BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) – As Burlington’s downtown scene evolves and businesses come and go, Rogue Rabbit is seizing a new opportunity.
“It’s going really well. We’ve been really embraced by the community,” said Abby Temeles, who co-owns the Roman-inspired cafe that serves pizza slices and large Italian-inspired sandwiches just steps away from Church Street. “We looked at some other places outside of Burlington and none of them felt right. We just wanted to start our business in our home. We can walk here and it’s really the perfect spot for us.”
The city’s downtown has seen its share of challenges with open drug use, people struggling with homelessness and bad behavior. Temeles says she’s even helped people congregating near her business. Ultimately, she says she’s not deterred but invigorated about the future of their business and Church Street business as a whole.
“Some places that have really been institutions here are leaving and that’s sad, but it’s also an opportunity for the next generation to come in and start that new chapter and I think it’s gonna be a really exciting summer,” Temeles said.
Despite the positive outlook, vacant properties can still be seen throughout the downtown but even more signs of new life with businesses moving in.
“A fairly strong level of interest from the retail perspective, people still want to be there, and when they move, their sales seem to support their decision, which is good news,” said Yves Bradley of V/T Commercial, a real estate agency.
Bradley is optimistic about the future, especially when businesses like Phoenix Books and Kiss the Cook move to more prominent spaces on Church Street, showing the interest in retail is still there.
“We need to repopulate the downtown with people because when the people are there having fun, it’s less comfortable for people who want to do other things that are not necessarily legal,” Bradley said.
The city says despite some uncomfortable challenges, Burlington is still the place to be year-round. That’s backed up by the latest 2023 cellphone data showing around two million visitors.
“We’re back to pre-pandemic and above levels. So the tertiary marketplace welcomed over a million visitors in 2023 and we’re hoping to hit that target or more again this year,” said Kara Alnasrawi of Burlington Business Development.
Some other new businesses that have opened or will open soon include a late-night cookie shop, a thin-crust pizza joint and an Asian market.