Welcome
Located on the eastern shore of Lake Champlain, Burlington is the largest city in the State of Vermont, with a population of 40,000 in a greater metropolitan area of approximately 150,000 residents. It has been ranked by many organizations as one of the most livable cities in the United States.
The Burlington Police Department was commissioned in 1865 to provide law enforcement services to the Queen City. Throughout our history, the men and women of the department have proudly served their community. We serve a residential community of over 40,000, in addition to thousands of students from local colleges and the University of Vermont. The Department has an authorized strength of 100 full-time police officers and 36 civilian support personnel. We operate using core tenets of community policing.
NEW FOR 2010! - Information on Protecting Your Business - See the links at the lower left corner of this home page
*** NOW IN USE: Messaging System for Alerts, Traffic Advisories, Community Notification --- NIXLE
BPD is now offering the option for interested persons to subscribe (free of charge) to a messaging system called NIXLE. NIXLE is a trusted messaging system with partners such as National Law Enforcement Telecommunications System, the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the Council of State Governments, the Police Executive Research Forum, and a host of others.
Those interested in subscribing to messages via e-mail, text, or SMS can do so by visiting www.nixle.com.
In the event that members of the public would prefer to follow these broadcasts via Twitter, NIXLE postings will be automatically cross- posted to Twitter at the following Tweet: http://twitter.com/BPDVT. It should be noted that BPD personnel will not be directly posting to Twitter. Rather, messages will be cross-posted using a feature of NIXLE that allows automatic population of the BPDVT Twitter page.
Messages that will be sent, from time to time, include:
- Traffic – information related to traffic problems or diversions and parking bans
- Community Information – information about meetings that relate to public safety topics
- Advisories – Crime Alerts and Press/Informational Releases (from events in which we are seeking information from the public or a neighborhood that may be impacted by a response or have a recognizable interest in immediate information about an event)
- Alerts - Critical Incident Information – information on major events, emergencies, or things such as Amber Alerts, missing persons, etc.
While we do not expect a large volume of messages, we believe that this will be a helpful tool in directly alerting intersted persons of traffic issues, events relating to public safety, general advisories, and in the event of an emergency - critical or useful information.
We anticipate that this project will initially be a 90 day pilot, after which we will assess it's continuation.
Community Policing
Community Policing is a philosophy that combines the elements of partnerships, problem-solving and organizational change. Since 1999, we have worked with community members to better understand the needs of the neighborhoods. After we reach consensus, we work to set a policing agenda that is lawful, appropriate and without bias.
Our goals are to partner with stakeholders from the community and the service sectors to carry out the problem-solving to which we have all agreed. That may look different for the various parts of the city. For example, in the downtown area we emphasize compliance with liquor control laws and ordinances to maintain a high quality of life. In the hill section, we work with residents on noise and quality of life issues. Throughout the city we are working to reduce drug activity and to keep roads and highways safe.
In 2001, we were received recognition from the International Association of Chiefs of Police with a Community Policing Award. In 2009 we began a reassessment of our policing strategies with an eye toward the future. In the column to the right you will find the results of that process and a list of some of the projects and initiatives we are undertaking or will explore in the future.
Our Mission and Values
We are committed to policing with the citizens of Burlington to achieve a safe, healthy and self-reliant community.
INTEGRITY - We adhere to the highest ethical standards, assuring the community that their public trust is well founded.
SERVICE - We provide the highest level of service and protection to all people in a competent, courteous manner, tempered with compassion and understanding.
RESPECT - We treat all persons with dignity and respect by promoting equality and fairness both inside and outside the Department.
CREATIVITY - We engage in problem-solving as our primary strategy, involving the community in identification of the problems, the best solutions and their implementation.
Our Website
Our website is designed to easily navigate, with links available primarily from our home page. The two exceptions to this design are our RECRUITMENT PORTAL which is available via this link or the link to the left, and our NEWS & ANNOUNCEMENTS page, available in the same manner. The site is currently for information only. If you have an emergency please dial 911. For general calls for service or inquiries, use our general business line at (802) 658-2704.
In 2010 we will begin the process of developing an online crime reporting system to allow residents and visitors to report low level crime that does not require extensive investigation via our website. Additionally, a second project will allow residents and businesses to interactively map where incidents and crime are occurring in the City. We are working to have that system operational following the deployment of the online reporting portal.
Most of the information available via this site exists as a PDF document. This is done so the information you need can be accessed online and also printed as necessary for reference.
Graffiti Remediation Initiative
Please click here to read the most recent information about City-wide removal efforts and rewards for information leading to the arrest of graffiti vandals. For information about the arrests of graffiti suspects please visit our News & Announcement page to the left or our new graffiti arrests page by clicking here . For help removing graffiti you can contact the Graffiti Removal Team at the Center for Community and Neighborhoods - 865-7548 or graffiti@bpdvt.org. You can also learn more about graffiti removal products by clicking here.
©2010 Burlington Police Department - This site is created and maintained by the Burlington Police Department. Use of any document or image contained herein is prohibited.
