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Community development needs in the areas of social services and neighborhood
development are discussed below. Obstacles to meeting underserved needs are
discussed in each section as they specifically relate to that area.
Except where otherwise noted, the information in this section is drawn from
the 2002 Community Profile, a report prepared by the Vermont Agency of Human
Services for the community served by the Burlington School District and for each
school district in the state.
Burlington is home to a regionally disproportionate number of impoverished
residents. In addition to a concentration of affordable housing, there is also a
geographic concentration of basic human services within the City. Among other
things, the City is home to:
- Seven homeless shelters - the only homeless shelters in the region.
- The regioe.
- Two of the county's three Parent Child Centers.
- The state mental health agency, the Howard Center for Human Services.
- The state's only methadone treatment clinic.
- The district offices for the state Departments of Health, PATH, Vocational
Rehabilitation, Employment & Training, and Social and Rehabilitative
Services.
That concentration of services and affordable housing, coupled with
inadequate mass transit, forces individuals with limited resources to locate
within the City - so that as some residents move out of poverty and no longer
need services, new demands continually arise. Ensuring that a safety net exists
to meet the basic needs of these residents has been and continues to be a
priority need for the City.
As discussed at length in the
Housing Needs section of the Consolidated Plan, housing continues to be at a
crisis point in the City and the region. The homeless and the precariously
housed are growing in number. As residents are forced to pay more and more of
their household income for housing, they have less and less money available to
pay for other basic needs - including heat, health care, and child care.
Food security continues to be an issue for many residents. Over 2,000
Burlington households visited the Chittenden Emergency Food Shelf last year -
and around 35% of Food Shelf clients are employed. Around 1,700 Burlington
school children qualify for free or reduced-price school lunches because of low
family income. At the H. O. Wheeler elementary school in the Old North End, 100%
of students qualify for this program. During the summer, there are Summer Lunch
sites scattered throughout the City providing food and recreational activities -
but these sites are not yet reaching all City children who participate in the
school-year lunch program.
There are a number of community indicators showing areas of concern for
families and their children in the City:
- Over 12% of the "first births" in Burlington in 2000 were babies born to
new families at risk - i.e., to unmarried women younger than 20 with fewer
than 12 years of education.
- Among Chittenden County communities, Burlington ranks last on:
- Women receiving prenatal care (84.1%);
- Babies born at a low birthweight (7.6%);
- Teen pregnancy rates (58.5 per 1,000 women age 15 to 17);
- Average daily rates of children deemed unmanageable placed in custody
(125.3 per 10,000 children age 10 to 17); and §
- Average daily rates of delinquency for children place in custody (176.5
per 10,000 children age 10 to 17).
- Burlington ranks next to last on child abuse and neglect (171
substantiated victims per 10,000 children age birth to 17).
The last four indicators are strikingly different from most of the rest of
the county and the state:
Twenty percent of the City's children are living in poverty. Children growing
up in poverty are at risk for school failure and often miss opportunities to
develop social and cognitive skills necessary for school readiness. They
frequently begin school with significant disadvantages and remain vulnerable
throughout their school years. Around one third of Burlington's children were
not ready for kindergarten when they arrived there in 2001, according to the
perceptions of their kindergarten teachers, and one-third of second graders were
not reading satisfactorily. As of 2001, 15% of students in the Burlington
schools - a total of 552 students - had identified special education needs.
Families with multiple stressors (a combination of two or more factors,
including poverty, teen or single parent, parental stress and unemployment) have
been identified as the most underserved population by child care referral
specialists. Children with atypical needs (including children with developmental
delays, ADHD, hearing impairments, mental health or behavior problems, children
with a history of child abuse, neglect or involvement with Protective Services)
were identified as the second most underserved population.
These are particularly pressing concerns in Burlington. Low-income families
need help coping with poverty-induced stressors, which can lead to family
violence, abuse and neglect. As discussed at length in the Economic Development
section, affordable, quality childcare is also a pressing need for low-income
families - a prerequisite to economic progress as well as peace of mind. In
addition, young children living in poverty need continued and expanded
opportunities for early enrichment if they are to overcome at-risk environments.
Literacy efforts - for children and adults - need to be maintained, including
the City's America Reads and Burlington Reads initiatives. Low-income families
also need opportunities for affordable social and recreational activities to
break down social isolation.
Many low-income parents feel that they are at a disadvantage in dealing with
the educational system and with the all-too-often confusing complex of service
providers. The perception that their children are "tracked" or otherwise treated
in ways that don't promote their fullest development is too common, and these
parents don't feel that they have the means to address their concerns.
