State leaders on Wednesday unveiled their latest proposal to build a security facility for troubled youths — this time, identifying a location in South Burlington.
The so-called Green Mountain Youth Campus would be built on Meadowland Drive and would host 14 beds that could house youths ages 12 to 18.
The facility is meant to replace a gap in Vermont’s current system that was created when the Woodside Juvenile Rehabilitation Center was shuttered in 2020 amid allegations of abuse by staff.
The only current placement for justice-involved youth in Vermont is a temporary facility called Red Clover Treatment Center in Middlesex. State officials have stressed that it is not a viable long-term solution.
“Right now, too many young people are sent out of state or placed in settings that don’t meet their needs,” Sen. Ginny Lyons (D-Chittenden-Southeast) said in a press release.
State leaders say the facility could be up and running by summer 2028, so long as the local permitting process proceeds. That could be a big if, judging from past experience: South Burlington is the third community to be identified as a potential site for the facility. Proposals in Newbury and Vergennes were both shelved following community pushback. The new facility is proposed for a largely industrial area.
“We’ve been working to identify a location that offers the right balance of access to critical supports, infrastructure, and community partnership,” said Sandi Hoffman, Commissioner of the Department for Children and Families, in a press release. “We believe South Burlington provides that opportunity.”
The facility will be overseen by DCF, which will regularly inspect it, review incident reports and investigate complaints.
Marshall Pahl, a deputy in the Office of the Defender General who represented youths at Woodside, said he supports the project.
“The work at Red Clover has shown that our state can deliver quality care and treatment in a structured setting,” he said in a press release. “Expanding our in-state capacity to care for Vermont children in Vermont, rather than out-of-state, will lead to better outcomes for youth and their families.”
