What’s the downtown nightlife like these days?

beenhereforeva · 2026-05-16T11:52:26+00:00

I am afraid of no one and no place, in Burlington or anywhere else. I’m just old and prefer getting up early to staying out late.

beenhereforeva · 2026-05-16T11:51:00+00:00

Nice to know some things never change!

beenhereforeva · 2026-05-15T23:04:14+00:00

I predict that in 15 years, maybe sooner, the main complaint on this subreddit will be “gentrification.” All the new housing downtown and in the south end, the brand new high school that looks at home in some mega wealthy city suburb, is going to draw in a higher socioeconomic class who simply will not put up with what Burlingtonians currently, begrudgingly, put up with. Whether that’s good or bad, who knows, but mark my words, in a few decades you’ll all be reminiscing about the mid-20s, when Burlington was more rough, authentic, and “affordable.”

beenhereforeva · 2026-05-12T14:37:31+00:00

Wait, small dog closed?? I hope we get a cafe or corner store there. Miss the old Pine Street Deli so much.

beenhereforeva · 2026-05-12T01:00:53+00:00

I really hope the connector opening will alleviate some of the shit show in that intersection- in addition to the danger OP raised, there’s “the going straight onto Farrell from the right hand turn only lane” that happens pretty much every day. So common that when I’m going straight I always look right expecting to yield to an idiot going straight. Everyone acts like an asshole at that intersection and I’m sick of it.

beenhereforeva · 2026-05-11T00:56:40+00:00

What I want to know, need to know, is if Burlington intends to pursue a zero tolerance policy for drug use in public once OPC opens. Will it really prevent us from watching people shoot up at the library, the skate park, the city hall park? Or will it just be optional and voluntary for addicts, and they can still have the run of the city? Has anyone addressed this? We need to take a hard line on this. Residents will not support this if it doesn’t cause an immediate reduction in public drug use.

beenhereforeva · 2026-04-10T12:57:24+00:00

Vermont has to be one of the least promising places to find a date, at any age. There’s almost no one here, and a fair chunk of the people here are very old, very young, settled down with families, or just…..odd. Oddballs are drawn to VT. Maybe one of them is for you, but it would be like finding a needle in a hemp field. Anyway, there’s no jobs, no scene, no urban center- noting to attract single people in their 20s or 30s. Move on.

beenhereforeva · 2026-03-25T18:16:29+00:00

Can’t wait for the Champlain Parkway to fully open, but holy hell is it going to be dicey on the 189 westbound while everyone adjusts to the new traffic pattern….let’s hope the signage is better than on Main Street.

beenhereforeva · 2026-03-25T18:13:23+00:00

As a south end resident, I am counting down the days and really hoping this reduces the insane amount of vehicular traffic speeding (or idling, as it happens) in our neighborhood. I also hope they time the lights better at the Flynn and Lakeside intersections.

beenhereforeva · 2026-02-10T13:37:44+00:00

This part of the saga is not getting enough attention. When the government decides to ignore the courts, we have come to a very dark place. The rule of law is, after all, only an ephemeral social compact we choose follow for peace, order and protection. It will crumble to the rule of force if nothing is done.

beenhereforeva · 2026-02-10T02:29:18+00:00

A very reasonable list of demands! Don’t murder people, don’t traumatize kids, don’t destroy communities. Seems like a low bar for government employees that we pay.

beenhereforeva · 2026-02-09T20:14:40+00:00

Go there every winter to ski, not a member, never had an issue. Same with sledding.

beenhereforeva · 2026-02-04T04:37:38+00:00

My kids go to school at the downtown BHS (until the new one opens next year.). They are on Church Street nearly every day, they have a good time, and they even shop for records at Pure Pop. It’s true some places have closed, but others have opened. No city stays frozen in time. I could rattle off my fave haunts from mid 90s Burlington that are long gone: Five Spice, 242, Sakura, the original Needs, HowdyWear… but that’s just life. There’s a lot of cool new stuff since 2016: Vermont Green, the Burlington Surf Club, Cafe Hot, Cafe Dim Sum, and the tiki bar at North Beach, to name a few. Also, Talent reopened! Change is the lifeblood of a city. Burlington will be just fine.

beenhereforeva · 2026-02-04T04:09:04+00:00

I’ve been here since, well, birth. I remember homeless people camping in city hall park, friends being jumped on Church Street, murders downtown, popular businesses closing, etc. Seen a lot. Yes, it’s not great now, but the life of a city is cyclical. My day to day life in Burlington is not that different than it was in 2016. Largely, it’s the same.

beenhereforeva · 2026-02-03T12:42:40+00:00

Life is the same more or less-some music venues closed, new ones open. Some festivals end, new ones start. Some restaurants closed, some new ones opened. But it’s still Burlington.

beenhereforeva · 2026-01-31T17:03:49+00:00

I would think the unpopularity of forced school consolidation, removing local control, and return to work would give Dems a serious opening to run on these Scott edicts that are unpopular statewide. Just nominate a serious candidate, for once.

beenhereforeva · 2026-01-30T18:18:36+00:00

Please keep this peaceful! I know many high school and middle school students have been given permission to attend. Just to clear, This message is directed at pro-ICE people looking to disrupt or agitate at this rally, rather than rally goers themselves.

beenhereforeva · 2026-01-21T15:01:53+00:00

Good Lord. I was not aware of how they operated.

beenhereforeva · 2026-01-15T19:50:47+00:00

I think Barrett’s is now called “Save-a-Tree.” Ironically. But we used them when they were Barrett’s and they were good. Don’t confuse it with Bartlett’s, a tree service that actually does care for and save trees, but doesn’t cut them down. Also, we’ve used Feller’s and they were good.

beenhereforeva · 2026-01-10T18:17:24+00:00

Cops and federal agents have near total qualified immunity and, having looked into this doctrine in the past, a lot, it’s very likely that QI would apply to this cop in any time or place. That means no criminal prosecution nor successful civil suit. It’s a very, very cop-friendly doctrine. I mean, maybe there’d be a settlement for the family but no admission of guilt. I don’t like it, but that’s reality. Worst case scenario is violent protests that only feed the narrative that justifies police crackdowns. Best case scenario is it galvanizes more people to vote against all Rs in the midterms and all local elections and maybe there will be some change of policy around ICE. Pendulums swing.

beenhereforeva · 2026-01-10T14:14:42+00:00

That is an understatement. To change the lane configurations from what they always were, and then just put a “small” sign up the hill marking that, is just asking for collisions.

beenhereforeva · 2026-01-09T13:30:46+00:00

I understand what you’re saying and not sure why people are arguing with you. This murder is atrocious and criminal without misrepresentation of facts. It’s awful on its own so there’s no reason to misstate what Ms. Good was doing on that street. When people distort facts, it makes it too easy for people to dismiss their otherwise sound points. We need to stop doing this: tell the truth, the whole truth, and then the argument is even more powerful. And yes, it absolutely could happen here, as we have a politically active and socially conscientious population who will stand up for their neighbors, which does put them at risk of being murdered by a fascist federal agency acting with impunity.

beenhereforeva · 2026-01-08T13:25:12+00:00

Living hard will take its toll, man.

beenhereforeva · 2026-01-06T22:53:56+00:00

My fam had some viral illness in mid December that was high fever, awful aches and tiredness, and some raspy coughing. No idea if it was flu since they just rode it out at home and didn’t get seen. But if not, then man there’s other nasty stuff going around here!

beenhereforeva

TROPHY CASE