Author: Elaina Fuzi

  • Election 2025: Should Burlington Lift the Ban on Recreational Cannabis Sales?

    As Burlington residents prepare to vote next month in a non-binding referendum on lifting the town’s ban on marijuana shops, people here are divided on the question, though many do not seem to care one way or the other. 

    When Massachusetts voted to legalize recreational marijuana in 2016, the state allowed towns that voted against legalization to decide whether they want to have recreational dispensaries. Burlington’s Town Meeting enacted a ban on these shops in 2017.

    But that could change.

    The Select Board voted 3-1, with one abstention, on January 27 to put the issue on the April 5 town-wide ballot as a non-binding referendum. The vote is solely aimed at determining if Burlington residents have changed their opinions over the past eight years; a Town Meeting vote would be required to lift the ban.

    Michael Espejo, a Burlington Select Board member, said at the January 27 meeting that the Select Board has “gotten a lot of negative feedback through email” about removing the ban.  

    “But everyone I’ve talked to, if you talk to someone one to one or you reach out to someone,” Espejo said, “It seems like people are either in favor of marijuana sales in town or they’re ambivalent.”

    While most residents Burlington Buzz spoke with about the issue said they don’t use marijuana or don’t have an opinion, a few did voice their thoughts.

    Saty Pattnaik, who works in the financial department of a biopharmaceutical company, said he is against lifting the ban because it will make it too easy for people to obtain marijuana. “It just intoxicates your brain, your mind, and your body, and it causes a lot of health issues as well if you overdo it,” Pattnaik said. 

    Ann Rose, a registered nurse, said she favors lifting the ban because people go to other towns to get their marijuana, depriving Burlington of tax revenue. Municipalities can impose a tax of up to 3% of adult-use marijuana retail sales.

    Rose said she voted against the ban in 2017 and does not think there would be much pushback if Burlington decides to have recreational marijuana shops. “[Marijuana shops] are everywhere,” Rose said. “You see signs all over the highway for them, like Melrose has them, Gloucester has them, Woburn has them.” 

    Ariel Diaz, who runs a convenience store, said he opposes the ban because he wants marijuana sales to be more convenient. He said it would be good for the community and Burlington could generate more money. “Burlington has a bunch of stupid rules,” Diaz said. “They need to lift some of these things.”

    Betsey Hughes, who is a Town Meeting member, said having recreational marijuana shops would not be good for Burlington. 

    “The economic benefits are overhyped and uncertain. The economic and social costs are ignored and shouldn’t be,” Hughes said. “Having pot shops in Burlington is not an unavoidable outcome.”

    Hughes said she received quite a few emails from residents who rent apartments in her precinct who voiced opposition to lifting the ban. The town already voted on the issue, they said according to Hughes. Additional reasons they mentioned: That there are risks associated with marijuana; Burlington’s reputation for good neighborhoods might be called into question; and there are plenty of pot shops nearby. 

    “If somebody wants it, they can get it without compromising our family-oriented culture here in town,” Hughes said.

    Burlington is one of over 120 towns in Massachusetts that do not permit retail marijuana, including the nearby towns of Bedford and Lexington. Over 180 towns allow the marijuana shops, including Billerica and Woburn.

    In her experience as a human resource executive, Hughes has dealt with substance abuse issues. She says some CEOs and human resource officers are concerned about having marijuana stores within walking distance of workplaces where people can go out for lunch and consume gummies. 

    “It’s not like alcohol where you can smell it,” Hughes said. “It’s invisible on the surface, but it definitely affects performance.”

    Burlington resident Will Seagaard, who owns the Fresh Connection marijuana cultivation facility in Fitchburg, spearheaded the initiative to revisit the ban and add zoning for recreational cannabis.

    Seagaard said he favors lifting the ban for the tax revenue and because it provides a controlled environment for selling marijuana. Marijuana is being sold, whether illegally or in nearby towns, so Burlington might as well get the financial gain, said Seagaard. 

    “It was approved at the state level, and we’re not changing that,” he said. “What we can change is how it’s done in our community and what kind of safeguards we can put up. Saying we’re not going to ‘allow’ it doesn’t change the fact that it’s here.”

