Turn Off the Gas

[Re “Upward Mobility? Burlington International Airport’s New Terminal Will Help It Compete, Officials Say. Despite Industry Turbulence, BTV Is Experiencing Lift,” April 29]: I flew out of our lovely local airport two weeks ago, and I was curious about the new addition, even though my departure gate was not in that area. It was clean and bright, and as I rounded the corner, I saw a built-in long fireplace with natural gas flames dancing away for the sole purpose of ambience. WTF? Did we just abandon net-zero?

I asked to speak to airport management, and they put me in touch with an engineer. He told me the carbon-spewing appliance was for the “comfort” of the passengers. Hmm, I’m gobsmacked at this lack of care and concern about climate change.

I’ve sent emails to the airport director, the Burlington mayor and my city councilor. As of this writing, only the latter, Sarah Carpenter (D-Ward 4), has gotten back to me, with: “I do agree we might do better around this.” Yup!

What’s with this trend to burn fossil fuels for show? Drive by the remodeled Hotel Champlain, whether it’s 8 degrees or 80, and you’ll see two planters and a large cauldron blazing away. For what purpose?

Yes, I use fossil fuels — but as few as possible. I didn’t really want to take out a loan for a heat pump (and it won’t save me any money), but we all have to do what we can.

We praise Beta Technologies for its electric planes (which we should). Can we not praise the airport and any other place if they will just turn it off?

Students Should Protest

I am writing as a Champlain College alumnus about [“Champlain College to Discipline Students Who Protested Professor,” April 28, online]. Champlain’s “Safe Campus Demonstrations” policy, in my opinion, contradicts its claim that it “fully supports freedom of expression and the free exchange of diverse ideas, beliefs and opinions.” Strike the word “fully” or add an asterisk to any number of those other words, and you’re in the ballpark.

The notion that expression can be free while subject to strict time and place restrictions, with prior approval required, is censorship and gatekeeping disguised as safety.

It is reasonable to require students to seek prior approval before setting up a table to recruit for a recreational sports league, but holding students to the same standard in times of upheaval robs them of the opportunity of responding in the immediacy of the moment. The pace of the modern world is such that 48 hours may as well be 48 days. If student activities are in fact endangering the community, you can still respond accordingly and appropriately.

As to the recent protests, I applaud these students for standing up for trans people. That community has been undeservedly demonized and marginalized for political gain by disingenuous hucksters plying bigotry for power.

Professor David Tomasi says, “Saying an ideology is evil does not mean the people embracing such ideology are evil.” I say equating gender identity with ideology erases the individual.

Trans people are people, deserving of respect, tolerance and the same peace Champlain purports to preserve with its policies.

And students deserve the right to truly free expression.

Nurse’s Orders

[Re From the Publisher: “Out of Joint, Continued,” April 29]: I am a retired registered nurse with both orthopedic and home health experience. I am also a former patient of Dr. John Begly.

Recovery from any ortho surgery is a challenging, up-and-down process. The best way to recover is to follow all recommendations from your physical therapy team and surgeon. Being weight-bearing does not equal it is OK to go to a party one day post-op. Paula Routly’s surgery was April 2. Her column was published less than a month later. She is 66 years old. Unfortunately, we don’t bounce back like we used to. The knee is a complex joint.

I had an arthroscopic hip labral repair by Dr. Begly at Central Vermont Medical Center on January 28, 2024, at 66 years old. I had three months of pre-op PT but was still weaker on my operative leg pre-op because it hurt to bear weight, so I favored the leg. It took three months of post-op PT to regain normal strength and mobility. Now I am walking a 5K. I owe my ability to walk without pain to Dr. Begly, CVMC and PT360.

Please give time, your knee, your PT team and especially Dr. Begly a reasonable chance at recovery before your next op-ed.

Gimme Shelter

As a University of Vermont sociology student, I was tremendously disappointed to read that Vermont’s largest day shelter, Burlington’s Community Resource Center, is endangered [“Food Plight: A Combined Community Resource Center and Food Shelf in Burlington Just Expanded. Now, Some Major Funding Is at Risk,” March 18].

The Burlington location of the Feeding Champlain Valley food shelf, where I have had the pleasure of interning this semester for a UVM course, shares the building and space with CRC. Every day I am there, I witness firsthand the profound impacts both FCV and CRC make in the community. Throughout the morning hours at the CRC, staff of FCV and volunteers work hard to provide nourishing hot meals to community members. In the afternoon hours, CRC provides case management and resources for housing and survival for those in need.

