Roosevelt Park Comprehensive Plan
Notes from the First Public Meeting
November 9th, 2023
On November 8th, 2023, BPRW hosted the first Public Meeting for the Roosevelt Park Comprehensive Plan at the Old North End Community Center. Our consultant team from VIEWSHED provided a presentation: Roosevelt Public Meeting presentation – 11/08/23 with results of the survey which was open to the public for seven weeks between August 30th and October 20th, which illustrated the many ways the public uses Roosevelt Park, what they feel is missing from the park to make it more welcoming for others, and provided data on survey respondents. VIEWSHED also gave an overview of the site analysis with a focus on historical, ecological and social stories of the park and what considerations and constraints might exist for improvements.
Following the information-sharing presentation, the attendees were split into five groups to take on redesigning the park. They were given a scaled site plan of the park as well as several cut-out amenities that could be added to the park space (or omitted!). Lots of interesting conversations ensued, including how several uses could be combined into some of the spaces and how consideration to adding more impervious surfaces could be mitigated.
Over 50 individuals attended the public meeting. They provided meaningful feedback on what activities matter most to them in the park and also participated in a visual preference survey (sticker dot exercise) that will be reviewed as an additional layer to the survey.
BPRW is grateful that CCTV live-recorded the meeting, which is available at: Roosevelt Park Comprehensive Plan Meeting – 11/8/2023 – YouTube
If you haven’t already signed up for project updates and would like to learn about upcoming meetings, please email ssauve@burlingtonvt.gov or go to our website to sign up for our newsletters. We’re looking forward to working with more community members throughout this process and welcome the opportunity to visit schools, community groups and collaborate on outreach to make sure our diverse community voices are represented in this process.
Roosevelt Park Public Meeting
November 8, 5:30 – 7 p.m.
O.N.E. Community Center, 20 Allen St.
RSVP here!
If you need translation services or another accommodation, please indicate in the RSVP questions linked above, or reach out to ssauve@burlingtonvt.gov.
The Public Survey (linked below) closes on October 20! If you haven’t filled it out, now is your chance!
Help Shape the Future of Roosevelt Park!
Click one of the links below to take the Roosevelt Park Survey:
English | Kirundi |Français (French) |دری (Dari)|العربية (Arabic)|Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese) |Kiswahili (Swahili)|Soomaali (Somali)|پښتو (Pashto)| नेपाली (Nepali)|Lingala
Take the survey, join the Community Advisory Committee (CAC), attend a public meeting and stay in touch!
Updated: October 2, 2023
Updated: August 29, 2023
Help Shape the Future of Roosevelt Park!
Interested in helping us shape the future of Roosevelt Park? Or joining the Community Advisory Committee? Details are below!
Find translated versions of the image above here:
English | Kirundi |Français (French) |دری (Dari)|العربية (Arabic)|Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese) |Kiswahili (Swahili)|Soomaali (Somali)|پښتو (Pashto)| Doorhanger_नेपाली (Nepali)|Lingala
BPRW is teaming up with consultants to develop a Comprehensive Plan for Roosevelt Park!
Find translated versions of the information below here:
FR — Français (French) | RN — Kirundi | LN — Lingala | NE — नेपाली (Nepali) | PS — پښتو (Pashto) | SO — Soomaali (Somali) | SW — Kiswahili (Swahili) | VI — Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese) | AR — العربية (Arabic) | PRS — دری (Dari)
What is a park comprehensive plan?
A park comprehensive plan is a document that provides a framework for improvements to a park. It includes information about the park, as it is, which includes: how it is used, what amenities exist, and what options are possible for improvements. It includes information about what changes are possible for the park and how the public is included in the process about any future improvements. A park comprehensive plan is a document that illustrates the steps taken towards a final plan for the future of the park.
What is the process for a comprehensive plan?
