ward ii voice - vol 1, no 7 - august 1990

8/12/2019 Ward II Voice - Vol 1, No 7 - August 1990

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Neighborhood Assembly BusinessReso lu t ions :

The following resolutions were voted on at the July 18 Assembly meeting:Neighborhood Commercial Zoning"Be it resolved that the Ward n Neighborhood Assemblysupports changing the zoning of the area boardered by Archibald Sl, Bright Sl, North Winooski Ave. and Intervale Ave.from General Commercial to Neighborhood Commercial."Failed: 3 for, 7 against, 1 abstention.Participation in Zoning Changes"Be it resolved that the Ward n Neighborhood Assemblyurges the City Council to assure Assembly members involvement in zoning change decision making."Passed unanimously.

The Assembly also agreed that it would discuss a third proposal, also included in this newsletter, at the next Assemblymeeting.(See pages 4-5 for a desription of General Commercial andNeighborhood Commercid zonings.)Family Recreation Center"Be it resolved that the Ward n Neighborhood Assemblysupports the concept of a family recreation center, and suppcHtspursuing a waterfront site ov the Arms Grant site. Further, beit resolved, that the City look into using the Moran GeneratingPlant as a possible location. The Assembly expresses conc^over sight specificty, design and ecology and would like to review a more detailed report of the Moran sight"Funding for City-wideNPA mailing:

"Be it resolved that the Ward n Neighborhhod Assembly allocates left over administrative monies from the past year, notto exceed $150 toward the production and distribution of anNPA brochure to be produced by the CEDO office and mailedout in electric bills."

By-law ChangesProposedThe following are two sets of changes proposed respectivelyby Eugoie Resnick and Ted Wimpey.The entire text of the by-laws are printed on page four.S e l l :I . N ame:

Officially change our name from Ward n NeighborhoodPlanning Assembly to Ward IT Neighborhood Assembly,n. Statement of Purpose:

Eliminate current statement of purpose and replace it with:"The Ward n Neighborhood Assembly is an autonomousfoium of freely associated Ward 11 residents. The Assemblyshall discuss and act as it sees flt on issues facing the City, theWard and the Assembly. The Assembly shall choose its manner of relationship and cooperation with other NeighborhoodA s s e m b l i e s . "m. Membership:Eliminate current wording and replace with:

"Participation in the deliberations of this assembly will beopen to all. Voting privileges will be extended to all residentsof Ward n."rV: Agenda:Eliminate the entire section under Agenda and replace itw i t h :"The Coordianting Committee shall compile a proposedagenda. The Assembly shall have the opportunity to make additions to or deletions from the proposed agenda at the beginning of each meeting."V. General Considerations, section 3 (voting):

Eliminate the current wording and replace with: "All decisions (other than amendments to the by-laws) will be madeby a simple majority vote."Set 2:P o s i t i o n s :

Presently the by-laws call for members of the SteeringCommittee (also referred to as the "Coordinating Committee")to fill the positions of "liaison," "secretary," and"moderator"for 6,4 and 2 months, respectively. The present by-laws donot say anything about the number of people on the steeringcommittee.The proposed changes do the following: 1) Set a one yearterm for all members of the steering committee; 2) regulate thesize of the steering committee; 3) give die liaison position re-sposibility for calling steering committee meetings; and 4)eliminate the positions of secretary and moderator and makethe steering committee responsible for ensuring that the meeting moderator is chosen and minutes are taken.The proposed changes would read:" A coordinating committee will be elected by a simple majority to fill one (1) year terms. The coordinating committeewill consist of no less that three (3) and no more than five (5)people. One member of the steering committee will serve as liaison (with the City) and will be responsible for calling steering committee meetings."The steering committeee will be responsible for ensuringthere is a moderator for eaceh NPA meeting. The moderatormay be a member of the steering committee or any other member of the assembly."The Steering Committee will be responsible for ensuringthat accurate minutes of each assembly are taken. Minutes willinclude accounts of all votes taken, and will be made availablefor public inspection."

