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In Fall 2001, the UVM/Burlington Community Outreach Partnership Center Community Leadership Project did a
Neighborhood Survey in the King Street area of Burlington. The goal of the
survey was to gather information about the quality of life for residents and how
community resources can support residents' needs. Most of the questions
were open-ended, and residents could talk about whatever was on their minds.
So
it was impressive that 10% - 75% gave similar answers to some questions.
Residents were interviewed on the following streets: King and Maple
(between Church and Battery), Church, St. Paul, South Champlain, and Pine Street
(between King and Maple), and Brown's Court. Students from a Community
Psychology class at The University of Vermont and staff from the Public Safety
Project went door-to-door multiple times during daytime, evenings, and weekends
to try to talk with as many households as possible. We spoke with 82
households, about 31% - 60% of households on each street. Thanks to all of
the residents who shared their time and ideas!
This summary presents some of the major issues residents mentioned. Their
views will help guide the steps residents, organizations, and support staff can
take to improve neighborhood quality of life. Look at the end of the
summary for information about next steps and future actions.
For more information, questions, or comments, contact the Public Safety
Project (Americorps*VISTA Colleen
Purcell, 652-4231) or the UVM/Burlington COPC (Lynne
Bond, 656-1341).
Greatest benefits of living in King Street Area Neighborhood
We asked residents, "What do you feel are some of the best things and
greatest benefits of living in your neighborhood?"
- 75% talked about the Convenience of Location, being close to downtown,
waterfront, stores, King Street Youth Center, work, school, parks, &
bike path.
- 25% talked about liking the People and having a sense of familiarity in
their neighborhood.
- 22% talked about Ease of Transportation (availability of public
transportation, not having to drive places).
- 14% talked about the General Environment in their neighborhood (quiet,
safe).
- 10% talked about Housing (satisfaction with housing, affordability).
Other benefits included:
- Not being on a "bar route" (3%)
- Lake view (1%)
3% said that there are no benefits.
Most pressing issues facing King Street Area Neighborhood
We asked residents, "What are the most pressing issues affecting your
neighborhood right now?"
- 40% were concerned about Drug Use & Dealing and Alcohol Abuse.
- 40% were concerned about the General Environment, including problems with
noise, parties, traffic, speeding, & parking.
- 30% were concerned about problems with People (kids, transients, students,
landlords) and Interpersonal Relations (distrust, no sense of community).
- 29% were concerned about Crime and Safety (theft, vandalism, violence, and
fighting).
Other issues included:
- Housing Costs and Availability (9%)
- Sanitation/trash (6%)
- Absence of services for kids and families (4%)
- Poverty (4%)
- Lack of public school buses (1%)
6% said there are no pressing problems now.
Residents' Perceptions of Neighborhood Change
Some of the residents we interviewed had lived in the King Street area for
many years (up to 50 years!) while others had just recently moved to the
neighborhood. The average length of residence was 5 years (this varied by
street, ranging from an average of 9 years on King Street to an average of 1
year on Church Street and Brown's Court). Overall, half of the residents we
talked with had lived in the neighborhood for less than one year. We
asked, "Do you feel like your neighborhood changed over the past 4 or 5
years?"
35% felt that the neighborhood had not changed in recent years
31% described positive changes, including:
- Improved general environment (10%) (quieter, less loitering, a bar closed)
- Improved people and relationships (9%) (better/new neighbors, improved
interactions among neighbors, increased diversity)
- Neighborhood beautification (9%) (housing/building repairs, cleaner
streets)
- Decreased drug activities (9%)
- Other positive changes (each noted by 1 person): city redesign, momentum,
positive energy, new ideas for change
19% described negative changes, including:
- Increased crime and drug activities (10%) (drug use, dealing, crime,
gangs)
- More problems related to people (9%) (high turnover, rowdiness, fights,
college students moving in and driving up the rent)
- Worsening general environment (7%) (noise, mess, graffiti)
3% noted changes they described as neither positive nor negative,
including: Fewer cops on the street/fewer "busts," people moving
in and out, a bar closed.
Planning for the Future
"Do you imagine you'll be still living in this neighborhood in 3 years?
… in 10 years?"
Overall, 26% of residents expect to be still living in the King Street area 3
years from now . . . and only 11% of residents expect to be living in the same
neighborhood 10 years from now.
Residents' plans to stay or leave varied by street. For example, only 7% of residents on Maple and 13% of residents on
Church expect to live in the neighborhood in 3 years, compared to 40% on King
and 60% on St. Paul.
Why are people planning to stay in the King Street area neighborhood?
- I like it here (mentioned by 11 people) ·
- It's a convenient location (4
people)
- I like Burlington; I like Vermont (2 people)
- I'd rather not go
through the moving process (it's too hard, I'm too old) (2 people)
- I own my
home (1 person)
Why are people planning to leave the King Street area neighborhood?
