ABOUT ME
My name is Andrew Chalnick and I am running to represent you on the South Burlington City Council.
I grew up in Brooklyn in a small home in Canarsie, the third of four children raised with lots of music and love. We lived modestly and didn’t know what we didn’t have. My dad owned and operated a deli with his brother and brother-in-law so we never went hungry, and working side-by-side with my family from an early age I learned the value of hard work.
My fondest childhood memories are of our family camping vacations, where all six of us and our dog would pile into the back of our Chevy station wagon with our canvas tents and Coleman stove. There was instilled in me my love and appreciation for the world’s natural wonders, and my passion for protecting them.
With loans and part-time work, I put myself through college and grad school, earning two engineering degrees from the University of Pennsylvania, a degree in finance from the Wharton School and then a JD from Columbia Law School.
After earning my stripes at a large NYC law firm, I was hired by JP Morgan Chase eventually becoming the global head of tax planning. My wife and I settled into a community in New Jersey where we started our own family of six.
In 2015 we were extremely fortunate to find, and be in a position to purchase, a wonderful home in South Burlington. We gave up New Jersey for good a few years later while our two youngest were still in public school.
South Burlington is a beautiful and very special community. It is a gift to live and raise a family here. The scenic beauty and the abundant recreational opportunities are a treasure.
I have found the South Burlington community to be inclusive and kind, the discourse civil, civic and well informed, and the opportunities for engagement abundant. I have been welcomed into a robust dialogue around the future of our City and have actively participated in charting our City’s course through service on the Energy Committee (as Chair for a time), the Interim Zoning TDR Committee, the Climate Task Force (as Vice Chair) and the Planning Commission.
One of my core beliefs is that communities thrive when all residents are able to live with dignity and respect. Ensuring access to affordable and good quality housing is essential to achieving this goal. As a Councilor, I will prioritize the development of affordable and good quality housing using environmentally sound principles through well-planned infill and with denser housing along our main thoroughfares, close to places of work, schools, public transit, grocery stores, services, and other amenities.
South Burlington Energy Committee
At the same time, I will seek to revitalize, redevelop and repurpose under-utilized commercial space and empty parking lots in our City Center to move the City forward in realizing its tremendous potential as an inclusive, vibrant, diverse and pedestrian-oriented community.
I am committed to sustainability and protection of our natural resources. I’ve been passionate about protecting the natural world my entire adult life, was a long-time member of the environmental commission in my former home-town in New Jersey and earned my former home-town an Environmental Excellence Award from the NJ governor for an innovative Green Fair that I co-chaired. I was integral to the successful effort to conserve the important natural resources located on the Southwest corner of Dorset St and Nowland Farm Rd in the face of a proposed massive housing development and was active during interim zoning in advocating for increased protections for natural resources. In the face of a changing climate, our natural resources will be needed to sequester carbon, grow food, provide a buffer against flooding, filter pollutants before they can enter Lake Champlain, clean and cool our air and provide habitat for wildlife. Public open space is also important for quality of life in our community and for everyone to enjoy regardless of income or experience.
Addressing climate change is the defining challenge of our time. I have been deeply involved in this effort for several decades, having worked actively with Citizen’s Climate Lobby and other organizations over many years and have recently been endorsed by Run on Climate. In addition to protecting our natural resources, I know that rapid and deep reductions in greenhouse gas emissions are needed for a livable future. Tempered with the knowledge that the things we each need to do to address climate change impacts each of us unequally — with the heaviest burdens often on those who can least bear them – I will work hard to realize the recommendations of the Climate Action Task Force while striving to provide support to those who need it most.
I will be fiscally responsible and look carefully at our carrying capacity – what the impact will be to our community, our schools, our roads and our taxes if growth continues at its current robust pace. I will be focused on affordability and ensuring that the City does not spend beyond its means.
I am a seasoned leader with extensive experience managing a large team of highly skilled finance and legal professionals. I have also had the opportunity, both personally and professionally, to interact with senior government officials in the US and around the world, giving me a unique perspective on how to effectively engage with diverse stakeholders. My leadership roles, and my life experiences, make me well qualified to serve this City. I am a careful listener and will work hard to make sure all voices are heard and to find common ground.
Motivating me to run is my four children and concern about the world we are leaving to them. So, I am determined to make a difference and am committed to working hard to help us thrive, and to meet our challenges.
Please vote for me on March 7th!