Is There Anything to Dislike about Burlington? (South Burlington, Essex Junction: college, wages)

[arel]

There is actually congestion at times in Brattleboro. I've been on Main Street in bumper to bumper traffic. The first time I was shocked. The second time, well, I don't remember what I was thinking.

I have to tell you, though. What I just read about Burlington traffic is sobering. I'm not surprised, though. As Chaz Longue said, "this is par for the course: places with this high quality of living don't stay undiscovered forever."

I suspect Brattleboro is also growing, too, although I have read that the town's population stays at about 12,000, with people moving in and others moving out.

[vter]

Re: the circ. Build the darn thing already. It will help traffic immensely in the Taft Corner area of Williston and the 5 Corners in Essex Junction. It will probably reduce local traffic on I-89 between exits 12 and 16 as well as folks going to Essex or Colchester could take the Circ vs. 89 depending on where in town they are going.
I agree that traffic getting out of Burlington on a weekday in the afternoon on Main St. is a bit of a pain. It's unfortunate that that is really the only direct route to the interstate from downtown. I know folks who go South on Shelburne Rd and get on 189 to avoid that even though its a bit out of the way.
I don't consider the traffic in Burlington bad, but its there. I lived in Boston for 6 years.....want to see some traffic? Yikes!

[BillS]

Most of Burlington's housing is very old and way overpriced. I have read that Burlington has the second oldest housing stock in the nation. Many apartments/homes are very old and in bad shape in many areas. I have a friend who does alot of handyman type work in Burlington on the side and knows many local contractors. He tells me most of Burlington's rental housing has no insulation, 50+ year old windows/doors, very old electrical/plumbing/heating, and just plain are in disrepair. Lead paint is also a very big problem. Burlington has a child lead poisoning rate double the national average. There is peeling lead paint all over the exterior and interior of many houses through out Burlington. The rental market in Burlington is way overpriced considering what you get for your money. Anything near downtown or UVM averages 1200$+/month for a 2 bedroom apartment. A friend of mine spent 3 months looking for a good affordable priced apartment in Burlington. He must have looked at over 30 apartments in many price ranges. Out of the 30 landlords/property managers he met with almost all could not even answer his basic questions. Is the apartment insulated? Is there lead paint in the apartment? How is the hot water heated? Etc... And good luck finding offstreet parking included in most rentals. You more than likely will end up with the fun of parking on the street during snow bans in the winter.

[chaz longue]

Originally Posted by BillS

Most of Burlington's housing is very old and way overpriced. I have read that Burlington has the second oldest housing stock in the nation. Many apartments/homes are very old and in bad shape in many areas. I have a friend who does alot of handyman type work in Burlington on the side and knows many local contractors. He tells me most of Burlington's rental housing has no insulation, 50+ year old windows/doors, very old electrical/plumbing/heating, and just plain are in disrepair. Lead paint is also a very big problem. Burlington has a child lead poisoning rate double the national average. There is peeling lead paint all over the exterior and interior of many houses through out Burlington. The rental market in Burlington is way overpriced considering what you get for your money. Anything near downtown or UVM averages 1200$+/month for a 2 bedroom apartment. A friend of mine spent 3 months looking for a good affordable priced apartment in Burlington. He must have looked at over 30 apartments in many price ranges. Out of the 30 landlords/property managers he met with almost all could not even answer his basic questions. Is the apartment insulated? Is there lead paint in the apartment? How is the hot water heated? Etc... And good luck finding offstreet parking included in most rentals. You more than likely will end up with the fun of parking on the street during snow bans in the winter.

I'm empathetic! I've been a renter here in Burlington. With a dog.
And it's true - Burlington's housing stock is, typically, old.

The vacancy rate for rental housing in Burlington was for decades roughly one half of one percent. Recently though, It's gotten a bit less difficult for renters because a number of new housing units have been built in the last few years specifically for rent. But in a city with such a large number of out-of-state students, (either 4 or 5 colleges/universities depending on how you count) landlords are just probably going to be able to command fairly high prices... People who can manage it often decide to buy rather than rent. But it's true - we could use a lot more afforable rental housing.

Keep in mind that landlords are required by law to post lead documents AT rental units for inspection - but many don't.

Also, maddening as it is, I'm guessing few property managers know with certainty what sort of insulation an apartment has. When I assist buyer clients, we simply use utility bill figures ...and buyers reserve the right to withdraw the offer if the bills suggest there's a problem the buyer hasn't bargained for. But with rentals this can be impractical, frustrating and costly.

This is one of the reasons I find it so satisfying to work for first-time home buyers - It's a great feeling helping people to stop paying rent!

[MRVphotog]

He tells me most of Burlington's rental housing has no insulation

I don't think so

[harry chickpea]

Going back a few posts, I caught this:

I'd say that iwas a bit of an exaggeration that Burlington would be that much warmer than the rest of the state. Burlington is perhaps a few degrees warmer than say, Stowe, because the latter is in the Green Mountains, but not anything to make a fuss about. During the month of January, you can expect to have 5-10 nights with the temperature dropping below zero, and the daytime highs struggle to reach the low '20's. I don't think that this would be a dramatic change from Wisconsin (I've lived in both states).

The difference in climate between Burlington and the Stowe/Waterbury area is much greater than just temps. Burlington gets much more sun and less snow under certain conditions. If you have any problem at all with suffering from lack of sunlight, you don't want to live much outside of the Burlington Charlotte area. I lived in both places long enough to notice the difference.

RE: the circ. It will help short term, but it'll just get filled up within three years anyway. Seen it happen too many times, remember when the drive from Williston to Winooski on the interstate was a solitary drive for much of the evening hours.

[chaz longue]

I agree, Harry. The lake effect makes a real difference, and I often notice the difference in the weather when driving in VT.

Your remarks on traffic are valuable too, seems to me. But I have a fairly long view of the area - I remember the days as a kid when (I believe) little pieces of I 89 were still being completed...









(...and gettin' to school and back was uphill both ways, of course)

[vter]

Harry - very good point regarding the Circ.
I wonder if the Southern Connector will ever get built? If I were a betting person, I'd bet no!

[harry chickpea]

I agree, no way will the SC ever be built. At this point there is too much money in that direction and too much anti-growth pressure.

Chaz, I remember before the Interstate was started, and gathering up the blasting wire from where ledges were blasted out in Waterbury. Pre-interstate, traffic seemed heaviest at Church & College Streets, with Pearl and Main both being fairly heavy.

The solution is probably to build a city at the mouth of the Hudson, and let people commute... Seriously, there is no going back, and none of the standard answers are very good.

[chaz longue]

Originally Posted by harry chickpea

I agree, no way will the SC ever be built. At this point there is too much money in that direction and too much anti-growth pressure.

Chaz, I remember before the Interstate was started, and gathering up the blasting wire from where ledges were blasted out in Waterbury. Pre-interstate, traffic seemed heaviest at Church & College Streets, with Pearl and Main both being fairly heavy.

The solution is probably to build a city at the mouth of the Hudson, and let people commute... Seriously, there is no going back, and none of the standard answers are very good.

Cool!

So you remember the days of driving
Up Church Street
West on Pearl Street
Through Battery Park
Down Battery Street
Up Main...

...and around again!

...back when there were more cows than people in the state.