CRC and the food shelf not only work together to provide necessary resources for daily life, survival and hardships but also provide the capacity for members in the community to build and maintain relationships. Day to day, I observe how powerful and uplifting these relationships are — both between the guests of CRC and FCV, and between guests and the staff of these organizations.

As stated in the article, if CRC loses its funding, it would be forced to close. Champlain Valley Office of Economic Opportunity, Burlington’s mayor and others are advocating to continue the funding. It is imperative to support and defend these organizations, as well as understand their incredible contribution to the community. 

‘Income Sensitivity’ for Some

It is unfortunate that some lawmakers believe Vermont’s current struggle with high property taxes is because “income sensitivity has gotten out of whack” [“Tax Burdened: Education Reform Won’t Address Property Tax Rates for Years. As Delinquencies Rise in Pockets of Vermont, Leaders Seek Both Short- and Long-Term Solutions,” April 8]. In fact, it is the opposite. Our high property taxes, specifically education property tax, are in part a result of 20 years of income sensitivity that only recently began to get in whack.

Why do property taxes increase? Because a majority of the electorate votes for them. Why does a majority vote for tax increases in Vermont? Because over the past 20-plus years, a majority of the electorate did not feel the full effect of the tax due to income sensitivity.

By the way, this is the same line of reasoning that Burlington Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak used in her failed attempt to exempt a portion of a home’s assessed value when calculating property taxes [“Burlington Councilors to Study Tax Fairness Proposal,” October 21, 2025]. Such plans are not so much about helping people, but rather about how, when governments overextend themselves, as they frequently do in Vermont, it makes tax increases more likely to pass and therefore easier for governments to tax their way out of their mistakes.

The way to resolve high property taxes is to reduce spending and/or grow the tax base. Unfortunately, the current focus for the immediate term seems to be on adjusting the income sensitivity. The past 20 years tell us that will continue to make a bad situation worse.

Repeal Acts 181 and 59

[Re “Act of Contrition? Vermont Lawmakers Added Special Protections for Rural Land Two Years Ago. Facing a Revolt, They Now Favor Repeal,” April 22]: The legislature in Montpelier is dysfunctional at this point, basically driving longtime rural Vermonters to move to other states. Acts 181 and 59, pretending to be about the environment and housing, will hurt all rural Vermonters and our land values and make it very difficult and expensive to build anything on your own land. I have lived in California, where you cannot fart without a permit, and it’s not working; it drives people and businesses out. Unfortunately, the Vermont legislature seems to be following the California model. Using “protecting the environment” as an excuse to push these acts is deceiving.

Of course we all care about the environment, and Vermont has no urgent environmental issues, being extremely sparsely populated and with most landowners caring very much about the environment and taking very good care of their land. Repeal Acts 181 and 59. We should all familiarize ourselves and write letters, make phone calls and vote, since it affects your land use and value. There is a Facebook page dedicated to the issue.

I am a lifelong Democrat. The Democrats and Progressives in Montpelier created and pushed Acts 181 and 59, so let’s not make them look good for favoring rollback reforms; they created the problems in the first place. Don’t vote for anybody who supports 181/59. These bills were written and pushed through without the input of rural Vermonters who make up 66 percent of Vermont’s population.

Repeal 181 and 59. Vote out anybody who supports them.

Curious Slovak

This is the rare letter to the editor about a classified ad, entitled “Slavic Life” [April 29]. I am Slovak. To clarify, all Slovaks are Slavic, but not all Slavic people are Slovak! The classified ad lists no link or instructions. Your online classified ad provides a YouTube link, which includes exactly one video of a car in a parking lot. Very Soviet-era. Alas, it appears the Vermont Slavic Life Movement is either a hidden society (a bit KGB), or Slavs lack the social media skills of the 21st century. Any organization that is so hell-bent on keeping this Slovak from joining is the one I’m yearning to be part of!

Ask the Mayor

In [“Burlington Council Green-Lights Major South End Development,” May 12, online], Aaron Calvin writes: “Though Mayor Emma Mulvaney-Stanak has criticized her predecessors for their overreliance on [tax-increment financing] districts to fund housing and infrastructure projects, which she has said contributed to the city’s desultory year-over-year increase in taxable property, she singled out this particular plan for praise.”