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Ward II NeighborhoodAssembly By-lawsstatement of Purpose:We the residents of Ward 2 recognize that the NeighborhoodPlanning Assemblies were established as a means to enable citizensto advise on and participate in the variety of decisions that face CityGovernment The enabling resolution, passed by the City Councon September 20, 1982, states "(the) Council and various CityConunissions could be much assisted if the views of the generalpublic with respect to the needs of the City could be communicatedto it in a regular and orderly fashion;...". It goes on to state "manypositive benefits would result from the creation of neighborhood assemblies at which citizens could consider the issues facing CityGovernment and make recommendations for the consideration ofa{^inted and elected ofRcials charged with the responsibility ofimplementing City policies;...".Scope:The areas of concrni that may be addressed by this Assemblyshall include, but not be limited to, community development, housing, City budget. School Department and School Departmentbudget, zoning and land use, social and recreational facilities andservices, traf^c and parking, streets and sidewalks, energy, police and fire safety, social services delivery, and other areas thateffect this Ward and the City at large as appropriate.

Being mindfiil of the responsibilities that accompany the use ofpublic funds and dedicated to the goal of maximum citizen participation in the deliberations of this Assembly, we the citizens ofward 2 hereby adopt the following By-Laws:Membership:Participation in the deliberations of this Assembly will beopen to all residents of Ward 2. Voting privileges will be extended to any person whose name appears on Burlington's Ward 2voter checklist. Any resident who wishes to participate in the operation of this Assonbly and whose name does not appear on BurMg-ton's Ward 2 voter checklist is encouraged to register to vote.Meetings:Regular meetings of this Assembly will be held on the fourthWednesday of every month at 7:30 pjn. in the H. O. WheelerSchool or in an alternate advertised location. Special meetings maybe called by amajcvity vote of the participants at Regular meetings or by a petition of not less than 25 registered voters of Ward 2presented to a member of the coordinating committee.Positions:This Assembly will elect by simple majority a CoordinatingCommittee who will fill the following positions for the term indicated ;

L i a i s o n - 6 m o n t h sSec r e ta r y - 4 mon thsM o d e r a t o r - 2 m o n t h sElected City officials, department heads and commisioners are ineligible for positions on the Coordinating Committee.The Moderator will conduct the meeting in an orderly fashionin keeping with the apjvoved agenda. The Secretary will keepaccurate minutes of this Assembly's meetings and will count andrecord all votes taken. Li addition, the Secretary will make ar

rangements to have copies of each meeting's minutes available forpublic inspection.The Liaison will have the following responsibilities:1) collect agenda items from the apim)priate City per

sonnel and/or Assembly members;2) propose the agenda for each meeting;3) keep informed to the extent possible on the actions anddecisions of City officials as they affect this ward;4) communicate to the City the recommendations and decisions of this Assembly by letter or personal presentation as appro

priate, including a reasonable degree of information about minorityview points or approaches as appropriate.The Coordinating Committee will meet in advance of thisAsembly meeting. The Committee will be free to call upon Cityofficials and other resource people in its deliberations.A member of the Coordinating Committee will be subject to recallproceedings on the written petition of 15 members of this Assemblywhich specifically states their complaints(s}. This petition will bepresented to the moderator of the next regular Assembly meeting forthe consideration of the membership, which will thereupon decidethe time and place for a recall discussion and vote. It will take a majority vote to effect a recall. Should a member of the CoordinatingCommittee be recalled, a new Coordinator will be elected at the nextAssembly meeting.Agenda:All agenda items will be considered on a "first come, Hrst served"basis or diey will be given immediate attention if the agenda itemwarrents such action in the judgement of the Coordinators. Agendaitems submitted after the Coordinating Committee's meeting may beaddressed subject to provision 1 below.A reasonable period of time will always be provided on the agendaas an open forum to encourage members to freely express their viewsand concerns on the management of the Assembly and on topics ofpublic interest. Specific items will be placed on the Agenda in thefollowing maimer:By a majority vote of the Assembly. (Items referred by this Assembly will automatically be considered at its next meeting unlessotherwise designated in the vote.);

By request of the City Council or Board of Aldermen;By the request of the mayor;By the request of a City Department and or Commission;By request of the School Board;By petition of 15 Assembly members.General Considerations:

1) A minimum of 10 people will comprise a quorum for an "official" meeting.2) No proxy votes will be accepted, however provisions will bemade for letters from members not present to be read.3) Decisions on aj opriadons and major issues must be made bya 2/3 majority. Decisions on other issues will be made by a simple

majority vote, although consenstis should be strived for. If a questionarises concerning the definition of "major" versus "other" issues, thequestion will be resolved by a simple majority vote.

4) All meetings of the Assembly and all decisions and recommendations relating to the Assembly will be made in meetings open toall. All documents, reports, and written correspondence will be available for public inspecdon.

