After years of planning, design, and construction, the City of Burlington and project partner VHB celebrated the completion of the Great Streets Main Street project with a ribbon-cutting ceremony in late July. City officials, project partners, business owners, and community members gathered downtown to mark the completion of one of the city's most significant public infrastructure investments, transforming a historic corridor into a more accessible, welcoming, and vibrant destination for residents and visitors alike.
Designed to rebalance how Main Street's public space is used, the project known as Great Streets BTV shifts the corridor's focus beyond vehicles to better serve pedestrians, cyclists, businesses, and the broader community. The redesigned streetscape features wider sidewalks, dedicated space for bicyclists, expanded landscaping, green infrastructure, public gathering areas, and public art installations that contribute to a more engaging downtown experience. Beneath the surface, critical water and sewer infrastructure improvements replace aging systems and support Burlington's long-term growth and resiliency.
Beginning in the fall of 2021, the VHB design team worked closely with the City and our consultant partners to advance the design from concepts through contract drawings in 20 months and brought the project to construction on-schedule in early 2024. The project included replacing the Main Street pavement, all sidewalks, water and sewer infrastructure, separating combined sewers, and adding new grade-separated bike lanes, engagement zones and public art spaces.
"Projects like Great Streets don't happen overnight," said Peter Smiar, Vermont Managing Director and project engineer for VHB. "This ribbon cutting represents years of dedication from an incredible team, strong collaboration with the City of Burlington, and a shared commitment to investing in Burlington's future. It's rewarding to see a vision we've been working toward for so long become a reality and create a downtown corridor that will support economic vitality, community connections, and quality of life for years to come."
The completed corridor creates a more walkable and flexible downtown environment that supports local businesses, strengthens connections between key destinations, and enhances Burlington's sense of place. As residents and visitors experience the renewed Main Street, the project stands as an example of how thoughtful infrastructure investments can support community goals while positioning downtowns for future growth.
Learn more about how VHB supports state and local government’s with community revitalization projects.