A park comprehensive plan process includes asking park users and those who manage parks changes they would like to see to the park. It means asking people, including neighbors or community leaders, recreation programmers and organizers, what would make the park better for more people in the community. There are usually three public meetings held throughout the process for a comprehensive plan: the first to hear how the park as it is works for everyone, the second to propose options for change, and a third and final meeting to talk about the proposed future changes to the park.
Why a comprehensive plan for Roosevelt Park?
Roosevelt Park plays a vital role in the Old North End community. It is a central hub for active recreation, for Boys & Girls’ Club activities and as green space for nearby school. It serves as both a neighborhood park and a home for baseball and soccer leagues, making it a bustling and vibrant space. However, with the evolving community dynamics and ongoing challenges posed by climate change, there is a pressing need for upgrades and improvements to the park.
By undertaking a comprehensive planning process, the Burlington Parks, Recreation & Waterfront (BPRW) department aims to engage with the community and park users to shape the future of Roosevelt Park prior to making significant financial investments. This approach ensures that all stakeholders have the opportunity to contribute their insights and ideas, making the resulting plan truly reflective of the community’s desires and needs.
To kickstart this inclusive process, a thorough and inclusive public and partner engagement initiative will begin in the Fall of 2023. The vision and plan for Roosevelt Park will be community-driven, honoring its status as a cherished and heavily utilized park in Burlington’s Old North End.
Community Advisory Committee
To reflect community values and desires throughout the park planning process, we are forming a Community Advisory Committee (CAC). The CAC will include local residents who will provide input on the process and will commit to actively participate in the process. CAC members may receive a $50 stipend per meeting to assist with indirect expenses such as childcare, food, or transportation. The stipends will be distributed monthly throughout the project until the maximum has been reached.
Please fill out the CAC interest form to let us know you are interested – bit.ly/CAC-Interest-Form
Contact Sophie Sauvé at 802-865-7248 or ssauve@burlingtonvt.gov for more information.
Some questions we will be asking:
- Are there opportunities to make the park more inclusive?
- What amenities are missing to make the park more accessible?
- What amenities would support activities that are NOT taking place at Roosevelt?
- Are there areas in the park that could host public art in the future?
- How does the neighborhood access the park? Are there connections to the surrounding community that need to be improved? Would sidewalks on the park-side be helpful?
- How can activities in the park be improved year-round?
- What existing facility upgrades would be beneficial?
We want to hear from you, from the parks’ neighbors and surrounding community. How do YOU use the park and if not, why not!?
- We would like to gather feedback on various aspects of the park, such as making it more inclusive, identifying missing amenities for accessibility, supporting new activities, potential locations for public art, improving connections to the community, enhancing year-round activities, and upgrading existing facilities. We value input from park users and the surrounding community, so we encourage you to share your thoughts and experiences.
To be notified of upcoming public outreach and events related to the project, please sign up at ssauve@burlingtonvt.gov.
Language Access 
- Translation services are available for public meetings! Let us know if you or someone you know needs assistance with translation or any other accommodation.
This park and adjacent playground have been HUGE assets to us as parents of a soon to be 7 year old. We currently utilize the park for Center City Little League, Parks and Rec soccer, and still find ourselves frequenting the playground. Home of perhaps the tallest tube slide in Burlington?
I feel as though the space boxed in by the bathrooms, tennis courts, Willow Street, and path is underutilized. Perhaps a highly desired feature/element could go here? Pickleball, fenced in area for dogs? Side note, waste stations with bags would be appreciated.
I’m not immediately fond of the idea of sidewalks around the park as it would push the fence inward and shrink the size of the park. Thinking particularly of the east and north sides and the existing structure locations. With that said, St. Mary’s Street is without a sidewalk and I think would benefit from one. Also, a crosswalk is needed across the northbound leg of Walnut Street at its intersection with Willow.
Lastly, I love to see the flexibility this park provides as I’ve seen some ramps and other features brought out for skateboarders, scooters, and bikers on one of the basketball courts. The wide open green space provides so much opportunity for various activities and is a rare commodity in the City.