👩Late 60s WomaninWard 5
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Safety because people are nervous about going down town burlington.
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Burlington, VT · Live ReportIssue Focus · September 2026 edition
Safety
Raised by22%12 responses · past 55 days
Top Themes
We select quotes that capture residents' main points about safety, then group similar quotes by theme. Each theme includes the original quotes, so you can read them, cite them, and see what the theme is based on.
#4 Theme:Raised by 16% of respondents
Burlington streets and downtown feel unsafe
Burlington streets, bike routes, and downtown feel unsafe for riders, children, and families.
What people are saying:
👨Mid 30s ManinWard 8
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Going up College street is pretty scary on a bike. The potholes pretty much destroy the bike lane.
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🙂Burlington ResidentinWard 3
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The pain and suffering and loss of life in the Burlington streets.
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👨Late 50s ManinWard 6
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The state of downtown. Strangers offering kids rides. Graffiti. Drug deals happening in the open. Lack of housing. Lack of police.
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👨Mid 50s ManinWard 5
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my biggest concern in Burlington is antisocial behavior from people who have addiction problems, and other forms of unmanaged homelessness. Whike I do believe that as a society we need to help people who are unable to house themselves, antisocial behavior should not be tolerated.
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👴Senior ManinWard 7
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Taxes are too high. Services have gone to hell. Downtown is an out-of-bounds place - we don’t go there for ANYTHING. Make Burlington a livable Vermont town again.
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#10 Theme:Raised by 9% of respondents
Street crime is common and unpunished
Street crime, theft and vandalism are making downtown businesses and public spaces less appealing.
What people are saying:
👨Late 50s ManinWard 6
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The state of downtown. Strangers offering kids rides. Graffiti. Drug deals happening in the open. Lack of housing. Lack of police.
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👨Early 30s ManinWard 6
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I am arrived in Burlington three months prior to Covid. I have seen a general decline in quality of life since then. Vibrant businesses leaving Church Street, more vandalism, public spaces becoming less appealing to be in and around, rents continually going up. I understand much of these issues are caused by socioeconomic forces much larger than the decisions of our local government, but I see and lament their negative impacts on our wonderful little city all
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👨Mid 50s ManinWard 5
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my biggest concern in Burlington is antisocial behavior from people who have addiction problems, and other forms of unmanaged homelessness. Whike I do believe that as a society we need to help people who are unable to house themselves, antisocial behavior should not be tolerated. We pay huge price as a community in terms of our feelings of freedom and safety, especially when it comes to our kids when we allow behaviors like open drug use and dealing, sleeping in parks, and aggressive
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More voices on safety
A few more quotes worth reading, about topics outside the main themes above.
👴Senior ManinWard 7
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Wouldn’t recommend it now. City government is bloated, with too many supervisors and directors and not enough workers. Street crime is rampant, and goes unpunished. Machines answer the phone. And every time I hear the word “vibrant,” I want to vomit.
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👨Mid 50s ManinWard 5
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We should aim for our kids to be able to run and play safely in and around our neighborhood.
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Every response is counted toward the next edition.