The high school drop-out rate in Burlington has begun to drop after
increasing for several years:
| 1995-96 |
1996-97 |
1997-97 |
1998-99 |
1999-00 |
2000-01 |
| 7% |
8.8% |
8.2% |
10% |
9.4% |
7% |
The Burlington rate is still running well above the state average, which is
4.7%.
According to the 2000 Census, there are 147 out-of-school Burlington youth
age 16 to 19 who are not high school graduates. The unemployment rate among that
group is over 20%. In addition, as discussed in the Homeless Needs section,
there are increasing numbers of homeless youth seeking shelter and services in
the City. There is a continuing need for alternative education programming and
workforce training among these youth. Youth living on their own can neither find
nor afford housing. Transportation to job locations is limited.
Drug abuse among youth - and heroin in particular - has been a significant
concern in the community for several years. In 2001, 13% of Burlington 8th
graders reported smoking cigarettes within the last 30 days, 20% reported using
alcohol, and 13% reported using marijuana. For high school senior, those
percents jumped to 34%, 62% and 46%, respectively.
There are a number of youth service providers in the City, in addition to the
City's Department of Parks & Recreation and the after school programming offered
through the School District's 21st Century program. In 2001, 39% of Burlington
8th and 12th graders reported that they participated in youth programming, and
over 50% of high school seniors reported volunteering in the community. There
continues to be a need, however, for expanded programming - and to support and
expand mentoring and community service programs and initiatives.
Providing the necessary supports to allow seniors and persons with
disabilities to live independently - increasing their health and well-being, and
decreasing isolation - has been and continues to be a priority need in the City.
The aging of the baby boomers will significantly affect age demographics - and
community needs - over the next 25 years. The chart below show projected shifts
in the state's proportion of different age groups. In
addition to meeting current needs, the City needs to begin planning now to
ensure that it is prepared to support future needs around housing,
transportation and other services for seniors and persons with disabilities.
According to the 2000 Census, 10.5% of Burlington elders were living in
poverty. There is a continuing need for services among senior citizens in the
City, and the overwhelming majority of seniors seeking assistance are
low-income. Depression, malnutrion and pharmacy costs are among the issues which
these residents confront. The rate of adult abuse/neglect in the City is 18.4
per 10,000 adult residents - well above the county (11.0) and state (14.2)
rates, and second only to Winooski among Chittenden County communities. (2002
Community Profile)
Unlike other states, Vermont does not provide funding or other state support
for senior centers - that is left to the local level and to private
funding-raising efforts. There are two senior centers in the City: the McClure
MultiGenerational Center in the Old North End and the Heineberg Center in the
New North End. Last year, the McClure MultiGenerational Center served over 500
seniors; the Heineberg Center served over 300. Eighty-three percent of those
seniors were low-income. In addition to food/nutrition and health services,
senior centers provide free / low-cost options to private clubs in the growing
market for senior fitness.
The Champlain Valley Area on Aging is serving around 350 Burlington seniors a
year, addressing cases of self-neglect and helping seniors access benefits. Over
88% of those seniors are very low-income. Case management in the Old North End
is the most intensive provided anywhere by the agency.
Residents with disabilities - and especially children and working age adults
- suffer disproportionately from poverty, and there is also a continuing need
for services among these residents. Access to attendant care - a preferred
service - is restricted by lack of funding. Services need to be more
consumer-directed.
The need for caregivers has grown with an aging population and with more
people diverted or discharged from nursing homes. The need for home providers
has been exacerbated by the housing shortage in the community. Retention of
caregivers is difficult due to the demanding nature of the work. There is also a
large unmet need for funding for live-in caregivers, particularly for lower
income residents.
Staffing to provide other services to residents with disabilities is also
suffering due to lack of funding for adequate professional wages, leading to
problems in attracting and retaining workers and, in some cases, to layoffs and
rationing of care. As a result, the burden is pushed onto families as default
caregivers.
Equal access to jobs, housing, services and education and protection of civil
and human rights continues to be a priority need in the City. People of color,
women, refugees, immigrants, people with disabilities, and gays and lesbians
face barriers to equal access and opportunity that must be addressed. The
disproportionate impact of poverty on minority families, female-headed
households and people with disabilities must be reversed. Residents of color
continue to struggle with racial harassment and/or profiling in the community -
in stores, in law enforcement, in education. For persons with disabilities,
access to public transportation, retail stores and at worksites are continuing
needs. The City also needs to allocate resources to maintain diverse social and
cultural opportunities, accessible to all.
Schools and human service providers are struggling to meet the needs of
increasing refugee populations coming from diverse ethnic and linguistic
backgrounds. Most of these refugees have come from Vietnam, Bosnia and the
Sudan, but many other countries and cultures have been included: There are 32
languages other than English currently spoken in the Burlington School District.
