BURLINGTON, Vt. (WCAX) - Burlington voters rejected a plan to turn Church Street into a pedestrian mall on this day in history.

Channel 3’s Ellen Bartlett had the story on Aug. 20, 1979: “The final count left the crowd stunned, disappointed; 2054 voted against the $1.5 million bond, 3221 voted yes-- 300 short of the two-thirds majority needed to pass the bond. That put an end to the city’s share of the project to improve Church Street... The plan included a pedestrian mall on Church Street, a bus loop around downtown and repairs to underground utilities.”

Voters agreed to support the project in a second vote later that year, and Church Street was closed to traffic in 1981.

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