Community

Daily Buzz | Happy Birthday to Burlington!

Also, what's next for town communications?

Nicci Kadilak

Feb 28, 2023 — 3 min read

Good Morning, Neighbors!

To answer the question on everybody’s mind since yesterday, as of this writing there is about 3/8 of an inch of snow on the ground and NO delay or snow day has been called.

To start off today, let’s wish Burlington a very happy birthday! Burlington turns 224 years old today—which means next year is a rather big year for our town. At last night’s Select Board meeting, members of the historical commission discussed with the Board some ways we might celebrate the big 2-2-5 next year. Some ideas:

Schools might participate in the creation of projects and artifacts.
We might have a weekend trolley that brings folks around to different historical sites in Burlington.
We should brand every event with the 225th Anniversary theme, so it’s a cohesive celebration across town.

This conversation will continue at the Select Board’s 3/13 meeting.

Did you know that prior to its incorporation as a town, Burlington was a ward of Woburn? It’s true! And you can read the entire original town charter below.

Also of note today, though School Committee officially begins at 7:00, they’ll be starting in executive session to discuss in detail the special education considerations they talked about two weeks ago. This session is private to preserve anonymity of students and families; the regular public meeting will begin at 7:30.

Town Communication Plan Ready to Enter Next Phase,

At last night’s Select Board Meeting, UMASS’s Collins Center presented their findings from Phase 1 of the town communications audit. In their work with the town since 2022, they found what residents know implicitly: There’s no centralized communications plan. Town departments all communicate with the public differently and to a different extent, and their websites are differentially helpful.

To this end, the Center made a few recommendations that would make communication between town agencies and residents more streamlined and effective:

Create a communications position or department, which would be in charge of creating a Burlington-specific centralized policy and strategy that all departments would follow, ensuring town communications reach all residents.
Bring the town’s website into the 21st century, increasing images and infographics and decreasing text-heavy content.
Ensure content is accessible to underserved groups, such as non-English speakers and the visually impaired.
Streamline social media and use goals and KPIs to ensure effectiveness of communication.

The next phase of this plan will consist of interviews with department heads and community research, and the Center expects to have a finalized communications plan to the Select Board by June. Be on the lookout for opportunities to participate in this work!

Today in Burlington

Meetings and Events

1:00 PM - English at Large Conversation Group (Library event)
4:00 PM - Teen Taste Test Tuesday: M & Ms (Library event - Register)
6:30 PM - General Bylaw Review Committee will work on a plan for rolling out the Hybrid Meetings article to various department for support; they’ll also discuss an upcoming article to allow publication of legal notices in online publications rather than just print ones. (Join online)
7:00 PM - Board of Health at Town Hall and online</a>; they’ll look at a permit for 4 Burlington Woods, hold a hearing about some proposed changes to regulations regarding storage and disposal of hazardous materials and to the fee schedule, and they’ll discuss the inter-municipal agreement between Lexington and Wilmington for the Public Health Excellence grant, which Burlington will be administering.

7:00 PM - School Committee at BHS School Committee Room

and online (Executive Session begins at 7:00; public meeting begins at 7:30). They’ll look at the proposed school choice and waste diversion policies, discuss Restorative Justice training and piloting, and more.