Burlington, VT – Bill Truex Jr. died suddenly, but peacefully in his home in Burlington on Sunday. Mr. Truex lived in Burlington since the late 1960s. Throughout his civic and professional life, he had an enormous impact on the City of Burlington.
Mr. Truex was a founding partner of Truex Cullins & Partners Architects in 1968, an architecture firm in Burlington with a focus on urban planning and civic architecture. He served as the lead architect on a range of Queen City buildings including: the U.S. Coast Guard Station, the Fern Hill Housing for Elderly, and the American Red Cross Blood Center. His most transformative creation was the pedestrian Church Street Marketplace, which he envisioned, developed the first design concepts of, advocated for and helped manage in its formative years.
His contributions continued into the present day, and included chairing Mayor Weinberger’s Public Investment Action Plan process in 2013 that has resulted in redevelopment of the northern waterfront making possible the A_Dog Skatepark, the new Community Sailing Center, Water Works Park, the Burlington Harbor Marina, and the Moran FRAME. Mr. Truex was named a Fellow in the American Institute of Architects (AIA) — one of only five Vermont architects in the state’s history to earn this distinction.
“We lost a true Burlington giant this weekend. Bill Truex had a vision for the Church Street Marketplace, inspired by the pedestrian plazas throughout Europe, which fundamentally changed our City for the better,” Mayor Weinberger said. “Bill had a great love and appreciation for this City and I am very grateful for the friendship and support of City initiatives that Bill generously offered throughout the last decade.”
The work to preserve and build upon the work Mr. Truex created with the Church Street Marketplace continues to this day.
“I am honored to steward one of Bill’s most impactful projects. The Church Street Marketplace is one of the most recognized and celebrated public spaces in our country. It would not have been possible without Bill’s vision and perseverance,” said Kara Alnasrawi, Church Street Marketplace Director.
Mr. Truex was a sustaining advocate for community-based planning and served on Burlington’s Design Review Board, Burlington’s Planning Commission, Burlington’s Urban Renewal Agency as well as on the Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission. As Chairman of the Steering Committee of the Downtown Burlington Development Association, he led the development and production of an acclaimed master planning document, “Burlington: A Shared Vision.”
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