Parks, Arts, and Culture Committee — Burlington, VT
Date: 2025-06-26
Time: 16:30

City Council - Parks, Arts and Culture Committee

 Thursday, June 26, 2025, 4:30 PM, 645 Pine St., Front Conference Room

MEETING TO BE HELD IN PERSON AT 645 PINE ST FRONT CONFERENCE ROOM AND VIA ZOOM
When: Jan 24, 2024 05:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada)

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1. Call to Order
 Subject 1.1. Call to Order
 Meeting June 26, 2025 - Parks, Arts and Culture Committee Meeting - Thursday, June 26, 2025,
 4:30 PM, 645 Pine St., Front Conference Room
 Category 1. Call to Order
 Department


 Type

2. Approve Agenda & Minutes
 2.1. Motion to amend/adopt agenda
 2.2. Motion to adopt previous meeting's minutes

3. Public Forum
 Subject 3.1. PUBLIC FORUM - Verbal Comments
 Meeting June 26, 2025 - Parks, Arts and Culture Committee Meeting - Thursday, June 26, 2025,
 4:30 PM, 645 Pine St., Front Conference Room
 Category 3. Public Forum
 Department


 Type

4. Agenda


 Page 1 of 4
  Subject 4.1. Open Space Plan Preview - Scott Gustin
  Meeting June 26, 2025 - Parks, Arts and Culture Committee Meeting - Thursday, June 26, 2025,
 4:30 PM, 645 Pine St., Front Conference Room


  Category 4. Agenda

  Department Parks, Recreation, & Waterfront


  Type

  Recommended Action

  Subject 4.2. BPRW Ordinance Update (Appendix D Sections 2 and 5) - Cindi Wight
  Meeting June 26, 2025 - Parks, Arts and Culture Committee Meeting - Thursday, June 26, 2025,
 4:30 PM, 645 Pine St., Front Conference Room


  Category 4. Agenda

  Department Parks, Recreation, & Waterfront


  Type

  Recommended Action

5. Adjournment
  Subject 5.1. Motion to adjourn
  Meeting June 26, 2025 - Parks, Arts and Culture Committee Meeting - Thursday, June 26, 2025,
 4:30 PM, 645 Pine St., Front Conference Room


  Category 5. Adjournment

  Department Council and Board


  Type

  Recommended Action

6. Informational and Non-Discrimination Statements

 The City of Burlington will not tolerate unlawful harassment or discrimination on the basis of political or religious
 affiliation, race, color, national origin, place of birth, ancestry, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity,
 marital status, veteran status, disability, HIV positive status, crime victim status or genetic information. The City
 is also committed to providing proper access to services, facilities and employment opportunities. The programs
 and services of the City of Burlington are accessible to people with disabilities. Individuals who require special
 arrangements, auxiliary aid, service for effective communication, or a modification of policies or procedures to
 participate in a program, service, or activity of the City of Burlington, should contact the office of the Title II
 Burlington ADA Coordinator at 802-865-7000 as soon as possible but no later than 48 hours before the scheduled
 event.




 Page 2 of 4
 Rebecca Roman, Chair
Burlington Conservation Board Caryn Connolly, Vice Chair
645 Pine Street Zoe Richards
Burlington, VT 05401 Don Meals
http://www.burlingtonvt.gov/dpi Ryan Crehan
Telephone: (802) 865-7188 Kyle Tansley
 Leslie Spencer
 Ethan Ely
 Elizabeth Cunningham, Student




TO: Parks, Arts, & Culture Committee
FROM: Scott Gustin
DATE: June 26, 2025
RE: Open Space Plan Preview

The city’s Open Space Protection Plan, originally adopted in 2000, is undergoing a
comprehensive rewrite. The City Council and Board of Finance approved expenditure of
monies in support of this effort in June 2024. The rewrite is a collaborative effort including the
city’s Departments of Parks, Recreation, & Waterfront and Permitting & Inspections, Office of
City Planning, Conservation Board, UVM Spatial Analysis Lab, and Agency Landscape &
Planning.