    James Hanafin, a Burlington detective sergeant, said he would rather not have recreational marijuana shops in the town but is not strongly opposed to them. Many of the people the police deal with who have mental health issues are marijuana users, he said. 

    A lot of people are concerned about bringing “riffraff” into town, Hanafin said, but there are already so many people coming from out of town to shop or stay in hotels here that he does not think it will make much of a difference.

    While some Burlington police officers are strongly against marijuana, Hanafin said, he has not heard much from residents.

    Burlington residents the Buzz talked to didn’t generally have strong opinions about the issue.

    “It’s not something you’re going to go out and wave the flag about, like, ‘Hey, let’s sell marijuana here,’” Espejo said. “It’s either, ‘It doesn’t really affect me,’ or you’re strongly against it and that would enable or motivate someone to write a letter to the Select Board or to their Town Meeting member.”

    Voters have the opportunity to vote during this year’s town election on whether or not they support lifting the ban. Mail-in voting has begun, early in-person voting runs from March 19 through April 3, and Election Day is Saturday, April 5, at Burlington High School.

    What do you think? Voice your choice with TownVote, powered by our civic partner, VoteLight. You can also ask questions and state your opinions using this platform.

    This non-binding referendum is one of two questions on the local election ballot. The second question will be whether or not the Town Clerk role should be converted from elected to appointed. Check out our story for information on the pros and cons of each.

    This story is part of a partnership between Burlington Buzz and the Boston University Department of Journalism.

  • Residents Hold Political Demonstration on Burlington Town Common

    A crowd of about 50 people holding handmade signs gathered Saturday on the Town Common in front of Burlington Town Hall for a peaceful demonstration protesting President Trump’s administration. 

    Burlington resident Mimi Bix-Hylan, who has been a social activist for many years, organized the protest, which addressed topics such as the mass firings of federal employees, Trump’s rhetoric regarding Gaza and Ukraine, his moves against DEI initiatives and environmental protections, USAID funding cuts and the rolling back of abortion rights. 

    “It’s really important for communities across the country to speak out against the unconstitutional and illegal maneuvers this administration has been doing,” Bix-Hylan said.

    Several of the signs bore messages directed at Trump and Elon Musk regarding democracy, such as “Trump is not a king,” “America is for All, not only the rich,” and “Our rights are not for grabs, neither are we.” A few of the signs addressed specific issues, saying “Democracy depends on the Free Press” and “Are your eggs cheaper yet?”

    Bix-Hylan said she has been planning the demonstration for a couple of weeks and raised awareness about it through word of mouth. She said she was happy with the turnout. “People are intimidated by coming out and being in the public spotlight, so I’m OK with it being small,” she said. 

    Michelle Huntoon, a Burlington Town Meeting member, spoke to the crowd about the mass firings of government employees. Huntoon said she was one of those who got fired – she was an attorney advisor for housing finance and programs in the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development until February 14. 

    “It was an amazing job,” Huntoon said. “I was there for a year and a half, and because I hadn’t hit a two-year mark they decided to ignore all existing statutes, collective bargaining agreements, and eliminate across the country with a machete anyone who had not hit this specific time mark.”

    Larry Cohen told the crowd he is concerned that Republicans will cut Medicaid, which provides health insurance for roughly one in five Americans. 

    “My sister happens to be one of those people on Medicaid,” Cohen said. “She is only alive today because the National Institutes of Health funded the development of a life saving drug.” Trump has also ordered major reductions in NIH’s medical research grants, though a federal judge has temporarily blocked the cuts.

    Burlington resident Larry Kerstein said this was the first protest he has participated in since 1969, when he protested against the Vietnam War. 

    Kerstein said he heard about the demonstration in an email from the Burlington Democratic Town Committee and hopes it leads to larger protests. 

    “I hope that people will see this as a viable response,” Kerstein said. “It’s got to be a ground up kind of thing. We have to save ourselves.”

    Hudson resident Sara Frost said she has participated in three other protests in recent months in nearby towns like Framingham. She said she hopes the protest will make more people feel confident enough to speak out.

    “It’s going to take the whole country speaking out to make any kind of change,” Frost said. “Congress needs to see this happen on every street in America.”

    Burlington resident Janice Cohen, who is co-chair of the Democratic Town Committee, said she also marched in 2017 after Trump first got elected.

