More than 70 people filled City Hall for a public forum on the shuttered building, which organizers hope to see renovated. Many in attendance waxed nostalgic on concerts and events at the city’s old community center.
Neighborhood planning assemblies from across Burlington organized the event after city officials expressed hesitance to move forward with a public dialogue, said Jim Holway, a New North End resident and chair of the organizing committee. “The community is saying we want to have a conversation,” he said.
That message came loud and clear from attendees who want to keep Memorial publicly owned. “We can make Memorial Auditorium really special and useful, a gift to our next generation, and I’d like to see that happen,” said James Lockridge, who has launched a campaign to restore the 242 Main teen center that once called the building home.
The Main Street building also once housed the Generator makerspace, Burlington City Arts and the winter farmers market. The city closed the space late last year because of structural deficiencies.
At the end of Tuesday’s two-hour meeting, Genese Grill, a former member of the Coalition for a Livable City, introduced two measures meant as next steps. One would advise the city council and the mayor to “maintain Memorial Auditorium into perpetuity as a publicly owned community common” and to “empower an NPA-led decision-making process.” After some discussion, the group easily passed both measures.
In anticipation of Tuesday’s meeting, Mayor Miro Weinberger vowed during a city council meeting Monday to put discussion about the building’s future “on the front burner.” The Community and Economic Development Office has been swamped with other development projects, but would start a bidding process within the coming months, he said.
“As part of that process, the city will seriously explore a proposal that continues the historic use of the building as a publicly owned and operated assembly space,” Weinberger said in statement issued Monday.
The mayor did not attend Tuesday’s forum.
Tom Visser, director of the University of Vermont’s Historic Preservation Program, and Alan Abair, Memorial Auditorium’s former property manager, launched the event with presentations on the history of the building, which has been plagued with maintenance concerns since the 1980s.
Two community groups initially proposed the forum, which was moderated by New North End resident Chris Trombly. Save Memorial Auditorium, a group that includes some members from the Coalition for a Livable City, had been advocating to preserve the historic building. Local music promoter and downtown resident Lockridge, meanwhile, had launched a petition and website called Save 242 Main to encourage the restoration of the teen center.*
Resident Carina Driscoll* recalled concerts she had attended as a kid, as well as other events at the historic building. “I’m concerned we don’t have a belief in what we can do ourselves,” she said as she urged out-of-the-box thinking. “We’re lacking imagination as a community.”
Other speakers suggested the space be used for cooking classes, a music incubator or even as a workshop where users could build wooden rowboats.
The event marked the first citywide NPA-led event, and Holway hopes for many more. Neighborhood planning assemblies should be, he said, “a space for democracy.”
It didn’t come easily this time around, he said. Event organizers had difficulty getting city support for the event. Even getting a tour of Memorial Auditorium proved difficult, according to Holway. “People really feel like there’s the whole shrinking of the public voice,” he said.
But attendees said they were encouraged by the gathering.
“This is something of a historic meeting,” said Bea Bookchin, noting that citizens can accomplish anything in the city if they “connect with their own power.”
“I hope tonight is the beginning of that,” she said to applause.
*Correction, September 28, 2017: A previous version of this story misidentified where Lockridge lives.
*Correction, October 2, 2017: A previous version of this story contained a misspelling of Driscoll’s first name.
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Bravo to this collaborative group of empowered citizens. They are absolutely right that the public’s voice is systematically being drowned out in Burlington.
“Event organizers had difficulty getting city support for the event.”
I hope this is a strong first step: one that prevents Memorial Auditorium from becoming another 14-story monstrosity of “affordable housing.” All eyes are on you, Miro.
Why dont they gut the building. Find private financing and turn it into a civic center? Purchase adjacent building on Main Street for parking garage. Burlington needs a 5-6000 seat arena.
Thank you Katie for a great account of Tuesday night’s historic event!
Many citizens have grown weary of top-down, consultant-led processes that begin with pre-determined ideas. This event was a shining example of what happens with an authentic public conversation that starts with the community. The energy was positive, the ideas far-reaching and the determination palpable. Bravo to the NPAs for fulfilling the role they were given in the 80s – to share the voice of the people with elected officials. I wish the mayor had been there to listen and support this historic conversation on a beloved landmark. But, thanks to community TV, he can watch the entire event on CCTV!
I truly believe this landmark can be restored to it original glory, and provide a welcome entrance to our city that speaks to our values and perseverance as a community.
Historic event? According to the article 70 people showed up. 70 people in a city with a population of over 40,000 is hardly overwhelming. Further, this is typical Burlington – the “community” feels they are entitled to have a say in what happens with every property. How about just once this “community” be required to put up their own money in order to have a say? How about going the “put up or shut up” route. Most of what you hear from these people is emotional sentimental nonsense that isn’t grounded in reality. Further, if it is such a big deal to preserve this building, why hasn’t this “community” pooled their money and done something about it before it reached its current level of dilapidation? Leave it to the “community” in Burlington (these are the same people who inflicted Bernie Sanders on us after all) to get hysterical over a dilapidated building and yet protest even the slightest bit of new development. Leave it to the Burlington “community” to feel they have the right to dictate what is done with other peoples money. Did Jim Holway, or James Lockridge offer to renovate the building with a substantial investment of their own money? How about Genese Grill? How about Karina Driscoll or Bea Bookchin?
I seem to recall a ballot question several years ago exactly about funding for the auditorium and it was defeated spelling the inevitable end to this building. If my memory isn’t failing me “the community” has already had its say and the outcome was clear. Now that its going to costs millions more I am supposed to jump on board? I don’t think so
The reality is Memorial is too small to draw any significant acts anymore. The area really needs a quality venue that can seat more than the twenty five hundred the current space does that can also support the needed parking. I have longed for a better civic space that will absorb some the run down buildings nearby.
Memorial has served its purpose, lets build something new that we can be proud of, and can accommodate the larger community for years to come.
I remember when there but over the years the building has not really been used for anything useful.Just gut the building and make something useful out of it again
How about a shooting gallery for the poor addicts who can’t help themselves? Seriously folks, I have visions of another Moran Plant fiasco/waste of time dragging on for years with successive RFPs. I’ll go with Roy’s idea: let the building’s saviors use their own money (or fundraise) to take it private and make it what an unprecedented 70 people envision is a good use. I’ll bet the city would sell it really cheap right now.
The reason the event was “historic” was not due to size. It was historic to have all the city ward NPAs agree to sponsoring an “all wards” NPA town meeting style event. I think it may have been the first time this has happened.
The Neighborhood Planning Assembles were created in the 1980s to neighborhood forum for public concerns and wishes and to relay them to elected officials. The fact that all the individual NPA agreed it was important to have a public meeting on Memorial, that it was beautifully executed and that it gave those who came a chance to voice opinions is all good for a democratic city.
There was a vote on funding for Memorial several years back (not sure when). The outcome was that a majority supported funding for needed maintenance of Memorial. Unfortunately it was the kind of vote that required a 2/3rd majority not a simple majority. Perhaps another vote is in order to see where public opinion lands today.
Lastly, one of the commenters was a former employee of the Chamber of Commerce. She revealed that there were organizations and events looking for a downtown venue for large groups – 1000 people or more. This is currently an untapped market in downtown Burlington that Memorial could fulfill along with many other uses. Other options such as the Sheraton or UVM cannot offer the central location.
Most city councilors have supported just about every development project Miro has wanted. Without upgrading significantly the city’s wastewater treatment. How ironic that for all the blathering on about respecting people, our “community”, We The People don’t actually vote on much at the end of the day.