The new Open Space Plan will include the formerly separate Urban Forest Plan. Rather than
replace wholesale, the new Open Space Plan will build on the foundations set by these prior
plans. The project is being conducted in coordination with current and upcoming citywide
planning efforts. The core vision of the new plan recognizes that healthy ecosystems are a
crucial ally in making sure the city is resilient to the effects of a warming climate and that healthy
ecosystems are part of the city’s climate action portfolio. The plan envisions a nature-filled city
where wildlife thrives in forests, streams, and the lake; where people enjoy nature’s various
offerings and eat what their gardens and farms grow; and where people and ecosystems
flourish together. The new plan will provide policy guidance as Burlington continues to grow
and evolve over the coming decades while retaining the green heart of the city that helps make
Burlington so special.

The effort kicked off in Summer 2024 with needs and values assessments and the start of
spatial analysis and mapping work. Stakeholder meetings took place in Fall 2024, and public
outreach and engagement started in January 2025 and spanned into early March. Spatial
analysis and mapping work concluded in March 2025 as well. This initial work will inform the
foundation and framework for a new Open Space Plan. The city team and consultants are
presently working to draft initial themes and recommendations for a new plan and are in the
midst of a second wave of stakeholder and public outreach and engagement spanning May
through June 2025.

Between April and May 2025, a preview of the emerging plan themes and recommendations
were presented to the Conservation Board, Parks Commission, and the Planning Commission.
We are providing a similar preview to the PAC Committee now. No action is necessary, but
comments are welcome.

Several individual key themes have emerged based on initial public and stakeholder outreach:
  Conserve (Conservation, Open Space Protection, & Healthy Ecosystems)
  Connect (A landscape stitched together by stewardship and sustainable development)
  Experience (Diverse outdoor experiences)
  Cultivate (Sustainable local food systems)




 Page 3 of 4
Additional overarching themes have emerged as well:
  Climate Resilience
  Equity
  Community
  Connectivity
  Identity
  Accessibility

Initial strategies emerging relative to Conserve include:
  Adapt the Conservation Legacy Fund to be more flexible in support of community needs,
 such as conservation infrastructure in addition to its continuing role in open space land
 acquisition and protection.
  Strengthen open space management and restoration efforts.
  Support wildlife movement and ecological health.

Initial strategies emerging relative to Connect include:
  Celebrate and grow nature-based climate solutions.
  Cultivate an ecosystem of stewardship.
  Establish and support ecological design standards for new development.
  Enhance and protect Burlington’s Urban Forest.

Initial strategies emerging relative to Experience include:
  Increase public awareness of Burlington’s open spaces.
  Enhance public access to nature-based experiences.
  Break down barriers to open space access.

Initial strategies emerging relative to Cultivate include:
  Cultivate sustainable and resilient agricultural practices.
  Expand the community garden network.
  Support cultivation of alternative food sources such as permaculture.

During the second wave of stakeholder and public outreach and engagement, these initial
themes and strategies will be presented and will be further refined and revised into a
comprehensive draft plan. By mid to late summer, the new pan will be largely fleshed out and
will make its way through the local legislative process for eventual adoption in September.




 2


 Page 4 of 4

CITY OF BURLINGTON Councilor Carter Neubieser, Chair, Ward 1
PARKS, ARTS & CULTURE COMMITTEE Councilor Joe Kane, Ward 3
 Councilor Allie Schachter, East District

 Staff: Holli Bushnell, Office Assistant
 Lakeview Cemetery
 hbushnell@burlingtonvt.gov
Minutes
Parks, Arts & Culture Committee Meeting
Thursday, June 26, 2025, 4:30pm
MEETING CONDUCTED IN PERSON AT 645 PINE ST, FRONT CONFERENCE ROOM, AND VIA ZOOM

Attendance:
Committee Members: Councilor Allie Schachter, Councilor Joe Kane (Chair Carter Neubieser not present)

City Staff: Scott Gustin – P&Z, Zoe Richards – Conservation team, Cindi Wight – BPRW, Holli Bushnell –
BPRW

Meeting called to order at 4:33 pm by Allie Schachter

Approval of Agenda
Joe Kane moved to approve the agenda, Schachter seconded, and all were in favor.

