The advisory vote, which passed 6,482 to 5,237 in a preliminary tally, asks the Burlington City Council to request that federal officials cancel the basing decision.
The fighter jets, scheduled to arrive in 2019 and replace the 18 F-16s currently at the airport, have been a source of controversy for years. The Vermont Air National Guard was the first reserve unit in the country scheduled to receive the next-generation fighter jets, despite vocal opposition from environmentalists and local residents concerned about noise.
The item was put on the ballot by Save Our Skies, a group that has led opposition to the F-35 since the city council voted to allow the plan to move forward in 2013. The group secured 3,000 signatures to get the item on the ballot and spent an estimated $15,000 advocating for it.
Critics said that Save Our Skies wrote a misleading ballot item, cloaking their opposition to the F-35s as support for VTANG.
The ballot question asked whether voters “as part of our strong support for the men and women of the Vermont National Guard,” would advise the council to request the cancellation of the F-35 basing and request planes with “low noise level equipment.”
Burlington developer Ernie Pomerleau, who took out ads urging voters to reject the ballot item, said the wording was “bullshit,” designed to mislead people.
It is unclear what, if any, impact the vote will have. Local officials have no formal say in military decisions. All three members of Vermont’s congressional delegation supported the decision to bring the F-35s to the airport.
Military officials have said the F-35 is the only future mission for the guard. Airport improvement projects to accommodate the new aircraft have already begun.
Related Stories
Got something to say?
Send a letter to the editor and we'll publish your feedback in print!
It was very clear that this was not an over whelming vote but a divided vote and a divided community, even with the misleading language. The part that I do appreciate is that this is an advisory ballot item. The federal government doesn’t need permission from the Burlington community to base their planes here. That decision has been made and the planes are on the way. It would be nice if the Air Force could send even one plane for people to see and hear for them selves and know the real story and not some hyped up information. I hope the commander from the Air Guard see this and also knows that the men and women of our Air and Army Guard DO HAVE THE SUPPORT FROM THE COMMUNITY, in spite of what a few think.
A 55% to 44% vote is pretty lopsided, despite what Mr. Miles would have you believe.
If you should ever wonder why the streets are always in such bad shape, or the schools are in constant need of repair and property taxes keep going up and up, if why the wealthy few always have enough but more and more people fall into poverty, or the lake is STILL dying or why we still don’t have universal healthcare, just look up and watch as an F-16 flies overhead, and when the F-35’s start that will be even more of an answer.
Military spending is hollowing out the country as is the ridiculous amount spent on the Police/Surveillance State and the billions wasted on contractors cashing in on the Corporate Gold Rush ever since 9/11. That and the idiotic Bush/Obama and now Trump tax cuts have starved the nation into economic cannibalism.
Our chicken Congressional delegation will back the F-35 as will our Wall Street/Neo-Liberal Real Estate Huckster Burlington mayor, good and obedient company man that he is.
Welcome to the End of the Empire, I hope you enjoy the ride to the bottom as it is getting closer all the time. So enjoy all of this convenience of consumption that you think is your birthright, it will not, and cannot last.
Wave that Flag . .wave it wide and high . . .Summertime done come and gone, my oh my . . .
South Burlington, Winooski and now Burlington, by 55% have rejected the F-35. In this next phase, Progressive, Democrat and Republican politicians have to decide if they honor the will of the people as much as they honor the Pentagon-Pomerleau axis of power and money. The anti F-35 opposition has to decide a strategy and tactics that will actually block the basing. The day Trump’s travel plan was announced, people shutdown major airports around the country. Ben Cohen kicked off the campaign of direct action civil disobedience against the F-35. Occupying everything is the new spirit of the day.
They could put silent glider planes stationed here, and that group of fruitloops would still protest it because it’s tied to the military.
Now what does Burlington do? Maybe get Unilever Ben out on the runway with a few fool hardy souls and block the runways. The BLM org from UVM shut down an intersection at rush hour. Maybe the VYNG will cave under the pressure, but I don’t think so with Leahy, Sanders and Walsh on their side.
Burlington voters who opposed the F-35s are delusional thinking that what they whine about will trump national security concerns.. They can be more effective complaining about the groundhog who is no doubt responsible for a lengthened winter.
BDE, don’t live near the Airport then. I’m sure with all of the passenger jets departing the noise was never there to begin with. Snowflakes……..
We need these planes to protect the country from rogue Canadians trying to sneak in. The only thing that stops a Canadian with a gun is Chuck Norris in an F-35.
Walter,
Excellent.
Wow, Vermont residence are some snowflakes. You’re worried about the sound of the F35 that is only affecting 200 homes. The F16s have been flying there for a while now and no one has complained. Here comes the F35 which is quieter and Cohen decides to complain about it. Yes Cohen, the millionaire who made his fortune by selling ice cream but now turned socialist. He wasn’t complaining when is business made millions because of capitalism. Now he’s complaining about noises that affects about 900 people total in a very low populated area in Vermont. Asking for low noise equipment to be used to defend the northeast skies from threats. I guess we should start using prop planes like in WWII to protect the northeast then. Do these wannabe politicians have nothing better to do? This man is clearly confused. Business owner socialist. HA.