The Intervale Center: A Gem in the City The Impacts of the Intervale Center on the Burlington Community By Ali Vollmar
Before arriving in Burlington in the fall of 2020, I had never heard of the Intervale Center. After living in the city for a few months, I took a friend’s advice to take a walk in the Intervale’s woods where I slowly started to unearth a hidden gem in the heart of Chittenden County. It was not until my first environmental studies class at UVM, Environmental Studies 001, that I fully realized the broad impacts of the Intervale on its surrounding land and community. In my lab, we dove into the dozens of unique elements that make up the Intervale, which prompted reflection on how my previously narrow viewpoint of the organization had widened. I realized there must be other people that view the Intervale as only a green area, rather than a hub for food production, community building, and volunteering.
A Brief History The Intervale project was initially formulated by Will Raap, founder of Gardener’s Supply Company, as an effort to restore the 700-acre area of low-lying, underutilized land sitting within Burlington’s city limits. Raap and his dedicated crew cleaned and restored the land, transforming it from a dilapidated dumping ground to its present state as a vibrant community space. Today, the Intervale is recognized for its sustainable agriculture models, specialization in community-supported agriculture, and expansive food hub. Since 1988, innovation in farming styles and land care has been of the utmost priority to the Intervale Center.
Exploration of Nature The Intervale’s natural areas offer a peaceful escape
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from the nearby hustle of the city. All can inhale fresh air as they walk, bike or run along trails extending along the Winooski River to the Ethan Allen Homestead. Snowfall in the winter months expands the Intervale’s outdoor offerings, opening three miles of groomed cross country ski trails, snowshoeing, and more. By engaging in these activities on the land, visitors at the Intervale can experience an intimate sense of place— the connection individuals feel with their natural surroundings. A sense of place can provide people with feelings of groundedness, and is integral to achieving inner peace and balance in our current day and age. The upkeep of natural areas by the Intervale is crucial not only to physical health, but also to the community’s mental health by providing visitors with the opportunity to connect and decompress outdoors.
Positively Impacting the Local Ecosystem A unique feature of the Intervale is that it provides a space for the ‘Tommy Thompson Community Garden,’ the largest of 14 community gardens managed by the Burlington Area Community Garden program. The Tommy Thompson garden site is home to over 150 plots and is an exceptional tool for connecting people in urban or suburban areas to the natural landscape. This opportunity expands access to farming, giving members the ability to grow and harvest fresh food close to their home and utilize the incredibly fertile soil of the Winooski floodplain. It also encourages participants to engage in restorative growing techniques that improve overall growing conditions and soil fertility, such as fertilizing the soil with compost and irrigating plants with water collected in rain barrels. Lastly, the proximity of the gar-
