CITY OF SOUTH BURLINGTON
South Burlington Designated City Center Area
1.0 Abstract
Opportunity. The City of South Burlington has the opportunity to create a new Civic Center, including a City Hall, mixed use development and public open space in the form of a park. The center has the potential to dramatically change the identity of South Burlington, establish a civic focal point, introduce mixed use building typology, and facilitate pedestrian, bicycle and mass transportation. Currently the city is a diffuse residential suburb with a retail economic base, automobile oriented and distinctly zoned.
Designated Site. The site designated for the Civic Center
lies within the apex of the two dominant commercial strips, adjacent to the
Interstate 89 interchange, and centrally located within the city limits. It is also easily accessible to the
University of Vermont, Saint Michael’s College, Champlain College, the Fletcher
Allen Medical Center, IBM Corporation, IDX Systems Corporation, General
Dynamics and Burlington International Airport.
The Chittenden County Transportation Authority (CCTA) routes many of its
public buses through South Burlington creating the potential for a multi-line
hub at the Civic Center.
Process. South Burlington has designated a city center area and completed
a Master Plan for it in 1984. In April,
the City appointed a Citizen’s Technical Advisory Committee to investigate
ideas for the size, appearance, and placement of the City Hall Government
within the city center; and to develop space needs analysis, select an
appropriate site, develop a conceptual site plan and building footprint and
produce architectural renderings. The
Citizen’s Advisory Committee met five times and discussed in sequence: Building program and content, Urban Design,
Community and Building Image and a suggested design option.
The site property owner, in parallel with the Technical Advisory Committee, is studying a design for the area based on retail shopping and apartment development.
Products of the Study. The City Hall Government Building Design study has resulted in four independent products:
· Program
· Community Identity
· Urban Design
· Building Design
Each product documents the Technical Advisory Committee’s findings as to Recommendations, Design Ideas and Concepts, and Design Elements. All resulted from a more fundamental search on the part of the community to advance South Burlington’s independent identity, create a more urban city center, respond to the city’s sense of community identity and initiate a strategy for future prosperity.
TECHNICAL ADVISORY
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS
Use existing Market Street.
Make the four portals work.
Plan for growth.
Acknowledge the car.
Recognize South Burlington as a “bedroom community”.
Recognize South Burlington as a “retail community”.
Take advantage of our beautiful setting.
Recognize Parks and Recreation as dominant.
Give the building “presence”.
Stimulate private development.
Be user friendly and welcoming.
Give the City something modern, contemporary and something to be proud of.
Create a large civic space and put the building in it.
Make a “Main Street”
Make the building about community, information and communication.
Embrace the car.
Make the building transparent.
Respond to the view of Camel’s hump.
Create a center for an e-city.
Provide orientation to Vermont’s natural landscape.
Make a park as the center piece.
Connect Williston Road and Dorset Street with an new “Main Street”.
Create drive through service.
Fit structured parking behind existing buildings.
New location for existing pond.
Views to Camel’s hump from within the civic space and within the building.
A civic green space for the building site.
A pond.
Vehicular access through the building.
The building as part of Main Street.
A ceremonial entrance.
A boulevard.
Concealed, centralized public parking.
A pedestrian way through the building.
A visible City Council chamber.