    “It’s very easy to just stay wrapped up in your own day-to-day issues and not be aware of what’s going on,” Cohen said. “But I think it’s very important that people really wake up and see what’s happening and speak up.”

    Two Woburn residents, Chris DiMeo and Shafique Ssemwogerere, said they are friends who came to the demonstration because they are concerned that the government’s executive branch is turning into a monarchy. 

    “We wanted to join our Burlington Democrat friends to stand out today to stand up for justice,” DiMeo said.

    DiMeo said they have attended small gatherings in Woburn but nothing as “well attended” as the protest in Burlington.

    Richard Grossman came to the demonstration with his wife and two daughters, one in elementary school and one in middle school. Grossman said he protested for his daughters and to make America better for the next generation.

    “You know, from the young people today to our veterans and to our elderly, everybody’s got a stake in this,” Grossman said.

    Two men, who declined to give their names but identified themselves as Burlington residents, wore pro-Trump hats and stood across Center Street from the Town Common throughout the demonstration. “They do not speak for Burlington,” said one of the men, gesturing toward the crowd. “We just wanted to come out and show our support for the president.” They did not move to interact with the protesters.

    This story is part of a partnership between Burlington Buzz and the Boston University Department of Journalism.

  • Local-Made Crafting and Gifts Have a New Home

    The business that went from a Facebook page to a store where dozens of Burlington vendors sell their handmade crafts has moved from the Wayside Shopping Center to a spot on Middlesex Turnpike.

    Made in Burlington started on Facebook in 2020, when craft fairs were suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic, said Laurena Smith, the shop’s founder and owner. A year later the Facebook page became a pop-up craft shop in the Wayside Shopping Center that was intended to last two months but is still running three years later.

    “We had so many customers that kept saying, ‘This place is great. You can’t leave. You can’t close,’” Smith said. She kept extending the lease as people kept coming to the shop. The latest contract ended in January, and the Wayside Shopping Center had another business interested in moving into the space.

    Smith found a new spot in the Burlington Square Plaza at 101 Middlesex Turnpike, an area long-time Burlington residents will recognize as “where Tower Records used to be.” The shop relocated quickly and began operations there on February 2. Vendors say they are optimistic that the new location on a busy road will help them sell even more products.

    “I like to say that by supporting my small business you’re supporting 80 other small businesses,” said Smith, who hosts crafts from over 80 artisans from Burlington and surrounding areas in the shop. The sellers pay rent and a sales fee, but most of the profits go to the crafters, who set their own prices.

    The shop hosts weekly workshops and classes where people can learn how to make crafts such as baskets, jewelry and resin art. The classes, taught by vendors, are mostly adult classes, but they have classes for children as well, Smith said.

    The sense of community in the shop inspired Smith to create an entire craft section in the back of the new store that will be set up at all times so people can just come in to do crafts. The area will have tables set up and crafts on the shelves, ranging from a couple of dollars to $20, so people can pick out what they want to do, sit down, and do the craft for an hour or two for a $5 fee, said Smith. “We’re kind of rebranding as a handmade gift shop and DIY studio, so people can be creative whenever they want.”

    One of the vendors, Jessica Perry, said while she loved the old location, she thinks the new location is great because it is a busy area with hopefully just as much foot traffic. 

    Perry owns The Warped Loom, a fiber arts business that sells woven products like scarves, linens, and needle-felted pictures. A Billerica resident, Perry has been a vendor at Made in Burlington for a year and a half.

    In addition to being a vendor, Perry said she is also a frequent shopper and has gone to a crafting workshop with her 7-year-old daughter where they made their own button pins.

    Perry said she loves the community of customers and artists. 

    “A lot of artists are very kind people, and the ones that I’ve met would share information on shows, fairs and festivals that are coming up and things like that,” Perry said.

    Marieta Mirchev, owner of Purity Ave Candles, which sells all-natural soy candles, said she hopes the new location will bring more customers because it is more visible from the road and closer to the Burlington Mall. 

    Mirchev has lived in Burlington for eight years and has been with the store since it opened. She said she teaches candle-making workshops every few months at the store, getting an average of 10 people per workshop.

