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The Church Street Marketplace isn't the only street to see in Burlington. The city has several distinct neighborhoods with their own unique characters. There's the hip South End, the posh Hill Section and, of course, the Student Slums — just kidding. Kinda.
Here's a dossier on some districts outside the downtown core that you might enjoy exploring.
South End
Burlington's South End is a colorful postindustrial neighborhood favored by artists, foodies and creative-economy entrepreneurs.
Main Drag
Pine Street
History
The South End was once a manufacturing district. For 132 years, the Specialty Filaments factory made bristles for brushes; today the warehouse is home to Dealer.com, a local tech startup that sold for a cool $1 billion in 2014. The brick building where General Dynamics made Gatling guns? It's now a multiuse office space called the Innovation Center of Vermont. Manufacturing isn't totally history in this hood: The Burlington Record Plant has been pressing vinyl here since 2014.
Fun Fact
The South End Arts District encompasses the greatest concentration of artist studios and galleries in Burlington, including the S.P.A.C.E. Gallery, the Flynndog and the SEABA Center. Check 'em all out during September's South End Art Hop.
Landmarks
- Vermont artist Mary Lacy painted Dealer.com's twin 32-foot silos on Pine Street in 2015, drawing inspiration from origami shapes.
- The world's tallest file cabinet towers more than 40 feet over the north side of Flynn Avenue. This famous roadside oddity satirizes the bureaucracy of urban planning.
- With 14 granite slabs standing in a 43-and-a-half-foot circle, Blanchard Beach's Burlington Earth Clock resembles a mini Stonehenge.
See & Do
- Sip your way through the South End on a self-guided tasting tour, starting at Citizen Cider and heading south to Zero Gravity Craft Brewery, Queen City Brewery and Switchback Brewing.
- Get your geek on at Burlington's maker space, Generator. It offers classes in 3D printing, laser etching, metalworking and more.
- Eat, drink and rock out to live music at ArtsRiot, an event space on a mission to "destroy apathy." Better yet, time your visit for its warm-weather food-truck Fridays.
Waterfront
Notable for its lakeside park, boardwalk and bike path, Burlington's waterfront district is a serene space for physical recreation, festivals and epic people-watching.
Main Drag
Burlington Greenway, aka the bike path
History
In the 1880s, Burlington's waterfront was a commercial hub and one of the busiest lumberyards in the world. A hundred years later, the city converted the land into the publicly accessible Waterfront Park. Remnants of the industrial past remain — namely the Vermont Railway yard and the Moran power plant, a hulking brick building that's been the focus of numerous unsuccessful redevelopment schemes.
Fun Fact
The waterfront is home to Burlington's world-class skate park, which features rails, ramps, boxes, a half-bowl and a half-pipe. In June 2016, skate legend Tony Hawk dropped in to help dedicate the park to late local DJ and skateboarder Andy "A_Dog" Williams.
Landmarks
- Winged monkeys perch on the waterfront's Union Station and Main Street Landing buildings. The peculiar creatures were originally commissioned in 1975 for a now-defunct water bed shop called the Emerald City of Oz.
- A 34-foot-tall statue of Chief Greylock at Battery Park, part of artist Peter Toth's nationwide "Trail of the Whispering Giants" series, depicts a leader of Vermont's native Abenaki people.
See & Do
- Catch big-name bands at lakeside festivals all summer long at Waterfront Park. Just up the hill, Battery Park's band shell becomes a stage for free concerts from local and regional musicians.
- Explore the lake's ecology, culture and history at the ECHO Leahy Center for Lake Champlain, an aquarium for all ages.
- Take a 90-minute tour of the shoreline aboard the Spirit Of Ethan Allen III, which sets sail four times a day from mid-may to mid-October.
Old North End
A lively mix of lifelong residents, young families and New Americans makes the Old North End one of the most culturally diverse places in the state.
Main Drag
North Street
History:
This neighborhood has long been a haven for immigrants. During the lumber boom of the 1800s, it welcomed French Canadian and Irish workers. Since the early 1990s, it's become home to refugees fleeing violence from places such as Bosnia, Bhutan, Sudan, Somalia and beyond. Consider this Burlington's melting pot. Every July, the ONE celebrates its unique community with a grassroots arts festival called the Ramble.
Fun Fact
The fertile riverside land at the north end of the ONE was once the unofficial town dump; now it's home to urban farms. Secure your supply of locavore veggies by purchasing a weekly farm share through the Intervale Food Hub.
Landmarks
- Elmwood Cemetery is one of the city's oldest burial grounds; many early residents of Burlington are interred here, as well as Revolutionary War soldiers.
- Roosevelt Park, across the street from the city's Boys & Girls Club, is a vibrant community center with basketball courts and soccer and baseball fields.
- The houses and apartment buildings coated in cheery fluorescent paint belong to local landlord Stu McGowan. He buys and rehabs dwellings throughout Burlington, but most of them are in the ONE.
See & Do
- Is the Scibek Sizzler really Vermont's best burger, as reported in Food Network Magazine? Find out for yourself at the Shopping Bag variety store.
- Take a walk on the wild side of local theater with a show at the Off Center for the Dramatic Arts.
- Hit up the numerous and varied ethnic food markets along North Street.
New North End
Don't let the 'burbs-y vibe fool you. Thanks to its beaches, parks and affordability, the New North End is a desirable, up-and-coming area of Burlington.
Main Drag
North Avenue
History:
Largely developed during the 1950s as a postwar suburban extension of BTV, the NNE is Burlington's most populous neighborhood and the only part of town that ever elects Republicans to the city council and state legislature. But its demographics are shifting, in part because twenty- and thirtysomethings looking for starter homes are being priced out of the rest of Burlington. The area's diminutive dwellings are among the only relatively affordable housing left in town.
