Burlington Adopts Zoning to Encourage Higher Ground Move

Higher Ground is one step closer to moving to Pine Street in Burlington, thanks to a zoning change adopted by city councilors on Monday night.

The new rules remove the previous 5,000 square foot size limit on performing arts centers on Pine Street. The restriction would have prevented Higher Ground from considering a move, as the company  previously eyed a space more than twice that size.

The proposal passed unanimously, though newly elected Councilor Allie Schachter (D-East District) — who works as the development director for the Flynn — recused herself for a professional conflict of interest.

Monday’s vote was nearly delayed after a small hangup on the ordinance’s wording. The proposal defines performing arts centers as “conditional uses,” a designation that requires a closer examination into whether a project could create undue noise or traffic. Higher Ground, however, asked for the centers to be considered “permitted uses,” which would bypass some of that review.

After some debate, councilors decided to keep the wording as-is.

“I would be very happy to entertain it and to deal with that when it comes,” Councilor Gene Bergman (P-Ward 2) said of Higher Ground’s request. “But right now, I think that it’s appropriate for us to get this in place.”

Higher Ground has been looking to abandon its current digs on Williston Road in South Burlington for years now. The company contacted Burlington officials after plans to relocate to Burton Snowboards’ South End campus fell through last summer.

The company hasn’t revealed where on Pine Street it wants to move, but one possibility is Burlington City Arts’ headquarters at 405 Pine Street. The city department only uses a fraction of the 33,000-square-foot building, and the entities have worked together on that very site: For two years starting in summer 2021, Higher Ground hosted a weekly event series in the BCA Studios parking lot.

Councilors have enthusiastically supported the proposal, only raising some concerns about how the venue could draw traffic to nearby residential neighborhoods. The council’s Ordinance Committee has suggested that staff look into creating resident-only parking zones on event nights.

Also on Monday, councilors passed an ordinance that makes owning a vacant building a lot more expensive.

The new rules will charge keepers of some vacant buildings up to $6,000 a year for a vacant building permit, or twice the previous maximum fee. The proposal passed unanimously.

“Negligent landlords must be steeply penalized for the harm they cause our community,” Councilor Becca Brown McKnight (D-Ward 6) said. “This is a change that will not impact most people who rent out properties, just the small handful that don’t take proper care of them.”

The new language represents a wholesale edit of the ordinance, which is meant to encourage building owners to redevelop or sell their unused properties. Under the past rules, the city could charge owners $750 per quarter, or up to $3,000 per year, no matter how long the building stayed empty.

The new rules introduce higher fees related to the building’s use and how long it’s been vacant. For residential buildings with one or two units, the fee can be up to $750 per quarter or $3,000 per year if left empty for less than a year. If the building stays vacant longer, the fee increases to $1,000 per quarter or up to $4,000 a year.

Owners of all other buildings that are vacant for less than a year can be charged up to $4,000 annually. If the vacancy crosses the year mark, the fee jumps to $1,500 per quarter or $6,000 per year.

Owners can avoid the fees if they can prove the building is for sale or have plans to fix it up — something they must show the city on a quarterly basis. Failing to do so, or letting their permit lapse, could net them a $200 daily fine.

The council initially contemplated fines that topped out at $16,000 per year. But Bill Ward, director of the city’s Permitting & Inspections Department, said the fees can only cover the staff time required to enforce the ordinance.

Burlington has a handful of vacant buildings, most of them in prominent locations downtown. Many, including the former Bove’s restaurant on Pearl Street, have become magnets for graffiti and crime.