    “I like [Made In Burlington] not only as someone who sells there but also as a person from Burlington who has a family, knowing we can go there for the kids,” Mirchev said.

    Mirchev said she prefers to buy gifts from vendors at Made in Burlington rather than from the Burlington Mall.

    “We have a sign behind the desk that says, ‘When you buy handmade, an actual person does a happy dance,’ and it’s so true,” Smith said.

    The refreshed and reimagined Made in Burlington store is now open at 101 Middlesex Turnpike, on the corner of Mall Road and Middlesex Turnpike.

    This story is part of a partnership between Burlington Buzz and the Boston University Department of Journalism.

  • Local-Made Crafting and Gifts Have a New Home

    Elaina Fuzi

    The business that went from a Facebook page to a store where dozens of Burlington vendors sell their handmade crafts has moved from the Wayside Shopping Center to a spot on Middlesex Turnpike.

    Made in Burlington started on Facebook in 2020, when craft fairs were suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic, said Laurena Smith, the shop’s founder and owner. A year later the Facebook page became a pop-up craft shop in the Wayside Shopping Center that was intended to last two months but is still running three years later.

    “We had so many customers that kept saying, ‘This place is great. You can’t leave. You can’t close,’” Smith said. She kept extending the lease as people kept coming to the shop. The latest contract ended in January, and the Wayside Shopping Center had another business interested in moving into the space.

    Smith found a new spot in the Burlington Square Plaza at 101 Middlesex Turnpike, an area long-time Burlington residents will recognize as “where Tower Records used to be.” The shop relocated quickly and began operations there on February 2. Vendors say they are optimistic that the new location on a busy road will help them sell even more products.

    “I like to say that by supporting my small business you’re supporting 80 other small businesses,” said Smith, who hosts crafts from over 80 artisans from Burlington and surrounding areas in the shop. The sellers pay rent and a sales fee, but most of the profits go to the crafters, who set their own prices.

    The shop hosts weekly workshops and classes where people can learn how to make crafts such as baskets, jewelry and resin art. The classes, taught by vendors, are mostly adult classes, but they have classes for children as well, Smith said.

    The sense of community in the shop inspired Smith to create an entire craft section in the back of the new store that will be set up at all times so people can just come in to do crafts. The area will have tables set up and crafts on the shelves, ranging from a couple of dollars to $20, so people can pick out what they want to do, sit down, and do the craft for an hour or two for a $5 fee, said Smith. “We’re kind of rebranding as a handmade gift shop and DIY studio, so people can be creative whenever they want.”

    One of the vendors, Jessica Perry, said while she loved the old location, she thinks the new location is great because it is a busy area with hopefully just as much foot traffic. 

    Perry owns The Warped Loom, a fiber arts business that sells woven products like scarves, linens, and needle-felted pictures. A Billerica resident, Perry has been a vendor at Made in Burlington for a year and a half.

    In addition to being a vendor, Perry said she is also a frequent shopper and has gone to a crafting workshop with her 7-year-old daughter where they made their own button pins.

    Perry said she loves the community of customers and artists. 

    “A lot of artists are very kind people, and the ones that I’ve met would share information on shows, fairs and festivals that are coming up and things like that,” Perry said.

    Marieta Mirchev, owner of Purity Ave Candles, which sells all-natural soy candles, said she hopes the new location will bring more customers because it is more visible from the road and closer to the Burlington Mall. 

    Mirchev has lived in Burlington for eight years and has been with the store since it opened. She said she teaches candle-making workshops every few months at the store, getting an average of 10 people per workshop.

    “I like [Made In Burlington] not only as someone who sells there but also as a person from Burlington who has a family, knowing we can go there for the kids,” Mirchev said.

    Mirchev said she prefers to buy gifts from vendors at Made in Burlington rather than from the Burlington Mall.

    “We have a sign behind the desk that says, ‘When you buy handmade, an actual person does a happy dance,’ and it’s so true,” Smith said.

    The refreshed and reimagined Made in Burlington store is now open at 101 Middlesex Turnpike, on the corner of Mall Road and Middlesex Turnpike.

    This story is part of a partnership between Burlington Buzz and the Boston University Department of Journalism.

