Monday, April 15, 2019
Weinberger first announced his position Saturday afternoon following the president’s tweet Friday that he is "giving strong considerations to placing Illegal Immigrants in Sanctuary Cities," or municipalities that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities.
Weinberger has vowed to buck the Trump administration's immigration policies before, and on Monday, the mayor called the president's latest proposal “un-American.”
“Here in Burlington, we do not buy into, we do not support [Trump’s] very dark vision of immigrants that are attempting to come to this country to seek asylum,” Weinberger said at an afternoon news conference.
He said immigrants are often “fleeing very difficult situations” and have enriched Burlington’s community.
Tags: Miro Weinberger , Donald Trump , Burlington , immigration , mayor , president , Web Only , Image
Wednesday, April 10, 2019
The March death of a 54-year-old man who'd been in a fistfight with a Burlington cop was a homicide, officials said Wednesday.
Vermont State Police are still investigating the encounter between Douglas Kilburn and Burlington police officer Cory Campbell, but a death certificate released Wednesday lists "skull fractures due to blunt impact" as a contributor to Kilburn's death.
Details about the March 11 altercation are limited to what various police groups have asserted in press releases and a description Burlington Police Chief Brandon del Pozo gave at a Wednesday press conference.
According to state police, Kilburn assaulted Campbell in the parking lot outside of the University of Vermont Medical Center "before the officer was able to gain control of the suspect." Kilburn was treated at UVM Medical Center for injuries and released on March 12.
He was found dead at his New North End apartment two days later.
While the death was classified as a homicide, Vermont Chief Medical Examiner Steven Shapiro was unable to determine how, precisely, Kilburn died. He instead listed multiple "contributing causes" including cardiac disease, diabetes, obesity and the skull fractures.
Tags: Burlington , police , Cory Campbell , Douglas Kilburn , Web Only , Image
Monday, April 8, 2019
Burlington Mayor Miro Weinberger and others acknowledged that they've prodded Pecor to spread the wealth.
"Certainly, his capacity for philanthropy has gone up as a result of Burlington Telecom," Weinberger said. "I, as well as others, have encouraged him to be as generous as he can."
Tags: Trey Pecor , Miro Weinberger , Max Tracy , Burlington Telecom , Peter Clavelle , Jane Knodell , Web Only , Image
Monday, April 1, 2019
Those were both priorities espoused on the campaign trail by Perri Freeman (P-Central District) and Jack Hanson (P-East District), the two young political novices who ousted incumbents Jane Knodell and Richard Deane on Town Meeting Day.
With one fewer member of his own party on the council, Weinberger, a Democrat, also emphasized collaboration in city government during the annual address at City Hall.
Tags: Miro Weinberger , Perri Freeman , Jack Hanson , Franklin Paulino , Dave Hartnett , Jane Knodell , Richard Deane , Kurt Wright , Brian Pine , City Council , Web Only , Image
Friday, March 29, 2019
In response to a complaint filed Tuesday by Burlington resident Wayne Senville, councilors voted 10-1 that they did not violate the state's open meeting law. Councilor Max Tracy (P-Ward 2) cast the sole opposing vote, while Councilor Brian Pine (P-Ward 3) did not attend.
On Monday, the council voted to approve the funding for the $5.8 million project, the final step in moving forward with the downtown park renovation — or so they thought. Senville sent a complaint to the City Attorney's Office the next day, saying that the city had filed supplementary meeting documents too late to allow citizens to comment on them.
"It was clearly insufficient to provide even a cursory review of these documents," Senville told the council at Friday's meeting, which had been called to address his complaint. "Members of the public were unable to comment in a meaningful way."
Tags: Wayne Senville , Keep the Park Green , Miro Weinberger , Joan Shannon , Jane Knodell , Dave Hartnett , Web Only , Image
Chittenden Superior Court Judge Kevin Griffin this week threw out a hate crime charge against Christopher Hayden, writing that harassing a public official is protected by the First Amendment.
Griffin dismissed a count of disturbing the peace by phone that stemmed from numerous racist messages Hayden sent to City Councilor Ali Dieng's government email address.
The state has filed seven charges against Hayden since October, including hate crimes for his targeting of Dieng, Mayor Miro Weinberger and Police Chief Brandon del Pozo.
Tags: Christopher Hayden , First Amendment , protected speech , racism , Ali Dieng , Miro Weinberger , Web Only , Image
Thursday, March 28, 2019
Wayne Senville, who has publicly voiced opposition to the park project, filed a complaint with the city attorney's office on Tuesday, saying that documents related to the project weren't available in time for members of the public to read and respond to them.
Under state law, the city has 10 days to respond to the complaint, according to City Council President Kurt Wright (R-Ward 4), so the council will hold a special meeting on Friday at 1 p.m. to vote on whether a violation occurred.
If councilors decide they did violate the law, they'd have to revote on appropriating money for the City Hall Park project. If the council rejects the complaint by voting that it followed proper procedure, Senville can file a suit in court.
City attorneys are sure that the city did not violate open meeting law and Monday's decision should stand, according to Wright. “We believe, according to our legal advice, we’re on very, very solid ground," he said. "We feel pretty strongly this is a frivolous complaint."
Tags: City Hall Park , Wayne Senville , Kurt Wright , Miro Weinberger , Web Only , Image
Tuesday, March 26, 2019
Ahead of the 10-2 vote, dozens of people who oppose the park renovation turned out to try to convince councilors to vote down the $5.8 million in financing. The opponents, part of a group called Keep the Park Green, say the renovation will result in the removal of healthy trees and is too expensive.
The renovation will, in fact, cost more than previously expected. The lowest bid came in at $4.9 million, significantly higher than the initial estimate of $4 million. Mayor Miro Weinberger attributed the higher price tag to increased cost for soil remediation and the plan to protect existing trees during construction. He also blamed the opposition group and delays in the process for causing the cost to spike.
Tags: City Hall Park , Miro Weinberger , Burlington , City Council , mayor , Keep the Park Green , Web Only , Image
Friday, March 22, 2019
Currently, a councilor or member of a city board must recuse themselves from a vote or discussion if he or she — or a family member — will benefit financially from the matter at hand. Under the current rules outlined in the city charter, officials do not have to provide details about the conflict.
That's not good enough for Councilor Dave Hartnett (D-North District).
"I think the language is, at best, vague," he said. "We need to be accountable and we need to be transparent."
Tags: Dave Hartnett , Karen Paul , Burlington Telecom , Chip Mason , City Council , recusals , Web Only , Image
Tuesday, March 19, 2019
Business owners, who have tolerated construction in the area for years, are worried about having no traffic on St. Paul from Main to Maple streets starting in early April and running through August.
Dick Vaughn, who opened Perky Planet Coffee two months ago on the stretch, said his business relies on foot traffic. The closure “will be devastating,” he said.
The two-block stretch has been a construction site on-and-off for years. The Stratos building was redeveloped in 2014, and Champlain College broke ground on its four-story 194 St. Paul Street student housing complex in 2016.
The latest construction is part of the city's Great Streets Initiative, a renovation of several downtown streets. The finished version of St. Paul will include widened sidewalks, more trees, bike racks, and space for awnings and outdoor seating for restaurants.
Tags: St. Paul Street , Robert Goulding , Department of Public Works , Miro Weinberger , road construction , Web Only , Image