Downtown Burlington merchants tell Board of Finance retail theft has surged, say streets feel unsafe

Several downtown property and business owners told the Burlington Board of Finance on Monday that retail theft on Church Street has grown to “epic proportions” and is driving away local shoppers.

The merchants made their remarks during the Board of Finance public forum at a meeting on Feb. 10 in Burlington. They said repeated thefts and other disorderly behavior on Church Street are hurting employees, customers and downtown foot traffic.

“I thought it was appropriate that I come and speak to the finance committee because this has to do with public safety on Church Street,” said Jeff Nick, a Church Street property owner. “The retail theft...is epic proportions out there on the street. And nobody feels safe, especially store clerks.”

Why it matters: Church Street Marketplace is a central business corridor in downtown Burlington. Business owners said they are seeing thefts multiple times per day at some stores, that staff are confronting suspected shoplifters, and that the situation is reducing local shopping visits and harming workers’ wages and morale.

Merchants disputed a city website figure they said understates the problem. “On the city website, it says Burlington has on average 363 retail thefts per year, 1 per day,” Nick said. “I know there’s a store owner back here that deals with more than 1 per day in 1 store.”

An unnamed store owner who spoke during the forum said the business community is seeing “anywhere from 3 to 8 thefts a week,” and described employees confronting thieves and the resulting stress on staff pay and retention. “We have to confront people who are trying to steal from us,” the speaker said.

Restaurant owner Jeff Davis said behavior ranging “from undesirable all the way up to illegal has skyrocketed recently,” listing examples he said occur downtown and saying that, in the absence of consistent consequences, some problematic conduct has become tolerated.

Former City Councilor Sharon Buscher, speaking as a private citizen, said she concurred with the business community’s concerns and urged more action. She also raised a separate question about a planning‑department personnel item on the Board of Finance agenda.

No formal action. The Board of Finance heard the public comments but took no formal vote or directive at the meeting on Feb. 10 related to downtown retail theft. Several speakers urged the council and mayor’s office to increase public‑safety resources downtown; the speakers noted both hiring constraints in the Burlington Police Department and use of private security by some businesses.

What speakers want next: Commenters asked the city to (1) allocate more enforcement resources downtown or redirect resources to the Marketplace Commission, (2) ensure staffing and consequences for retail theft are effective, and (3) provide clearer, up‑to‑date data on retail theft for businesses and the public.

The Board of Finance meeting record shows the public forum comments were received on Feb. 10; the speakers asked the mayor’s office and city council to consider their concerns as the city develops its budget and public‑safety strategy.