  • Burlington Players Present “Working for Crumbs,” a Dark Workplace Comedy, Through March 8

    Elaina Fuzi

    Steve Bermundo and Angela Rossi playing their parts in “Working for Crumbs”

    The latest show to come to Burlington’s Park Playhouse is a dark comedy that cast members hope will give the audience a two-hour respite from real life.

    The Burlington Players will be performing Kate Danley’s unpublished play, “Working for Crumbs,” from now until March 8. Director Chris Rose said the show is a dark workplace comedy centered on two coworkers who are competing for the same position.

    Rose said he first heard about the play when Danley, a Seattle playwright, sent a copy to the Players in 2020. The theater’s play reading committee thought it was great and presented it to the membership, which voted to make this one of the four productions for the 2024-25 season.

    “This is an unpublished draft that she sent, and it’s rare to find something like that,” said Rose, a Burlington resident who has worked with Burlington Players since 1994, doing jobs including set design, acting, and directing. Professionally, he works as a data analyst for LogixHealth.

    Danley said this is her second major full-length play and one of eight registered on the New Play Exchange, an online catalog of self-published plays, though none of her works is officially published. She said she started writing “Working for Crumbs” in 2016 while doing commercial production in New York, and the play has a lot of “biographical elements to it.” There have been five full productions of the play, but this will be the first time it will be performed in Massachusetts; Danley said she’s excited.

    Rose said he and Danley communicated via directly throughout the show’s process. She answered any questions he or the actors had and discussed different suggestions, such as changing one of the characters originally written as a male to a female because the character is being played by an actress, Rose said. He also had a couple of Danley’s old drafts and talked to her about reverting certain things back to an earlier idea.

    “It’s true of every production that an actor and a director can bring whatever their vision is to that production or role, but with an unpublished play, you have even more license,” said Jacey Rutledge, who plays Grace, one of the lead characters. 

    “It’s exciting too because the audience doesn’t really know the show, and when you’re giving the elevator pitch ‘It’s like “9 to 5: meets “Weekend at Bernie’s,”’ they’re like, ‘Oh, that sounds interesting,’ but nobody knows what’s gonna actually happen in the show,” said Angel Rossi, who plays the other lead character, Amy.

    Rossi lives in South Hamilton and Rutledge in Billerica, and they both have been members of the Burlington Players for over 20 years. Rossi said they were in a Burlington Players’ show together in 2002, but this is their first show together since then. 

    A big reason they have not done a show together in so long, said Rutledge, is because there are not a lot of female roles and if they both auditioned for a show, they tended to compete for the same part. 

    “There are not a ton of comedies like this, written for female characters,” Rutledge said. “I’ve done a lot of Shakespeare where I’ve played male characters who are the clown roles, so it’s nice to have that kind of comedy written specifically for not male characters.”

    Rossi added that there are not many female roles that lean into physical comedy, and usually when female characters do take on that type of role, they are “scantily clad.” 

    Danley said her favorite thing about collaborating with The Burlington Players is how much they love the script and respect playwrights.

    “I wrote the script because I really believe that we need more funny women on stage,” Danley said. “They understood it, and they really sought out performers who had that spirit.”

    “It’s just a show where you go to laugh,” said Brit Barone, who is playing the supporting role, Molly. “Sometimes it’s nice to just see a show where your takeaway is that you had a good time.”

    Barone, who lives in Salem, is the director of student life for summer programs at Berklee College of Music. This is her first show with the Burlington Players, and she said she is the only person involved in the show who did not know anybody before she joined the cast. 

    “I think my favorite thing has been getting to know this completely new space and new production company and new group of people,” Barone said. “Everyone’s been really welcoming and cool.”

    There will be nine performances of “Working for Crumbs” from Feb. 21 to March 8 in the 85-seat theatre. Tickets are $20; students and seniors pay $18. 

    The Burlington Players, an all-volunteer community theater group of adults from Burlington and surrounding towns, was established in 1965 and has been using the Park Playhouse as its permanent residence since 1985.

    Rutledge said people should come to see “Working for Crumbs” because the show is funny and “epically ridiculous,” and people need a break from reality. 

    “Laughing is key to being alive, so we need to laugh a lot, especially these days,” Rutledge said.

    This story is part of a partnership between Burlington Buzz and the Boston University Department of Journalism.