- I want to buy a home (14 people)
- I don't like it; I want someplace
better (13 people)
- I only planned to live here temporarily (10 people)
- My
place/yard is too small (8 people)
- It's not a good place for children (7
people)
- I'd like to leave the city (I want to live in the country; I don't
like Burlington) (7 people)
- I don't like the general environment (noise,
trash, drugs, violence, traffic) (6 people) · I plan to move away from Vermont
(5 people)
- I'm leaving because of my job/school (3 people)
- I'm having
problems with my landlord (3 people)
- I just want a change of scenery (2
people)
- It's too expensive (2 people)
Neighborhood Involvement
Did you know
that King Street area residents have already been involved in many different
types of community activities and that even more would like to get involved in
their neighborhood in the future?
38% have already been involved in the community, including:
- City- and
Community-based Organizations (e.g., Red Cross, Salvation Army, COTS, Rape
Crisis Center, YMCA, United Way, Public Safety Project, etc.)
- King Street
Youth Center (e.g., attending dinners, volunteering, children's activities)
- Programs that work with and support kids (e.g., Howard Community Services,
Burlington High School, Boys & Girls Club)
- Neighborhood Block Parties
- Other types of involvement included: Neighborhood Watch, political events,
downtown and waterfront events, donations to community programs, and helping
people who are homeless
59% would like to get involved in neighborhood activities, including:
- Beautification and Clean-up (e.g., picking up trash, community parks and
gardens, outdoor preservation, getting landlords to repair housing)
- Neighborhood gatherings and Block Parties
- Programs and activities for children
(e.g., tutoring, improving and expanding parks and play equipment, teen
activities and sports, festivals)
- King Street Youth Center (donating money,
participating in activities)
- Neighborhood Watch
Residents' Hopes for Change in the Neighborhood
ARE YOU INTERESTED IN GETTING
TOGETHER WITH NEIGHBORS TO MAKE POSITIVE CHANGES?
Here are the top changes that
people in the neighborhood would like to see during the next few years:
- 34% - Increased safety: less drug use (noted by 21% of residents), less crime,
vandalism and vagrancy, more (and better) policing (noted by 16% of residents)
-
27% - People and relationships: more neighborliness, sense of community, community
leadership, involvement, and organization
- 19% - Increased city support: money and
attention, contact and resource information, help in organizing, more inclusion
and listening to residents in decision-making
- 19% - Beautification and
restoration: fixing up buildings and streets, "green-up" and clean-up,
sanitation
- 18% - More child-friendly environment: better child supervision and/or
parenting skills
- 12% - Improved housing: more responsive landlords, housing
repair, code enforcement, more affordable housing, increased homeownership
Important Next Steps for Improvement
We asked residents, "Do you think it might be helpful to have a
community meeting where residents could talk with each other and with people
from the city or other groups about changes they'd like to see in this
neighborhood?"
92% agreed a community meeting is a good idea!
We also asked, "Do you think your neighborhood might benefit from some
sort of group where residents get together and socialize or talk about things
that are important to them and their neighborhood?"
85% agreed a
neighborhood group would help!
Residents most often talked about the benefits of a community meeting or
neighborhood group in terms of building sense of community in the neighborhood.
25-40% of residents suggested that a meeting or group could help by:
- Promoting interpersonal and collaborative relations among residents
- Increasing resident empowerment and awareness
Residents also described other
possible benefits:
- Improving appearance of neighborhood/buildings
- Organizing a Neighborhood Watch/Increasing crime prevention efforts
- Supporting children, teens, and families
- Helping solve specific problems
What can the city and organizations do to help?
Residents suggested many ways
that the city and other organizations could help residents make improvements in
the neighborhood by providing support and/or resources. The most common
suggestion (mentioned by 27% of residents) was for more support from the Police
Department, including increased police presence and greater attention to
specific problems (partying, drugs, loitering).
Residents would also like more
support from the Department of Public Works (11%), Code Enforcement/Zoning (6%),
and landlords (5%).
More generally, residents want greater support and resources
in the following areas:
- neighborhood leadership (9%),
- funding (9%),
- supporting
children/teens (5%),
- gathering information on available resources (4%),
-
supporting homeless people (4%),
- rent control (3%),
- trees and landscaping (4%).
6% felt that no support was needed from the city or other organizations.
Plans for Future Actions
- Information from this survey is being shared with
residents, community organizations, and city departments to help people work
together to increase quality of life. The survey results are also being
presented at the Ward 5 Neighborhood Planning Assembly meeting on February 21,
2002.
- A neighborhood petition (signed by more than 60 people) asking for
traffic calming and street and sidewalk improvements was given to the Department
of Public Works and Police Department.
- Residents can apply for neighborhood
grants this spring. For example, 3 residents from King St. hope to apply for
money for clean-up, a block party, and flower pots (and they'd love to get more
residents involved!). Brown's Court residents plan to apply for money to fill
the gully at the end of the street.
- Later in the spring, the Public Safety
Project will help organize a neighborhood meeting where residents, police, and
substance abuse service agencies can talk about problems with drug use in the
neighborhood.
For more information about any of these activities, talk to Beth Truzansky at
the Burlington Neighborhood Project
(865·7178). All residents are strongly encouraged to participate!
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