Here in Vermont, we experience a wide array of seasons. Faux-Spring, A cold October followed by a 70 degree week in November, and snow that seemingly lasts until May. 

A constant throughout all of this; is the 4:30PM sunsets that come with the end of daylight savings time. The skatepark has one of the most active and vibrant communities in Burlington. We are immeasurably grateful for the space which we have been given, yet we find ourselves frustrated this time of year. 

Students at BHS get out of class around 3:15PM, while work ends between 4-5PM for our adult skaters. On a good day, we will get 20-30 minutes of daylight at the park before the sun sets. This is a sad waste of a community third space, and could be fixed with a few LED area lights. 

To our knowledge electric wiring was run throughout the skatepark site, before the concrete was ever poured. This would be the most expensive, time consuming and invasive part of this project and here it sits already completed. Yet, for the 10 years this park has been open, no lights were ever installed.

We have heard whispers that the Waterfront Housing and ONE Lakeview Properties have petitioned against the park having lights in the past. We are entirely open to working together with those who live in these spaces, to coordinate a reasonable cut-off time for the lights to go out. Our proposal would be for these lights to go off at 9PM, one hour before the beginning of Burlington Community Quiet Hours. During the summer months this is typically when people depart the park, but we are very flexible on this time, as anything more than a 4:30PM cutoff would be considered a win. 

Our hope is that the voices of our community will be heard, and we can properly utilize the incredible space we have been given.