Approval of Draft Minutes from 5/22/2025
Kane moved to approve the minutes, Schachter seconded, all were in favor

Public Forum
Public forum was opened at 4:34pm. As no one present wished to speak public forum was closed at
4:34pm.

Open Space Plan Preview –
Scott Gustin informed the commission that conservation team member Zoe Richards may be joining the
meeting as well, but could get things started. Gustin has been working on this project for about a year
and is hoping that this meeting helps get the plan on the council’s radar. He informed the council at the
start of the process and now, as they are coming to the end of the community outreach phase, they are
looking to get comments from PACC before it goes back to the City Council.

So far they have done a needs and values assessment to update the 2001 plan, reviewed prior related
city plans, and worked with the UVM spatial analysis lab on a tree canopy assessment (this is something
they city tries to do every 5-10 years). They have held public outreach and stakeholder meetings,
working with multiple groups and trying to cast a wide net. The idea was to source community desires
and needs and try to incorporate them into the plan. Now they are looking at visions, themes, and
updated goals. They are wrapping up second round of public outreach and drafting recommendations
and strategies.

In terms of the Urban Tree Canopy Analysis – 40% of city (2600 acres) has canopy. There has been a 4%
relative canopy loss with some areas of gain in addition to losses. The net loss is 4% distributed
throughout the city. Gustin provided a map indicating that the most removal has been taking place
where development is happening (like Cambrian Rise), and the most growth has been in the Intervale.
CITY OF BURLINGTON Councilor Carter Neubieser, Chair, Ward 1
PARKS, ARTS & CULTURE COMMITTEE Councilor Joe Kane, Ward 3
 Councilor Allie Schachter, East District

 Staff: Holli Bushnell, Office Assistant
 Lakeview Cemetery
 hbushnell@burlingtonvt.gov
Four themes emerged from the first wave of community outreach – conservation, sustainable food
systems, connecting landscape together through sustainable development and stewardship, and
outdoor experiences (public access to green spaces).

In terms of conservation. The legacy fund has been in existence since the early 2000s. The team has
worked to adapt the fund to be flexible to changing needs. The City Council added an addendum to
support nature based climate solutions, for example. Additional goals include sustained support for
conservation within community. For example, replacing the wetlands boardwalk at the Ethan Allen
homestead, expanding restoration and management projects citywide, supporting wildlife movement
and ecological health, and collaborating for open space acquisitions.

In terms of connecting landscape together through sustainable development and stewardship, they plan
to improve nature based climate solutions throughout city, essentially stitching the landscape together.
They are encouraging new development to incorporate green design standards. And they’re working to
enhance and protect Burlington’s urban forests. The old tree ordinance needs to be updated as part of
this work.

They are working on improving public access to open spaces as well as trying to increase awareness
about open spaces. Gustin provided a map that shows proximity and access to nature for populations
throughout Burlington.

And finally, they are working to more increase network, expand access, support cultivation of alternative
food sources in the realm of community gardens. Gustin notes that there is much higher demand than
there is supply for community gardens.

For their next steps Gustin reports that they are hoping to have draft next month before presenting to
public and council again. There is a survey on website that is available through next week.

Kane had no questions. Schachter was very excited for the new plan. She felt that one of the things
that makes Burlington special is that we have the amenities of a city with close proximity to nature. She
asked where the open space plan fits in terms of the city’s housing goals for the next couple of decades
and wondered how we square the need for more housing with the desire to preserve open space.

Gustin explained that they have been working together with the housing folks. Green design standards
need to continue to be figured out so that new developments can have diverse environments. The goal
is to enhance the connectivity of the green threads throughout Burlington neighborhoods.