Did you ask why the mayor changed her opinion? Perhaps she had a good reason; perhaps she had no reason; perhaps she’ll refuse to answer the question. If it’s worth noting the mayor’s past position on TIFs, your readers deserve to know why it has or hasn’t changed or if this project is an exception.

Remembering Jane Pomykala

Kudos to Melissa Pasanen for revealing the soul of Pomykala Farm — the grit, determination, incredible hard work, and caring for the earth and for people — and Jane Booth Pomykala’s critical role [“Asparagus Days: In Grand Isle, Pomykala Farm Starts Its 49th Season Without a Beloved Cofounder,” May 6]. Jane was my first graduate student at the University of Vermont, and one of the very best.

Jane came to me each winter to ask for my help finding students to work at the farm in the coming summer. Many of our students did so, some often returning for several summers and a few even becoming farmers themselves. They universally said it was a great place to work.

Jane and Bob Pomykala circa 1990 Credit: Courtesy

For decades I bought delicious food and beautiful flowers from Jane at the Burlington Farmers Market. I would go to her stall first, because her asparagus in the early summer and beans in the mid- to late summer always sold out quickly. Our family also enjoyed eating her produce at restaurants such as Shore Acres, Farmhouse Tap & Grill, and Leunig’s Bistro & Café. And we would usually stop at Pomykala Farm’s farmstand en route to or from our camp in North Hero. Our two daughters are a few years younger than Ben and Jon; on a couple of occasions, Jane let our daughters ride their pony around the farm and down along the lake — a special treat.

I know I will never forget the expression of love for Jane and her dear family at her celebration of life in early April, and the amazing potluck meal provided by dozens of chefs and farmers who had worked with Jane and Bob over the years.

Poor Reporting on Housing Crisis

[Re Nest: “The Building Dilemma: A UVM Study Says Constructing More Homes in Burlington Won’t Bring Down Costs — as Investors and Buyers With Cash Compete for What’s Built,” April 29]: Uncritically platforming a non-peer-reviewed paper to the wider public without proper scrutiny is a journalistic failure. This article feels more like a press release for the study than critical reporting.

To substantiate their claim, the authors would need to show that investors are buying a majority of newly constructed housing to leave empty as speculative investments, which it fails to do.

The paper claims that adding more supply would not affect housing costs because they are driven by demand from investors and not a lack of supply, denying the economic consensus. Its evidence is that home sales in Burlington went from 166 in 2003 to 100 in 2023, while investor purchases went from 3 to 12 percent. According to their own numbers, five houses were bought by nonresidents in 2003 and 12 in 2023. Eighty-eight homes, the overwhelming majority, still went to Burlington residents in 2023!

Even when buying homes, investors don’t reduce supply by destroying or leaving them empty. They increase rental availability by putting units back on the market, driving down costs, as only 38 percent of housing in Burlington is owner-occupied while 62 percent is rented.

The overwhelming majority of economists agree that low supply, not high speculative demand, is to blame for our housing costs. Our problem is the negative externalities of the system we built, not a group of oligarchic boogeymen, and our solution is to build more housing, whether by private development or public investment. Seven Days failed its journalistic duty with this uncritical article.

Security Question

Please, will someone explain how this ban would be enforced [“Baruth Pushes to Ban Guns From Establishments That Serve Alcohol,” May 5, online]? Sure, not bringing a gun downtown is a great idea, but I cannot understand how the bouncer at Rasputin’s, Red Square or What Ales You is going to stop the person intent on concealing a weapon on their person while consuming alcohol in the bar. Are they going to pat everyone down? Are these establishments going to buy metal detectors for the doors? Hire a police officer to stand by the doors?

The person involved in the shooting in front of Red Square kept her gun in the car [“Bar Tab Dispute Preceded Fatal Burlington Shooting, Cops Say,” August 26, 2024, online]. The proposed ban would not have prevented the shooting from occurring.