5) Agendas and meetings will be warned at least one week prior toan Assembly meeting. Suitable methods of warning include, but arenot limited to, mailings, public postings, newspaper advertisementsand public service announcements. Responsibility for warning willbe assumed by the Coordinating Committee and the appropriateC.E.D.O. personnel.

6)These by-laws may be amended by a 2/3 majority vote of thosepresent and voting at an Assembly meeting when notice of the proposed change has been included in the advertising for the meeting.


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Zoning OptionsContinued from page 4NeighborhoodCommercial (NC).(A) Purpose: The neighborhood commercial district is designated to provide forlimited commercial uses in neighborhoodresidential areas where the character of theneighborhood merits protection by a suitable residential/commercial mix. For thesereasons, the following regulations shall apply.(B) Permitted uses: No building, structureor land shall hereafter be erected, structurally altered or enlarged except for the following:(1) Residential:a. Single family.b. Duplexes.c. Multi-unit housing at a densitynot greater than twenty-five (25)

units per acre.d. Boardinghouses and roominghouses, up to four (4) persons, provided the owner also occupies &epremises as a primary residence.(2) Community centers; places of assembly lunited to churches, chapelsand synagogues.(3) Existing commercial uses and anyexpansion or reconstruction not to ex-ce twenty-five (25) per cent of existing floor area.(C) Permitted accessory uses: Uses orstructures customarily subordinated to anyof the listed primary uses may be permitted, provided, however, that any stmcturewith a floor area in excess of five hundred(5(W) square feet or a building containingliving space shall not be considered an accessory building.(D) Conditioiial uses:(1) Boardinghouses and roominghous-es serving more than four persons.(2) Home occupations subject to the requirements of Section 27, Home Occupations.(3) Professional occupations.(4) I\iblic and semipublic uses, andmembership clubs.(5) Commercial uses, except places oflive entertainment, hotels and motels,pawnshops, or pool or billiard halls,provided that:a. Such use does not adversely affect the residential character of adjoining neighborhoods; andb. The primary market or servicearea is that of adjoining neighborhoods and that service of any extended area or regional market isancillary to the neighborhood market; andc. The proposed use will not becontrary to any program of neighborhood conservation or revital iza-tion nor will it encourage the de

velopment of "skid row-area."(6) Restaurants except bars and cafes,

provided that:a. No more than two (2) such usesshall be located within one thousand (1,000) feet of each other.(Ord. of 6-13-83; Ord. of 11-9-87)N o r t h W i n o o s k iC o m m e r c i a l D i s t r i c tP e r m i t t e d U s e s * :

Bake r i es .B a n k s .Building supply and material sales, butexcluding open storage.Community centers and places of assembly limited to churches, chapels and synagogues.Dairy bars.Day care centers, nursery schools andkindergartens provided that at leastone hundred (100) square feet ofoutdoor play area is provided foreach child; provided further, thatsuch aggregate play area shall beenclosed by a sturdy fence at leastfour (4) feet in hei t.Dry Cleaning and laundering establishm e n t s .Electrical appliances and equipment,sales and repairs, but excludingopen storage.Funeral homes, mortuaries.

General officesGeneral retail stores and service establishments, provided that the principal activity is the offering of goodsand services within the building.Home occupations (subject to performance standards).Launderettes and laundromats.Medica l o ffices.Pharmacies.Physical culture establishments.Plumbing shops, but excludmg openstorage.Produce stands and markets.Professional offices.Residential uses, except for boardinghouses and rooming houses servingmore than four (4) persons.Restaurants.Salesrooms for automobiles, bicycles,boats, fami implements and similarequipment, provided all display isi ndoo rs .Supermarkets.C ond i t i ona l uses :Animal hospitals or vetinary clinics,but excluding open kennels on thepremises.Automobile washing establishments.Boardinghouses and roominghousesserving more than four (4) persons.Cold storage and freezer lowers.Commercial photography establish

m e n t s .Convenience stores.C rema to r i es .Entertainment establishments (pool

halls, arcades, etc.).Establishments manufacturing prepared foods and miscellaneousfood products.