Fun Fact
Sen. Bernie Sanders lives here (while he's in Vermont, anyway) and can sometimes be spotted shopping at the North Avenue Hannaford.
Landmarks
- The 40-foot-tall Ethan Allen Tower sits atop the city's highest point, offering bird's-eye views of Lake Champlain, the Green Mountains and the Adirondacks.
- The pastoral trails at Ethan Allen Homestead are ideal for a quiet stroll in the summer and cross-country skiing in the winter.
- Bessery's Butcher Shoppe & Delicatessen has been a beefy NNE institution since 1963.
See & Do
- Bring your pup to the Starr Farm dog park, one of the city's biggest and most popular.
- Play ... pretty much anything at Leddy Park. It features fields for baseball, softball and soccer, as well as tennis, pickleball, handball and volleyball courts. There's also a year-round ice rink, a beach and a large wooded area.
- Avoid the crowds downtown and dine at La Boca Wood Fired Pizzeria. If there's a wait, sample the suds next door at Simple Roots Brewing.
Related Locations
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Andy A_Dog Williams Skatepark
- Lake St., Burlington Burlington VT 05401
-
802-864-0123
- enjoyburlington.com…
- Be the first to review this location!
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ArtsRiot
- 400 Pine St., Burlington Burlington VT
-
802-540-0406
- www.artsriot.com…
- Be the first to review this location!
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Battery Park
- Battery St., Burlington Burlington VT 05401
-
802-864-0123
- Be the first to review this location!
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Bessery's Butcher Shoppe
- 1398 North Ave., Burlington Burlington VT 05401
-
802-862-1731
- www.besserysqualitymarket.com…
- Be the first to review this location!
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Burlington Earth Clock, Oakledge Park
- Flynn Ave., Burlington Burlington VT 05401
-
802-864-0123
- www.enjoyburlington.com…
- Be the first to review this location!
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Citizen Cider
- 316 Pine St., Suite 114, Burlington Burlington VT 05401
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802-448-3278
- www.citizencider.com…
- (based on 2 user reviews)
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Dealer.com
- 1 Howard St., Burlington Burlington VT 05401
- Be the first to review this location!
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ECHO Leahy Center for Lake Champlain
- 1 College St., Burlington Burlington VT 05401
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802-864-1848
- www.echovermont.org
- Be the first to review this location!
-
Flynndog
- 208 Flynn Ave., Burlington Burlington VT 05401
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802-363-4746
- www.flynndog.net…
- Be the first to review this location!
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Generator
- 40 Sears Ln., Burlington Burlington VT 05401
-
802-540-0761
- generatorvt.com
- Be the first to review this location!
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La Boca Wood Fired Pizzeria
- 1127 North Ave., Suite 32, Burlington Burlington VT 05408
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802-399-2396
- www.labocas.com…
- (based on 5 user reviews)
-
Leddy Park
- 216 Leddy Park Rd., Burlington Burlington VT 05408-2779
-
802-864-0123
- enjoyburlington.com…
- Be the first to review this location!
-
Off Center for the Dramatic Arts
- 294 N. Winooski Ave. , Suite 116C , Burlington Burlington VT 05401
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802-540-0773
- www.offcentervt.com
- (based on 5 user reviews)
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Queen City Brewery
- 703B Pine St., Burlington Burlington VT 05401
-
802-540-0280
- queencitybrewery.com
- (based on 1 user review)
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Roosevelt Park
- 57 Oak St., Burlington Burlington VT 05401
- Be the first to review this location!
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SEABA Center
- 404 Pine St., Burlington Burlington VT 05401
-
802-859-9222
- www.seaba.com
- Be the first to review this location!
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Simple Roots Brewing
- 1127 North Ave., Suite 8, Burlington Burlington VT 05408
-
802-399-2658
- simplerootsbrewing.com
- Be the first to review this location!
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The S.P.A.C.E. Gallery
- 266 Pine St., Burlington Burlington VT 05401
-
802-578-2512
- www.spacegalleryvt.com
- Be the first to review this location!
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Spirit of Ethan Allen
- 1 College St., Burlington Burlington VT 05401
-
802-862-8300
- www.soea.com
- Be the first to review this location!
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Starr Farm Dog Park
- N/A , -73.269 , Burlington Burlington VT 05401
- Be the first to review this location!
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Switchback Brewing Co.
- 160 Flynn Ave., Burlington Burlington VT 05401
-
802-651-4114
- switchbackvt.com
- Be the first to review this location!
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The Shopping Bag
- 166 North St., Burlington Burlington VT 05401
-
802-658-4790
- www.facebook.com…
- Be the first to review this location!
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Union Station
- 1 Main St., Burlington Burlington VT 05401
-
802-864-1557
- www.artsalivevt.com…
- Be the first to review this location!
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Zero Gravity Craft Brewery
- 716 Pine St., Burlington Burlington VT 05401
-
802-497-0054
- www.zerogravitybeer.com…
- Be the first to review this location!
Carolyn Fox
Bio:
Carolyn Fox was the Seven Days calendar editor from 2009-2012. From 2012-2013, she was the managing editor of Kids VT. She currently works as Special Publications Manager for Seven Days.
Carolyn Fox was the Seven Days calendar editor from 2009-2012. From 2012-2013, she was the managing editor of Kids VT. She currently works as Special Publications Manager for Seven Days.
About the Artists
Matthew Thorsen
Bio:
Matthew Thorsen has been shooting photographs for Seven Days since 1995. Read all about his work here.
Matthew Thorsen has been shooting photographs for Seven Days since 1995. Read all about his work here.
James Buck
Bio:
James Buck is a multimedia journalist for Seven Days.
James Buck is a multimedia journalist for Seven Days.
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