Better Word for ‘Protester’

As I read [“Man in the Middle: Body Camera Footage From the March 11 ICE Raid Shows How South Burlington Deputy Police Chief Sean Briscoe Tried to Keep the Peace,” May 6], here’s what jumped out at me immediately: The use of the word “protester” to describe the neighbors, community members and activists who came out in solidarity with the household being targeted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Yes, you can say they were “protesting” ICE’s overreach. But words matter, and there are so many other words that could be used. These folks came out as witnesses and observers, as protectors, neighbors, community members, friends, allies. Yes, they were protesting ICE tactics, but you could also call them “defenders of democracy” or “protectors of human rights.” You could call them patriots standing up for the rule of law.

Seven Days employees at the World Press Freedom Day march Credit: Courtesy

Two weeks ago, when members of the Seven Days crew joined the march for World Press Freedom Day, did you consider yourselves “protesters” (which is what many bystanders thought, I’m sure) [From the Publisher: “Free Press, Free People,” May 6]? Or did you proudly consider yourselves advocates of an important and fragile First Amendment right that needs champions and protectors?

“Protester” is a tired word, and it is not the best way to describe millions of Americans who are standing up daily in so many different ways for justice and basic human rights. Let’s come up with a word that proudly and accurately describes who we are and what we are doing to protect the vision this country was founded on.

Mass. Backwards

[“Tax and Defend: Some Democrats Say It’s Time to Raise Taxes on Vermont’s Richest Residents Despite Gov. Scott’s Veto Threat,” April 29] referenced a Massachusetts policy director supporting Vermont’s desire to implement a wealth tax on the state’s highest ratepayers. His shortsighted analysis of Massachusetts’ 4 percent income tax surcharge, which he called an “unmitigated success,” only highlights a partial truth: that taxes raise revenue. The warnings of tax flight from the state’s highest earners were far from overblown.

In the first year of implementation, Internal Revenue Service data show approximately 30,000 taxpayers leaving Massachusetts, taking with them a net overflow of adjusted gross income totaling $4.2 billion, 70 percent of which comes from high earners making more than $200,000 a year. It’s more when you add the downstream activity related to this income.

When high earners flee the state, it reduces the tax base, placing more burden on those who stay.

‘Think Big!’

Democrats and Progressives aren’t thinking big enough with their tax hikes. The “Tax and Defend” piece [April 29] detailing their 12.7 percent income tax proposal cites academics with data that high earners will accept higher income tax rates and not move out of Vermont. If that is the case, why not raise income tax rates on high-income Vermonters to 25 percent, or 50 percent, or 75 percent? Think big!

P.S. Ben Cohen will be happy to know that he may raise his own tax rate anytime if he thinks it’s too low. The Vermont Department of Taxes will gladly accept voluntary contributions above and beyond his statutory tax obligations.

Pay to Pave

If they are so eager, what’s holding Ben Cohen and the 20 letter signers back from voluntarily paying more taxes [“Tax and Defend,” April 29]? Maybe one of them could pay for repaving the interstate through Chittenden County and fill the holes on the Winooski River bridge.

Credit: File: Julianna Brazill

‘Shared Responsibility’

I thank Kevin McCallum for [“Tax and Defend,” April 29]. This proposal is hardly punitive. It is long overdue. Ever since the Reagan Revolution, tax policy at the state and federal levels has consistently favored the wealthiest Americans. The top 1 percent have benefited not only from these incessant federal tax cuts on their behalf but also from an economy now structured to reward capital over labor. Asking the 1 percent to contribute a little more is hardly punitive to them — it is a recognition of shared responsibility we have together.

So many working Vermonters — including me, who at 70 years old still has to work full time — live daily on the fine edge of financial disaster and homelessness. It is almost like we have been forced into indentured servitude in an economy that we serve but that does not work for us. This proposal begins to rebalance that equation. It says prosperity should not come at the expense of everyone else.

Opponents consistently argue that higher taxes will drive away wealthy residents. Yet it rarely materializes at the predicted scale. People choose to live in Vermont for its quality of life, not just its tax rates. Strong schools, infrastructure and health care systems — all funded by taxes — are part of that appeal.

Fairness is not class warfare. It is the foundation of a healthy democracy.

Correction

A vote tally was wrong in last week’s cover story, “Promises Too Steep.” The Senate Education Committee voted 6-0 to extend the deadline for the PCB testing program.

Clarification

A story about the Green Mountain Youth Symphony in last week’s paper noted the town where composer Callum Robechek was born but not where he grew up. He is from Montpelier.

This article appears in Summer Preview • 2026.