Giant Pit

Updated June 11, 2025

A Rival Developer Is Challenging the CityPlace Burlington Project in …

## Giant Pit (a.k.a. “The Pit”) in Burlington, Vermont: what you’re actually looking at—and why it became famous

If you’ve seen “Giant Pit” pinned as a “museum” in Burlington, you’ve run into a very Burlington kind of joke. The “Pit” isn’t a curated indoor museum with exhibits and hours. It’s the long-running local nickname for the downtown construction void left behind by the stalled redevelopment of Burlington’s former downtown mall—an urban block that became infamous enough to gain its own online presence and legend.

Today, that story has a major new chapter: the redevelopment has rebranded as Burlington Square, and the first phase opened in 2025 with a hotel, apartments, and street-level businesses—turning a long-standing eyesore into a functioning part of downtown again. Public

## What “Giant Pit” refers to

Locals have called the stalled CityPlace redevelopment site “the Pit” for years—an excavation at the heart of downtown that disrupted pedestrian routes and became a symbol of delays, lawsuits, redesigns, and financing breakdowns.

That notoriety spilled into map culture: Burlington residents have pointed out that someone marked the Pit as a “museum” on Google Maps—one of those internet-age civic in-jokes that makes more sense once you know the backstory.

## Why it matters (beyond the meme)

This isn’t just a quirky pin—it’s a case study in how a single downtown block can shape a city’s day-to-day:

– Urban flow: reporting described how pedestrians had to detour around the site to move through downtown.
– Civic trust: timelines slipped repeatedly, and the project became politically charged locally.
– Economic stakes: the redevelopment depended on complicated agreements, deadlines, and public infrastructure funding mechanisms (including tax increment financing tied to surrounding street work).

If you like places with “how did this happen?” energy, the Pit is surprisingly compelling—because it’s about real, modern civic friction, not distant history.

## The shortest reliable timeline (based on reporting)

Here’s what can be stated confidently from published reporting:

– The stalled redevelopment of Burlington’s downtown mall left a long-running vacant site widely called “the pit.” Public
– A new development agreement was approved in 2022, clearing the way for construction to restart; the agreement included deadlines and described phased construction (including a concrete podium and later buildings). Public
– By September 2025, the first phase of Burlington Square was open, including a 161-room hotel, 53 apartments, plus a restaurant and café; a second building is slated for completion in fall 2027. Public
– In June 2025, local coverage described the rebrand from CityPlace to Burlington Square and detailed the project’s two-building plan, including the south building’s hotel/apartments and the intention to reconnect Pine and St. Paul streets.

## Visiting today: how to experience it like a traveler (not a construction gawker)

Because the “Giant Pit” label is a moving target online, the best way to approach this is as a downtown walk-by stop tied to Burlington Square’s new footprint.

### What to do on-site
– Treat it as an urban viewing point, not an attraction with a gate. You’re there to understand the scale and see what replaced the long-empty core. Public
– Look for street-level retail and lobby activity in the newly opened phase—coverage noted café/retail components in the first phase. Public
– If you want a “then vs now” mental image: older photos and aerial shots show how huge the cleared block was during the stalled years.

### Etiquette and safety
– Don’t cross barriers or treat active work zones as photo sets. Even if the joke is “museum,” it has been a real construction site for much of its life. Public

## Practical details you can rely on

– Location context: downtown Burlington; reporting referenced it as the former downtown mall redevelopment area and described it as “the pit.” Public
– What’s there now (phase one): hotel + apartments + food/drink components in the first phase of Burlington Square. Public
– If you’re trying to match the Google pin: expect map labels to lag reality—because the “Pit” became an online artifact during the years it was vacant, and user edits can persist.

## Accessibility and inclusivity notes

– This is primarily a public-streets experience (sidewalks and curb cuts vary block-by-block). If mobility access is a priority, plan your route using live navigation and note that downtown construction patterns can change quickly. (This is general guidance; the sources above don’t provide a block-by-block accessibility audit.)

## Outdated-data flag (important here)

If you’re seeing “Giant Pit” described as a standalone museum attraction, treat that as outdated or user-generated labeling—not an official cultural institution. The most current reporting describes the site as a long-delayed redevelopment area now reopening under Burlington Square, with its first phase open in 2025 and further phases planned. Public

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Giant Pit

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Places to Stay Near Giant Pit"But now there are new things to see every day, like concrete footings ..."

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