May 2024 - Council Recap
Neighbors -
Here’s a few highlights from the last month about what the council and city are up to. As always please don’t hesitate to reach out with questions, ideas, or concerns.
With Appreciation,
Councilor Neubieser
Budget update:
In the first 45 days of the Mayor’s administration, her team successfully balanced the FY25 budget by identifying cost savings and additional revenue to close a $13+ million gap without laying off city staff and investing in community safety. To avoid major disruptions, certain city positions will remain vacant through FY25. Additionally, fee increases based on a User Fee Study will be implemented to address significant cost gaps.
The administration has committed to addressing Burlington’s health and safety challenges through a collaborative, compassionate, and data-informed approach. They have proposed new strategies in response to direct requests from city departments and the community, continuing successful initiatives, and supplementing areas with additional needs.
Notably, the FY25 budget included strategic investments in community safety totaling approximately $525,000. Of this, $325,000 will come from the General Fund, identified after closing a $13.1 million budget gap. The remaining $200,000 will be sourced from Opioid Settlement funds to finance the CRT program. These expenses are outside the Burlington Police Department (BPD) and Burlington Fire Department (BFD) budgets and include:
An additional $3.5 million in the Police ($2.1M) and Fire ($1.4M) operating budgets from FY24 to FY25.
$344,000 to fund and launch BTV CARES.
Hiring 10 new sworn officers with a commitment to strive to reach the authorized limit of 87 officers, contingent on workforce recruitment realities.
Fully staffing firefighters at the authorized limit.
Allocating $500,000 to supplement city departments with private security services.
Continuing stable funding for the Howard Street Outreach Team, Rape Crisis Center, Steps to End Domestic Violence, and Turning Point Center, despite slight reductions in funding to other area non-profits to help balance the significant budget gap.
The administration has developed a comprehensive community safety strategy, demonstrating a steadfast commitment to ensuring the well-being and security of all Burlington residents.
BUILDING EMISSIONS REDUCTION RESOLUTION
At the May 20th City Council meeting, Councilors Broderick and Bergman proposed a resolution to have the Transportation, Energy, and Utilities Committee (TEUC) update the city ordinance to reduce emissions from buildings, which are the city's second-largest source of greenhouse gasses. Amendments to the resolution instead tasked the TEUC with discussing whether to write and enact a Building Emissions Reductions Ordinance. Despite Progressives’ best efforts, an amended version of the resolution passed with a vote of 5-7.
In 2018, Burlington set a goal of net-zero emissions by 2030. Burlington has only reduced its emissions by 19% since 2018– leaving us to cut emissions by 81% in the next 6 years. We are in the thick of climate chaos. Climate action can’t wait.
Watch a clip from the council meeting here
RAILROAD ENTERPRISE PROJECT UPDATE
As construction of the Champlain Parkway progresses, Councilor Bergman has continued to lead the efforts to collaborate with the Railyard Enterprise to create a connector that would reroute the parkway away from the King/Maple neighborhood. Redirecting traffic is the most effective solution to address the negative social, environmental, and health impacts on one of the most diverse and low-income neighborhoods in the city. The TEUC has released a new study, describing the impacts.
Unfortunately, the connector project has experienced delays due to a lack of initial support. A commitment to the connector project needs to be made by mid-summer to avoid a federal fee of $52 million.
This connector project presents a crucial opportunity to enhance the quality of life for residents and foster a more equitable urban environment in our city.
PUBLIC SAFETY
As we continue working to ensure oversight and accountability become a reality, we will examine the disciplinary authority of the Burlington Police Department, which currently rests solely in the hands of the police chief. Increase the size and diversity of the police commission, making it truly representative of our community. The Charter Change Committee will commence a series of discussions on June 12, focusing on the Police Commission's oversight and accountability of the Burlington Police Department. The objective is to broaden the commission's authority to ensure that the power to discipline police officers is not concentrated in the hands of a single individual.