Zoe Richards shared that they have been working on the plan with several basic ideas in mind - what
does it mean to keep all these areas functional, how do we continue to grow trees without planting new
ones while development grows, how can we keep trees healthy and what do they need, and what is the
capacity of the city to become more livable through good ecological design. If the city puts a housing
development in a certain area, they are looking at what that development needs to be like outside so
that our environment continues to be naturally interconnected.
CITY OF BURLINGTON Councilor Carter Neubieser, Chair, Ward 1
PARKS, ARTS & CULTURE COMMITTEE Councilor Joe Kane, Ward 3
 Councilor Allie Schachter, East District

 Staff: Holli Bushnell, Office Assistant
 Lakeview Cemetery
 hbushnell@burlingtonvt.gov
Schachter asked if they had identified things the city has we done well and what the big risks are going
forward. Gustin explained that BTV has done a lot of things well. The BTV conservation board
introduced the standard that low mow zones must be added to redevelopment. They have conserved
10 properties through legacy fund. Richard’s explained that it is a good time to update the plan after
25 years because the city is in a really different place now. They are looking at what they haven’t
invested in. For example, they are looking at how they can make sure that the Burlington streetscape
investment goes beyond the minimum. We have the pieces in place to be a sustainable city, we just
have to figure out how to sustain them. Obtaining funding is not as easy as it was a year ago. That said,
nature based climate solutions are the most effective, impactful, and manageable; they just have to be
planned for. Nobody plans for canopy loss or wants it, but it happens. The city just needs to plan
carefully to avoid it. The original open space plan had great standards for protecting our natural spaces,
but now we need to go a step further. They are looking at what’s happening other places as well to
develop a policy for saving the “most important” trees. Ultimately, they need to know what the goals
are before making a plan, and spatial analysis will help with that.

Schachter asked if they will need investment from the city to deliver on plan or if it is this already
funded. Gustin confirmed that plan is paid for. In terms of funding, making revisions to legacy fund is
one of the key priorities of their future plans.

Schachter thanked Gustin and Richards for the update and shared that she’s looking forward to next
steps.

Ordinance Changes, Appendix D Sections 2 and 5 – Cindi Wight reminded the committee that the Parks
Commission has been working on updating Appendix D – the rules and regulations of city parks. So far
they have gone through sections 1 and 4 and has sent those changes to the City Council. Now they have
been working on 2 and 5. Section 3 is about harbor and is more complicated so they won’t be taking on
that section until winter, and Section 6 is when our courts close which there is no need to change as the
standards are still valid.

A lot of what they’ve done in Section 2 is just clarifying language, but they are also updating to reflect
new habits/trends in boating and behavior expectations. Some spelling mistakes have been corrected.
They also clarified the difference between transient and seasonal boating regulations. They included a
new requirement for informing harbor team when boats will be gone for more than 48 hours so the
team can resell slip during that time. They also have updated insurance requirements and other similar
items.

Section 5 concerns park closures. Overall they have updated process for parking, clarified North Beach
access in off season, and updated some language. Examples include updating the name of South Park to
Callahan Park and adding Shmanska Park to the list of possible closures. They are trying to standardize
when parking lots close (you can be at Leddy at 2am, you just can’t bring your car). They have also
clarified when North Beach is open, and improved dusk to dawn language. North Beach and Perkins no
longer have booths, so stopping information is no longer needed. Only City Hall Park has closed hours,
closed from midnight until 6am.
CITY OF BURLINGTON Councilor Carter Neubieser, Chair, Ward 1
PARKS, ARTS & CULTURE COMMITTEE Councilor Joe Kane, Ward 3
 Councilor Allie Schachter, East District

 Staff: Holli Bushnell, Office Assistant
 Lakeview Cemetery
 hbushnell@burlingtonvt.gov
Schachter asked if the City Hall Park closure is enforced. Holli Bushnell shared that it doesn’t seem to be
the case as she lives only a block away from the park. Schachter asked who should handle enforcement.
Wight explained that it is under BPD’s purview…and randomly the City Arborist as well. There were no
significant changes to section 5.

Schachter asked what was thinking in only closing City Hall Park. Wight was unable to provide an
answer, explained that it’s unclear if there was ever an ordinance closing all parks. A lot of communities
decide to close their parks.

Kane had no questions.

Schachter asked if the closure policy for City Hall Park should that be changed. Wight was unsure but
felt it might be good to have a clear policy if they decide to ultimately enforce. Schachter asked if the
closure constituted an equity issue and Wight suggest that the policy chief could provide an answer.

Schachter moved to approve the recommended changes and include on the 7/14 consent agenda. Kane
seconded, all were in favor.

Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned at 5:17pm. The next meeting will be held on a date to be determined.