There is a continuing need for translation and interpretation, as well as for
English as a Second Language and other literacy services.
Too many Burlington residents lack access to health care and dental care.
Available resources in the City include the Community Health Center, located in
Burlington's Old North End, which serves around 6,000 low-income Burlington
residents a year. Through a partnership with Fletcher Allen Health Care, the
Community Health Center now offers dental services as well; large numbers of
patients seen at the Community Health Center have advanced cavities and
periodontal disease. The Community Health Center also offers assistance with
accessing free / reduced price prescription programs offered through drug
manufacturers. The School-Based Health Centers at Barnes and Wheeler Elementary
Schools provide health and behavioral health care - and now dental care - to
many children who would otherwise go without. In addition, the Tooth Tutor
Access Program provides dental care at four City elementary schools.
Nonetheless, too many low-income residents - adults and children - do without
health and dental care, or postpone it until their situations reach crisis
proportions.
The number of Vermont residents who have used heroin and sought substance
abuse treatment has doubled in the past year among citizens ages 18-34. (Vermont
Health Department) Some of these young people are pregnant or parents. Five
percent of the families with infants in Chittenden County receiving intensive
home visits through the Visiting Nurse Association are on methadone. The first
methadone clinic in the state has recently opened in Burlington.
Vermont generally - including Burlington - is a relatively safe place to
live. However, Burlington faces greater threats to community safety due to drug
and alcohol abuse, crime, racism, violence, and sexual assault than do the state
and county as a whole. In addition, both state and local trends show increasing
crime rates - both in violent crime (measuring number of homicides, rate,
aggravated assault and robberies per 1000,000 residents) and in sexual assault
(measured in incidents per 1,000 residents). Domestic violence is also an issue
which increasing numbers of residents are confronting. The rate of relief from
domestic abuse petitions filed in Chittenden County rose from 43 per 10,000
people in 1989 to 52.6 in 2001.
Two-thirds of the victims of sexual assault served by the Women's Rape Crisis
Center, the local community provider, are low-income. It is not clear whether
that reflects a higher incidence of sexual assault among low-income residents or
greater choice in services among higher-income victims.
Burlington is home to a relatively high concentration of offenders -
currently, over a 1,000 individuals tracked through the state Department of
Corrections. Close to 800 people living in the City are on probation; around 74
are on parole; over 60 are in a furlough program; and around six are on a
supervised community sentence. There is a need to expand efforts to reduce
recidivism and to support successful re-entry into the community. The City is
currently working with the Vermont Department of Corrections to begin an
Offender Re-entry program.
Despite these issues, neighborhood organizing efforts, community policing,
restorative justice programs and quality of life initiatives are showing
positive effects in low-income neighborhoods. Focused community-based policing
efforts in the Old North End resulted in a 33% decrease in incidents of violence
and disorder from 1998 to 2000. In resident surveys conducted by the Community
Outreach Partnership Center in 2000, 80% of Old North End residents who said
they had seen changes on their block over the last 4 to 5 years cited positive
changes - most commonly in things such as a greater sense of community; less
crime, fighting, drugs, and noise; and more support from landlords, community
groups, city services, and police. The City's Community Justice Center (which
applies restorative justice principles to non-violent crimes, including noise
violations), Community Support Program (which mediates neighborhood disputes),
First Response Teams (which organizes volunteers to repair vandalism and minor
property damage), and Community-Based Action Teams (where city staff work with
neighborhood residents on intensive clean-ups of particular blocks) and the
Burlington Neighborhood Project (which supports block level community organizing
and leadership development) will be maintained and, where appropriate, expanded.
Finally, the substantial numbers of off-campus college students continue to
affect the quality of life in residential neighborhoods. The City has undertaken
a number of expanded mediation and intervention services initiatives - some in
partnership with the University of Vermont - to improve recurring problem areas.
These initiatives include:
- Targeting of "problem properties" which repeatedly break code,
disturbance, crime and noise violations;
- Mapping and coordination of quality of life programs between the City and
UVM;
- Strategic targeting of at-risk student neighborhood for a "wrap around"
services approach;
- Strengthening of the noise violation ordinance, including restorative
justice practices;
- Joint patrolling with city and campus police;
- Spring move out recycling day;
- Off campus living workshops and a new process for addressing off-campus
behavior; neighborhood walks; and
- Extended campus bus transportation during the late night/early morning
hours after bar closings. The City will continue to address off-campus
student issues while continuing to recognize the resources that its
institutions of higher education bring to the City, the region and the
State.
The projections come from the U.S. Census Bureau.
(The projections, however, are based on 1990 Census data – the Census
Bureau has not yet updated its projections based on the new data.)
Page last updated May 13, 2003
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