoes to fill, but I look forward to the challenge.”
Tags: Town Meeting Day , Burlington , City Council , election , Web Only , Image
Thursday, February 27, 2020
"All three of us are actively door knocking and engaging with constituents and voters. There's a lot of energy and electricity in the ward," said incumbent Sharon Bushor, an independent who has served on the city council for 32 years.
Bushor, a 73-year-old retired medical technician, has often aligned with the Progressive Party but was snubbed in December when it endorsed her challenger — Zoraya Hightower, a 29-year-old environmental and development professional who serves on the city Development Review Board but has never held elected office in Burlington. The third candidate, Democrat Jillian Scannell, is a 22-year-old senior at UVM who is president of the university's Student Government Association.
Each says she is best suited to represent the ward roughly bounded by Willard Street, Main Street, Centennial Woods and the Winooski River. It is home to many student renters, as well as longtime homeowners and renters.
Tags: Town Meeting Day , Sharon Bushor , Zoraya Hightower , Jillian Scannell , housing , University of Vermont , Ward 1 , election , Burlington City Council , Web Only , Image
Wednesday, February 19, 2020
Supporters including Mayor Miro Weinberger have touted the potential for so-called accessory dwelling units to boost the city's housing stock and benefit both homeowners and renters.
The changes were among several housing initiatives proposed in the wake of the mayor's 2019 Housing Summit.
Under the new rules, additional off-street parking will no longer be required for accessory dwelling units. They will also be allowed on some lots previously deemed too small, so long as stormwater treatment requirements are met.
Tags: accessory dwelling units , Burlington , housing , affordability , Web Only , Image
Burlington will not reinvest any proceeds from last year's sale of Burlington Telecom back into the company.
City councilors early Wednesday nixed a proposal by Mayor Miro Weinberger to use $2.4 million of the proceeds to purchase a small stake in the new company, a subsidiary of Indiana-based Schurz Communications.
The fateful decision, made after midnight during a marathon meeting, ends a tumultuous two decades of municipally owned broadband.
Tags: Burlington Telecom , Burlington City Council , Miro Weinberger , Brian Pine , Joan Shannon , Jack Hanson , Web Only , Image
Monday, February 17, 2020
The city has signed a letter of agreement with the University of Vermont Medical Center, Vermont Gas and consultant Ever-Green Energy to explore a $16 million system that would power hospital buildings with steam generated from the Joseph C. McNeil biomass plant.
The previous proposal would have cost an estimated $40 million and counted 16 potential customers, including the University of Vermont, CityPlace Burlington and Hotel Vermont.
Despite the smaller size, the city touted the proposal as a "significant step" toward Burlington's goal of becoming a net zero energy city by 2030.
"It is exciting that, for the first time in 35 years of exploring such a system, we are advancing to the stage of detailed engineering and economic analysis," Mayor Miro Weinberger said in a press release. "While much work remains, today's news represents a major breakthrough."
The new proposal is a "material departure" from the former plan, according to an agreement letter released by the city. For one, the system will use steam instead of hot water to create thermal energy, and without UVM or CityPlace, it has a "significantly reduced starting footprint," the letter says.
Tags: district energy system , Burlington Electric , CityPlace Burlington , University of Vermont Medical Center , University of Vermont , Vermont Gas , Ever-Green Energy , Corix , Web Only , Image
Wednesday, February 12, 2020
In a tripartisan press conference at city hall on Wednesday, the five councilors and former councilors took turns at the mic to explain why the city should invest in the once-sinking telecom that wounded the city's reputation and its balance sheet. It's now thriving, they said.
"This is not the same Burlington Telecom of 10 years ago," said Jane Knodell, the former Progressive city council president and a University of Vermont economics professor. She was flanked at the podium by current council president Kurt Wright (R-Ward 4), councilors Brian Pine (P-Ward 3) and Sharon Bushor (I-Ward 1) and former councilor Dave Hartnett, a Democrat.
Tags: Burlington Telecom , Burlington City Council , Schurz Communications , Champlain Broadband , Web Only , Image
Monday, February 10, 2020
Burlington Police Deputy Chief Jan Wright has resigned her post following weeks of scrutiny of her inappropriate use of social media.
In a written statement Monday night, Mayor Miro Weinberger said that Wright “agreed to my request that her service to the City end at this time, for the benefit of the Department and of the City.” Her last day is February 21.
“Good local governance, including good policing, depends upon the hard and skillful work of our City team, including civility and respect for all members of our community,” the mayor’s statement says. “In this instance, a high-ranking leader in our City’s Police Department took multiple actions that damaged City relationships and eroded the public’s and my trust in her judgment beyond repair.”
Wright will remain on administrative duty until her last day and will get a severance package that's equivalent to 22 weeks' pay, according to her separation agreement.
Tags: Burlington police , social media , Abby Sykes , Lori Spicer , Jan Wright , Brandon del Pozo , Web Only , Image
Tuesday, February 4, 2020
The Burlington City Arts Foundation completed the deal on December 24, according to city records. The purchase was part of a $7 million capital campaign to make the space along the Pine Street corridor a permanent community center for the arts.
The plans call for an expansion of existing studio space for pottery, printmaking, painting and other arts, as well as classes for children and adults. The makeover would also include a large community room and a sculpture garden along Pine Street.
Another goal is "to protect long-term affordability for the arts" in the South End arts district's competitive real estate market, said the organization's director, Doreen Kraft. "We're pretty excited."
Tags: Burlington City Arts , 405 Pine Street , Burlington , bowling alley , Redstone , Web Only , Image
Thursday, January 30, 2020
"Are you for real?" he asked representatives from Brookfield Asset Management, the project's majority owner. The crowd inside of Burlington City Hall erupted into applause.
"We wouldn't be sitting here right now if we weren’t for real," replied Aanen Olsen, Brookfield's vice president of development. "We appreciate what the city has been through in the last year and a half, and we absolutely do take it for real."
Thursday marked the first time the developers interacted with the public in the months since they announced a redesign of the downtown project last July. The company reps released renderings at a city council meeting late last October, when they pledged to begin construction this year.
Tags: Brookfield Asset Management , CityPlace Burlington , Web Only , Image