Monday, July 16, 2018
That was the Burlington City Council's message to the University of Vermont Medical Center administrators and nurses who are divided on wages and working conditions.
The council unanimously passed a resolution Monday urging the two sides to find common ground after the nurses' union went on strike for two days last week. The nurses returned to work on Saturday without a contract, but have not yet returned to the bargaining table, much less come to an agreement with the hospital.
The nurses' union could strike again, though it would need to provide a 10-day notice to the hospital.
Tags: Eileen Whalen , University of Vermont Medical Center , hospital , labor , union , strike , nurses , Image , Slideshow , Web Only
The Sara Holbrook Community Center and Greater Burlington YMCA got $150,000 and $130,000, respectively, for capital campaigns as the YMCA buys a new building and Sara Holbrook prepares for a renovation. Those two programs will create at least 58 new preschool slots, according to the proposal approved by the council.
The Burlington Children’s Space, the Janet S. Munt Family Room, Pine Forest Children’s Center, Robin’s Nest Children’s Center, and Ohavi Zedek Full Circle Preschool also got awards, ranging from $5,000 for Full Circle to $75,000 that the Children's Space will use to purchase its building.
Tags: Miro Weinberger , Burlington , Early Learning Initiative , childcare , Vermont Birth to 5 , Sara Holbrook Community Center , Greater Burlington YMCA , Burlington Children’s Space , Janet S. Munt Family Room , Pine Forest Children’s Center , Robin’s Nest Children’s Center , Ohavi Zedek Full Circle Preschool , Image , Web Only
A "yes" vote on a resolution before the council would endorse a menu of opiate treatment options for the Queen City, including distribution of buprenorphine in emergency rooms, supporting opiate treatment for inmates across the state, and offering low-cost or free Narcan to reverse overdoses.
The most controversial item would be a safe injection site, which the resolution refers to as an overdose prevention site. It would provide a place for addicts to consume drugs and would also provide access to medical service, treatment options and clean needles — without legal repercussion.
The resolution does not create a safe injection site. It only encourages the city to move forward with discussions about such a facility. Creating one would involve a lengthy process, "possibly years," before it came to fruition, the resolution acknowledges, and would require a "full community vetting."
The council doesn't actually have authority to enact some of the proposed policies around buprenorphine and Narcan. Still, the resolution is a step in the right direction, said Councilor Karen Paul (D-Ward 6), who's been working on the measure since March.
"The council being on the record supporting and endorsing an overdose prevention site is meaningful," Paul said.
Tags: Burlington , drugs , epidemic , heroin , Karen Paul , Max Tracy , needles , Opioid Crisis , opioids , safe injection site , Sarah George , Image , Web Only
Tuesday, July 3, 2018
Hotel Vermont general manager Joseph Carton said Tuesday morning that an agency tried to reserve 600 rooms in Burlington. Hotel Vermont, which has 125 rooms, could not accommodate the entire request. But the agency ultimately reserved 32 rooms between Hotel Vermont and the Courtyard Burlington Harbor next door, which is owned by the same company, Carton said.
Tags: University of Vermont Medical Center , strike , nurse , Hotel Vermont , Courtyard Burlington Harbor , Laurie Aunchman , Image , Web Only
Friday, June 29, 2018
Gov. Phil Scott helped reopen the causeway at a press conference on Friday where he praised the "can-do attitude" of the workers who helped get the trail back up and running.
The bike ferry, which is operated by cycling organization Local Motion, will also start running, transporting bikers across the 200-foot cut to South Hero.
Tags: Local Motion , Phil Scott , governor , bike ferry , Colchester causeway , Island Line Trail , Image , Web Only
Monday, June 25, 2018
CEDO has hired a consulting firm to send out a postcard to every Burlington resident this month, urging them to take an online survey to weigh in on the purpose and design of the building at the corner of South Union and Main streets.
"We want to see what the public thinks is the highest and best use for the building," Lunderville said Monday during an interview with Seven Days.
Tags: Memorial Auditorium , Dave Hartnett , Neale Lunderville , CEDO , Miro Weinberger , Image , Web Only
Monday, June 18, 2018
A Burlington restaurant owner has come under fire after he posted on Facebook that "junkies should detox or die," leading to a flurry of calls to boycott his business.
Magnolia Bistro owner Shannon Reilly wrote the inflammatory comment on Friday in response to a post by Mayor Miro Weinberger, who shared a Seven Days article about the city's efforts to more quickly provide buprenorphine to drug users seeking treatment. Buprenorphine, also referred to as bupe or its commercial name, Suboxone, is an opioid that mitigates heroin withdrawal symptoms and cravings.
"The junkies should detox or die," Reilly wrote. "Sorry. So fuckin pathetic employing people spaced out on bupe. Fuckin useless. Let them die."
Reilly also took a shot at Weinberger: "F U Wondeboy. Stop trying to act like you are doing anything good for this town! You deserved to be buried under that mall you douchbag," he wrote, apparently referring to the redevelopment of the Burlington Town Center, which has been rechristened CityPlace Burlington.
Tags: Magnolia Bistro , Miro Weinberger , Shannon Reilly , Keep the Park Green , Image
Sunday, June 17, 2018
Burlington Police Chief Brandon del Pozo could remain hospitalized "for a sustained period" after a serious bicycle crash Saturday in the Adirondacks, the city said in a press release.
The chief suffered a concussion, a broken collarbone, a broken right shoulder and road rash when he crashed on "a hill he has ridden many times" on Route 73 in Keene, N.Y., according to Katie Vane, a spokesperson for Mayor Miro Weinberger.
Del Pozo was taken by ambulance to a hospital in Saranac Lake, N.Y., before he was airlifted to the University of Vermont Medical Center. He remained in the intensive care unit, and doctors were "optimistic about a full recovery," the release said. Deputy Police Chief Jan Wright will serve as acting chief while del Pozo is sidelined.
Weinberger has twice visited del Pozo in the hospital and has been in touch with his wife, Vane said on Monday.
"The mayor reported that he had a great conversation with the chief in his visit Sunday night, and left very optimistic that the chief was on the mend," Vane said in a written message. "The chief is still in the ICU, although he is expected to be moved to a different section of the hospital relatively soon. We are not sure yet when he will be released from the hospital."
Tags: Burlington , police , Brandon del Pozo , chief , bicycle , Adirondacks , Image , Web Only
Friday, June 15, 2018
Local investors will help pay for and design one of 12 buildings that will make up the development. The "innovation hub" will allow entrepreneurs to work and learn together, get access to startup funds for business, and live in a place that facilitates "the intense collision of ideas and mentoring," according to a description of the project provided by its creators.
The project, called the Vermont Innovation Commons, will "bring talent and capital and business growth and, ultimately, jobs to a place that really needs it," said Mark Naud, who's heading up the effort. "There's ... nothing like that in the state of Vermont or in Burlington, certainly."
Tags: Eric Farrell , Vermont Works , Mark Naud , Robert Zulkowski , Vermont Innovation Commons , Image , Web Only
Thursday, June 14, 2018
Burlington Fire Department Deputy Chief Robert Plante said a construction crew working on the street struck a natural gas main outside the apartment building, allowing pressurized gas to escape. The fire department received a call at 11:34 a.m. and quickly responded to the scene.
The smell of gas lingered over neighboring blocks.
Firefighters used hoses to dissipate the gas vapor, but the surge in water tripped the Wharf Lane apartment fire alarm and caused the sprinkler system to activate. Residents were subsequently evacuated but allowed to return around noon when firefighters declared the scene safe.
Tags: Vermont Gas , Burlington Fire Department , Image , Web Only