Homes where we each can live with dignity and respect are at the heart of our community. During my tenure, the City worked hard to increase housing supply and reduce the cost of new homes by advancing regulatory changes that make naturally affordable housing easier to build. Among other things, we boosted density where it makes sense, halted short-term rental conversions, prioritized infill, allowed more flexible use of lots and opened the door to taller buildings in and around City Center. We also increased funding to the housing trust fund and required new construction to include permanently affordable units. Going forward, we also need a thoughtful growth management plan to help us figure out and plan for what we want our City to look like in the decades ahead.

I feel energized and am incredibly proud that South Burlington stands at the leading edge in Vermont and the nation in climate change mitigation and I am committed to ensuring South Burlington meets the greenhouse gas reduction goals in our Climate Action Plan. During my tenure, the City has made climate action a guiding principle of our City Plan, hired a Climate Action Manager, mandated solar PV on all new commercial buildings and EV-ready parking in all new construction, streamlined electric panel upgrades for homeowners and began working with landlords to weatherize and decarbonize rental housing.   But, we cannot rest on our laurels as there is much more that we need to do to meet our emissions reduction goals.

As a City Councilor I have worked hard to ensure the City’s built environment is safe, welcoming, walkable and bikeable, with a pedestrian-oriented downtown and neighborhood parks, recreation and open spaces accessible to all. I successfully advocated for increased funding for shared-use path and sidewalk maintenance, helped lead a “Safe Route to School” Task Force, supported our new Transportation Demand Management regulations and have been active in the roll-out of new shared-use paths and other infrastructure improvements.  Looking ahead, we need to make our sidewalks and shared use paths safer, and I want to see a park in our City Center that would anchor the downtown and be a welcoming public space for music, a farmers market, festivals and other gatherings.

Over 51% of South Burlington’s land is conserved through regulation, private conservation or other means and, during my tenure, we strengthened protections for these areas by redrawing our sewer service and water service areas around these protected areas. We also permanently conserved Wheeler Nature Park and developed a low-impact plan for the Hubbard Natural Area to honor its core purpose of conservation.  We need to continue to be vigilant and mindful of the pressures that our open spaces will be under and I believe need to reform our TDR program to ensure permanent conservation of areas now only protected by regulation.  We also need plans for managing our meadows and regulations to protect heritage trees from development.

I have and will continue to focus on affordability, ensuring that the City does not spend beyond its means. I am satisfied that during my tenure municipal taxes that you pay ran just slightly higher than inflation, but we can do better. My intent for FY27 is for municipal tax increases to track inflation — for your municipal taxes to be flat in real dollars. Even with the relatively modest increases to municipal taxes, the City’s finances are in excellent shape, and our investments in energy efficiency, renewable energy and modern permitting and finance systems are paying big dividends.

Safety is the foundation of a strong community. I am committed to ensuring that our neighborhoods remain safe, welcoming, and resilient.  During my tenure we have invested in community-based prevention programs, added a new ambulance, new dispatch services and software and made changes to support the work-life balance of our fire, EMT and paramedic professionals.  With the surge in drug use and homelessness, though, shoplifting, break-ins and other serious public safety concerns have arisen which warrant increased enforcement, alongside compassion for those who are most vulnerable.