About the CSC
We’re all about Lake Access, Life Lessons, For All.
The Community Sailing Center is a community-based nonprofit organization providing access, education, and recreation on Lake Champlain for over 8,000 people annually. Our Community Waterfront Center is a vital hub on the shores of the lake where community members and visitors to Burlington gather to play and learn on the lake together.
We engage our community through a wide range of educational and recreational programs that extend an open invitation to everyone regardless of age, gender, race, physical ability, or the means to pay. Our programs and priorities serve students, at-risk youth, women and girls, and individuals with disabilities, enabling underserved populations to access and take ownership of Lake Champlain. Our educational programs engage students in lake ecology and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) using sailing, place-based and experiential learning to meet the needs of local schools and their students.
Here, sailing and paddling are tools that enrich people’s lives, teach valuable life lessons, offer a unique environmental education experience, and instill a sense of ownership in one of Vermont’s most valuable natural resources – Lake Champlain. We provide award-winning programs to ensure our role as lake stewards and prepare the next generation of lake lovers.
As a recreational and educational cornerstone of this community, the Community Sailing Center is built on these core values:
Stewardship
Education
Through a curriculum of sailing instruction, water safety, personal empowerment and a welcoming environment in which to learn
Access
To the lake, both physically and conceptually, for all lifestyles and abilities, through our curriculum and tuition subsidies
History
CSC opened in 1994 and for the first 23 years, we operated from the abandoned Moran Plant, a Public Works garage, a tent, and two port-a-potties. In 2017, the Community Sailing Center completed construction of the first new building on the Burlington Waterfront in over 20 years. The Pomerleau Community Waterfront Campus & Raymond P. Sullivan Sailing Education Center brings a whole host of firsts for the CSC – first indoor plumbing, first year-round classrooms, and most importantly – the first time in decades that we have the space and resources to expand lake-based opportunities for our community for generations to come.
In 2024, the Community Sailing Center completed construction on our $4.3 million state-of-the-art waterfront. This new addition to our facility includes a viewing pier, deep water launch, crane and hoist, and a 50’ wide concrete launch ramp.
With the capital campaign completed in late 2024, the Community Sailing Center has shifted 100% of our organizational attention to programs for youth, students, and adult sailors. Future investments in our fleet, facilities, and coaching/instruction will help even more people from our community enjoy Lake Champlain in exciting new ways.