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Fabricating shops such as cabinet, upholstery and sheet metal shops.Fast-food restaurants, excluding drive-in faci l i t ies.Gasoline service stations, garages andrepair shops provided that;(a) repairs shall be limited to minorrepairs and adjustments unless conducted in a building;(b) that there shall be no storage ofmotor vehicles, appliances, andequipment on the premises otherthan those in process of repair orawaiting delivery or in an enclosedstructure or screened from publicways and abutting preperties.Hotels, motels and lodging housesIce cream manufacturing.Machine shops.Medical or dental laboritories.Milk distribution and bottling facilit i es .Movie theatres and performing artsc e n t e r s .Printing, publishmg and copying establ i shmen ts .Public and semipublic uses, and membership clubs.Public works and public utility facilities such as distribution lines,transformer stations, transmissionlines and towers, water tanks andtowers, pumping stations, telephone exchanges, and service andstorage yards.Research laboritories.Resource recycling centers.Salesrooms for automobiles, bicycles,boats, farm implements, and similar equipment with exterior stor-age.

Sign painting and fabricating shops.Trucking terminals, transfer stations,bus terminals, passenger depots.Warehouse establishments, except forthe storage of uncured hides, explosives, oil and gas products.Wholesale establishments.Height Limits: 35'Coverage:60%; may be increased subject to DesignR e v i e w .S e t b a c k s :Rront Yard: 15' or average setback of abutting buildingsSide Yard: 10% of lot width of 5' minimum/10' maximumRear Yard: 25% of lot depth or 5* mini-mum/lO'maximum.Density: 25 dwelling units/acre*Note: Any nonresidential use listed underPermitted Uses will require Zoning BoardApproval as a conditional use if 15,500 sq.ft. or larger.


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M a i n S t r e e tT a s k F o r c e

continued from page 1plan and an opportunity for quest i o n s .The presentations, which have consumed most o f the Task Force 'smeeting time, were deemed necessary by Public Works Departmentofficials to familiarize Task Forcemembers with all the basics of theproblem. Same Old PlanThe plan has undergone no seriouschanges since it was unveiled at theDecember 1989 Ward II Assemblymeeting and sharply criticized at theJanuary meeting. It still calls forwidening the top of Main Street by alane; the construction of islands at thesouth end of University Place and atthe bend in Main Street; and thebuilding of an above (or below)ground shuttle passage across MainStreet at University Heights. Thereare numerous details and particularsin the "Improvement Project," butthese are the proposed big alterations.(A detailed presentation will appearin the September Ward II Voice.)

There is no evidence that the Public Works Department has acceptedany of the criticism leveled at theplan by citizens all over the city.Certainly, not a single concern hasbeen incorporated into the plan beingconsidered by the Task Force, norhas the citizens' perspective been pres e n t e d .Criticism of the PlanCitizens at the Ward II Assemblyand throughout the city have criticized the plan on many levels.Cri t ic isms inc lude:I. Conceptual Failure. The plan,

critics assert, embraces the worst conventions of modem transportation design. Confronted with a traffic bot-tieneck, they simply propose to widenthe moutii a littie, and just move theproblem down the block. Ward ITask Force representative JaredWood compared the city's solution toa variation of the "Maginot Line," theFrench system of military defensesthat was completely ineffectiveagainst Gemian invasion in 1914. Itis a "seven mi l l ion dol lar block of cement that will accomplish nothing,"he said.2. Domination of the Car. The planhas been criticized on the groundsthat it furthers the domination of thecity and of transportation planningby the omnivorous appetite of the automobile. Critics argue that automobile traffic in Burlington is alreadyeroding the living conditions inneighborhoods and that safe, reliableand ecologically sound alternativesare being ignor .Additionally, they argue that at thetop of the agenda should be a long-tenn mass transportation solutioncoupled with a program for bikes andpedestrians. All of these argumentswere voiced at the January Ward IIAssembly meeting, where a stronglyworded resolution called for a masstransportation alternative to a widened Ma i n S t ree t .The tendency to base transportationsolutions on the requirements of automobile traffic was captured in ac o m m e n t i n t r a f fi c c o n s u l t a n t T o mAdler's presentation. He defined congestion as "the delay caused to theuser." In other words, congestion isnot the disruption caused to a community, the hazard to children, aggravation of the greenhouse effect, orrunoff polluting the land and water.It is the inconvenience caused to the

idling motorist3. Burlington Alone: The AtlasComplex. Some have faulted the designers of the present plan for failingto make it part of a regional solution.Like the hero from Greek mythology,they feel they must bear tiie collectiveburden alone. However, the shortsightedness of a local solution to a regional problem has been indicated byvarious critics who instead encouragethe city to work cooperatively withneighboring communities. The humbling experiment, they argue, mayrender a long-term solution possible.Mission of the Task ForceSo far the Task Force has not operated in a way that allows for fundamental criticism of the plan. Neitherhas a decision making process beenset up. And time for meaningful deliberation has been postponed until after the presentations have been admini s t e r e d .

