Consultants present economic-development benchmarking; residents press for climate, housing and workforce detail

Consultants hired to help draft South Burlington’s economic-development strategy presented benchmarking data to the City’s Economic Development Committee on the evening of the committee’s public meeting, prompting questions from residents and committee members about housing affordability, workforce pathways and coordination with climate and open-space planning.

The presentation by Laura Hamlin, CEO of Civic Soul, summarized findings from a benchmarking assessment that compared South Burlington to peer municipalities and to county, state and national measures. Key findings reported by Hamlin included an 8% population increase from 2018–2023, higher-than-average household incomes and education levels, a younger median age (about 38), significant job growth (a reported 10.8% change in jobs 2018–2023), higher-than-expected rents, and low rates of walking or biking to work (about 3%).

The assessment matters because the consultants and the city team say those metrics will guide a multi-year economic-development strategy that emphasizes workforce, housing and “place” as equally important to traditional company attraction. "If you lead with building a vibrant workforce versus company attraction, you can get to a a more interesting and a more positive place in communities," Hamlin told the committee and attendees.

Hamlin described the project’s approach as an ecosystem analysis that will identify industry “clusters” and the supporting institutions around…