Dear Editor,Like Melinda Moulton, I grew up in Burlington and love the city, and admire its amenities wholeheartedly. In high school I had an American Field Service exchange in Denmark, and was enchanted with Copenhagen‘s main walking street, Strøget. Nothing pleased me more than to see that Burlington’s Church Street mall had been modeled after it. I also know how hard many people, including my mother Janet Rood, worked to get Burlington’s wonderful institutions restored and/or started, like the Flynn Theater and other arts organizations. READ MORE I am distressed to hear and see how the business community is negatively affected by changes in national and local culture since Covid. I know that internet shopping really took hold when we were obliged to be isolated, and has proved convenient and addictive for many. That is one part of the problem.I also know how much our social fabric has stumbled and frayed since Covid ripped us apart. I do want to observe, however, that there are other crucial reasons for the emptying of the commercial center, which predate Covid and certainly have accelerated since: the homelessness and crime rates downtown.I am now only an intermittent visitor, as I live out of state, but I have heard a number of people say that downtown Burlington is too scary to go to. Large empty spaces, like the undeveloped “urban renewal” sections, and the substantial homeless population make people feel vulnerable to the unpredictable violence that occurs here.  I know that I have been hungry to mix in person with others since the quarantine ended, and nothing is better than an attractive and safe place to meet and gather, so this is no small loss.Homelessness is a national problem, of course, but it creates such serious side effects that it ought to be the highest priority, at the state level as well as the city. I believe from what I read in VTDigger that it is being viewed seriously. Godspeed, then, with revising restrictive zoning regulations and NIMBY attitudes to bring this about.Sherrill Rood HarbisonAmherst, Mass.Read the story on VTDigger here: Sherrill Rood Harbison: The value of Burlington.