It is flanked by some of the university's oldest and most architecturally important buildings, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.

It is roughly three blocks long in the north-south direction, and its terrain slopes, rising to east.

On the east side of the green are some of the university's finest buildings, including the Ira Allen Chapel (1926, McKim, Meade & White), the Billings Memorial Library (1883, H.H.

The green's west side is dominated by Waterman Hall (1941, McKim, Meade & White), the university's main administration building, and a cluster of buildings at the northern end that are part of the University of Vermont Medical Center.

The northern flank of the park is dominated by Grasse Mount, an architecturally eclectic mansion house built in 1803.