Although Mayor Qavelle indicatedin his remarics to the Task Force thatevery aspect of the project is open toscrutiny, revision and rejection, thatcaveat may remain a dead letter unlespeople become seriously engaged inthe debate. For some powerful interests and personages both public andprivate are arrayed behind the plan:the downtown merchants as a bloc(DBDA), the State Agency of Transportation,the Federal Highway Administration, the director of PublicWorks (George Crombie), UVM, theMayor, the CEDO director (MichaelMonte), and so on.The responsibility remains for TaskForce members- and indeed all citi-zens -who see things diffcntly fromPublic Works, to imagine alternativesMichael is the Ward II representative to the Main Street Task Force.The Ward II Assembly requested written reports in the Voice.

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In Defense of the Neighborhood Assembliesa commentaryby Michael Sheridan

As voluntary, community-based associations, theNeighborhood Assemblies have the potential of becoming models of direct democracy and good government. Today they are neither, with the unhappyresult that the governing of the City-everybody'sbusiness- has become nobody's business but a fewelected and many non-elected officials.It is an ironic commentary on the nature of Burlington politics that some of those officials were atone time connected to neighborhood or grassroots organizations, and that they soon shed all pretense ofdemocracy when it conflicted with their search for astable career, or when the grassroots organization didnot hold them accountable. In either case, the resultwas tragic for the political life of the city. While officials "administer" the city from above using plainlymanagerial standards of efficiency, political activityin the neighborhoods steadily declines.All of which helps to explain the political slumberthat has quietly overtaken the Assemblies and neighborhoods of our city.

Though many officials and bureaucrats owe theirpositions to surges in neighborhood vitality, that isnot enough to hold them solely to blame. In the ab-sense of democratic accountability from the neighborhoods, their drift into the bureaucracy and mediocrebusiness-as-usual is a sure thing.The question is how to revive the assemblies as thedemocratic hope of the city.I beheve that we have as a citizenry to make the

important step from being mere "voters" to being fiillcitizens, and that can only be done by participatingactively in the political institution that represents ourimmediate community, namely the NeighborhoodAssembly. When we have be n to do that in largenumbers, and begun to experiment with the assembly's many possibilities as a distinct political form,we will be able to ignore the officials by initiatingpolicies and actions from below.If you follow this line of reasoning about the assemblies to its logical conclusion, you'll undoubtedlyrealize that it involves a reversal of the way thingsare presentiy done in the city. Policies will be generated democratically and coherentiy from below, notfrom the drawing tables of city planners and professionals where they have the shroud of mystery. Pre-development agreements between city officials andbig money interests will become more difficult as theassemblies scrutinize Council activities and resist unpopular decisions. In short. City Hall will have toreckon with the assemblies' articulated positions onall major questions facing the city. The assemblieswill "shadow" city govemment and exert moral press u r e .

The Neighborhood Assemblies also represent thebest forum for the people of Burlington to fight forsocial justice and ecological sustainability. The satisfaction of our basic requirements of affordablehousing, decent wages, renewable energy, an unpolluted environment, and so on, must no longer be leftup to the business interests and politicians tiiat havealways called the shots. Because their solutions tothose problems too often reflect the necessities of theso-called market "realities" and not the community,they tend to serve profits, not people. The situation isthe root source of much of Burlington's ecologicaland social breakdown.

Only the empowered Neighborhood Assemblieswill have the political legitimacy to intervene directlyin and against the market to preserve the integrity ofthe community, particularly its vulnerable citizens.Concretely, this might take the form of opposition toundesirable growth, political and material support forcooperative stores, or even campaigns targeting developers and business owners who promote practicesdamaging to the community.The strategies are really numerous and the possibilities limitless.Of course, the Neighborhood Assemblies are nowonly a dim approximation of the empowered modelI've tried perhaps unsuccessfully to describe. ButI do not believe that the assemblies are for that reasonany less worth my while. Indeed, I know that anyexperiment in democracy takes time and a tremendous amount of patience and work.But perhaps the best defense of the NeighborhoodAssemblies today is to say that they are a forum forthe deeply human, face-to-face contact that is absentfrom most of our lives. In a world in which we votealone, accept rent increases alone, suffer the effectsof air pollution alone, and face our employer alone,the assembly is a place for sociability and collectivea c t i o n .I defend the Neighborhood Assembly not for whatit is but for what it can become.

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ward ii voice - vol 1, no 7 - august 1990

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