Burlington officials are reviving a decade-old charter change that would ban guns from city bars.
The proposal, which will appear on the Town Meeting Day ballot, is the same measure voters passed in 2014. But state legislators, who review all charter changes, never approved it.
At their meeting on Monday — which stretched into the wee hours of Tuesday morning — councilors unanimously agreed to put the question to voters again in order to send a message to lawmakers.
“It seems very clear to me that guns and alcohol do not mix,” Councilor Gene Bergman (P-Ward 2) said.
A spate of gun violence in recent years has spurred the council to pass various resolutions asking lawmakers to pass stronger gun laws, to no effect. Calls to revisit the guns-in-bars issue resurfaced this summer after a fatal shooting outside Red Square on the Church Street Marketplace.
It’s legal in Vermont to carry concealed guns in bars, though businesses can ban them from their property. Burlington’s proposal would prohibit firearms from any venue that’s licensed to serve alcohol.
Exceptions would be made for law enforcement officers or members of the military acting in their official capacities. Bar staff would also be permitted to carry guns.
The proposal would give the city leeway to cite people both criminally and civilly for violating the provision. A criminal charge would come with a fine of up to $1,000 and/or up to 90 days in jail. A civil offense would be punishable by a fine of $200 to $500. Police would be empowered to seize the offender’s weapon.
In 2014, voters approved the proposal 68 to 32 percent — more than a two-to-one margin. Bergman said he’s heard from lawmakers who believe another decisive vote could push this latest effort over the finish line.
Also on Monday, councilors approved a new overtime shift for Burlington police officers during the holidays.
A contract with the Burlington Police Officers’ Association will station two officers on the Church Street Marketplace at various hours between November 24 and January 1. The detail will be paid with up to $60,000 from the Burlington police budget.
Councilor Mark Barlow (I-North District) said the short-staffed department can’t regularly patrol downtown, where local businesses have been clamoring for a stronger police presence.
“Retail theft and public safety concerns are significantly impacting their sales, and the impacts are getting critical for some,” Barlow said, noting the recent closures of Merrill’s Roxy Cinemas and Athleta. “Additional patrols can help this situation by responding to and deterring criminal and antisocial behavior.”
The city has spent thousands of dollars in recent years to hire Vermont State Police, Chittenden County sheriffs and private companies for extra security downtown. The police union had a similar agreement last December, which paid off-duty officers $85 an hour for extra patrols from noon to midnight.
This year’s shifts will be no longer than five hours long, according to a memo reviewed by councilors. Aside from the shopping district, the officers will be contracted to patrol the downtown bus station, Marketplace parking garage and City Hall Park, among other hot spots for misbehavior, the memo says.
City attorneys will sign a formal agreement with the police union in the coming days.
Earlier in the meeting, councilors heard updates about efforts to tamp down noise caused by the Vermont Air National Guard’s F-35 fighter jets.
Officials said the airport continues to chip away at a list of more than 2,000 properties that are eligible for noise mitigation projects, such as installing new windows and doors. A federal grant pays for the upgrades, but the rising cost of building materials has meant fewer homes can be retrofitted each year. In early 2020, officials estimated it would cost $50,000 to renovate one home; that number has since jumped to $130,000, Aviation Director Nic Longo said on Monday.
The airport recently applied for a new $18.75 million Department of Defense grant that could accelerate the program’s progress. Longo said he expects to hear back before year’s end.
In August, councilors passed a resolution asking the Guard to drop its F-35 mission in favor of a less noisy one — and whether such a move would be possible. City councils in both Winooski and South Burlington followed suit.
On Monday, Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak said that while those resolutions created some momentum, Guard leaders told her last month that the measures “wouldn’t have any immediate impact” since only federal officials can choose the Guard’s mission.
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