Better Together

I’m optimistic about what’s ahead, while realistic about the problems we face.

Policy Priorities

Housing that supports diverse and thriving neighborhoods.

In the U.S., we often say that our goal is for people to own a home. My philosophy is that everyone should have a home and shelter that meets their needs. These needs can shift over a lifetime and should be met by more diverse housing options than what we currently have in Burlington. We need to invest across the entire housing continuum – from shelters and supportive housing to varied rental options to ownership. And long-term affordability should be our north star guiding our housing planning and development. There are cities in the U.S. making great strides to end chronic homelessness, and we should set our sights on that.

I support:

Balancing our long-term supply and short-term needs by preserving our affordable mandate, in the form of Inclusionary Zoning requirements, while also easing overly restrictive zoning requirements, as we did through the Neighborhood Code changes last year.
Investing more in the Burlington Housing Trust Fund, which supports things like the Champlain Housing Trust and other pioneers in developing long-term and permanently affordable housing.
Implementing tenant protections against rising rents, no-cause evictions, and displacement, including by advocating for the baseline right of just cause eviction at the state level.
Pursuing Housing First strategies, including supportive housing models like those championed by Pathways Vermont.
Encouraging mixed-use neighborhoods in all districts of our city.

My working-class family rented for most of my life in tight-knit military communities. When I was in high school, we had a significant change – my parents bought their first home. This was only possible because we had quality, affordable rental housing up until that point. Similarly, my partner Michael and I bought our first house on Bayview Street seven years ago after renting for over a decade. These experiences taught me how the underlying fabric of housing facilitates connection and thriving – for individuals, families, and communities.

Going beyond affordability to thriving.

Burlington is confronting the affordability problems we are seeing across the country, which have become much more acute the past few years. I can’t tell you how many young families I’ve spoken with who struggle to find an affordable home that meets their needs – either to rent or to buy. Older Burlington residents with fixed incomes face difficult choices about whether to stay within walking distance of their grandkids and services or to move further out. Recent UVM graduates can’t find a way to remain in the city they love and take their valuable skills and training elsewhere. Burlington must meet the needs of working families and those seeking to age-in-place – not only as a matter of principle, but because these are real people we all live, work, and play beside every day. It means that our taxes are crucial to the wellbeing of our city – but they need to be fair and manageable for households.

I support:

Shifting our property tax structure to a more equitable and sustainable model.
Increasing the walkability and bikability of our city and expanding our public transit.
State advocacy efforts to decouple school funding from property values and instead base it on income.

As a volunteer with the Integrated Arts Academy and the ONE Mutual Aid network, I see how hard it is for Burlington’s working families and vulnerable community members to get by. I also observed this in my working-class family and have deeply reflected on this as an adult, navigating a different social class than the one I grew up in. I know that it shouldn't take luck to thrive, so I’m committed to making it easier for families of all ages and backgrounds to find their place in our community.

Safety that puts community first.

Safety for all of us in the long term begins with ensuring that none of us must live in perpetual crisis. We need evidence-based approaches to community safety that reduce harms and save lives now, while also addressing root causes so that all Burlington residents can feel safe and secure over the long term. What we are seeing downtown – and in downtowns across America – stems largely from underlying economic and social conditions, including a historic opioid crisis. This situation has been years in the making and intensified by COVID-19. Simply put: These are very difficult times for our neighbors and for our city, and the solutions won’t be quick or easy. But there are data-driven, cost-effective strategies that save lives, get people into treatment, and disrupt the cycle of despair. Like so many of you, I plan to be in Burlington years from now, and I want to see lasting results for our city.

I support:

A community safety toolbox that includes the police and fire departments, social workers, mental health practitioners, harm reduction services, and restorative justice efforts. This toolbox needs both investment and integration so that efforts support one another.
Expanded access to treatment services for substance use disorders, including through opening an Overdose Prevention Center.
More shelter options, including low- and no-barrier shelters.
Innovative programs that increase acute mental health services, like the Howard Center’s new Mental Health Urgent Care.
Advocacy at the state level for the housing and substance use treatment strategies Burlington needs.

I’m a public health researcher, and my expertise is in something called the ‘social and structural determinants of health.’ This work seeks to understand how the conditions in which we are born, live, work, play, and age shape our physical and mental health. I know this evidence base and how to communicate it to policy makers and the public. Like many of you, I also have members of my family who have grappled with substance use and homelessness. I understand that our struggling neighbors are our people. – and that families and the community urgently need strategies that work.

Climate resilience for all.

Building our resilience to climate change is a necessity – for our children’s sake as well as for our own. Vermont is not immune to the climate crisis; devastating floods, persistent toxic algae blooms that close our beaches, and wildfire smoke from Canada and the American West are now commonplace. We need to prepare for these climate effects while also taking advantage of the enormous economic opportunity that greening our economy presents. And we must stand firm against rolling back our progress on climate and sustainability that Burlington has spent years and substantial public dollars advancing.

I support:

Expanding weatherization programs so they are more affordable and accessible for low-income residents and renters.
Supporting our net zero energy goals by investing in more clean energy options and decarbonizing municipal buildings.
Building our electric vehicle infrastructure in all neighborhoods and areas of the city.
Undertaking an independent study of clean energy sources to replace the McNeil Generating Station and committing to a just timeline for its phase out.
Maintaining Burlington Electric Department as an enterprise fund that manages profits in a way to support electrification and emission reductions across the city.
Investing in our water, road, and energy infrastructure to reduce damages from flooding and other hazards.
Advancing nature-based solutions in Burlington that promote environmental and social wellbeing.
Advocacy at the state level for the Vermont Department of Public Service to provide more clean energy options.

I helped launch the University of California Center for Climate, Health, and Equity, where I serve on the leadership team. I research how climate change affects our health, and I communicate this evidence to policy makers and civic leaders in the U.S. and globally to shape equitable and healthy climate policies. I support a “just transition”, meaning that as we shift to a low-carbon economy, the gains and burdens should be equally shared among community members of different income levels. I would be a voice for building Burlington’s climate readiness so that all residents can participate and enjoy the benefits.

Nurturing our civic health.

As climate activist Bill McKibben points out, one of the things that makes Vermont special is that we have a very high level of social trust compared to other states; in other words, we fundamentally trust our neighbors and each other. When faced with difficult challenges, it’s easy to lose sight of this fundamental ethos. We all feel the divisiveness of this moment. Burlington needs more robust avenues – formal and informal – for residents to feel empowered to contribute to our collective good. Let’s be honest – we need more and better ways to engage than public forum at City Council meetings.

I support:

Efforts to improve collegiality and collaboration during City Council meetings.
Building on our Neighborhood Planning Assemblies to improve participation from more residents.
Piloting successful civic engagement models, like citizen assemblies and participatory budgeting.

Building community is a core activity in my life, and I regularly engage in mutual aid, my children’s schools, political organizing, and simply hanging out with my neighbors. I believe in showing up in ways big and small – from advocating for policies that support working families to organizing biannual potlucks on my street to chatting with a passerby from my front porch. Growing up in diverse and politically conservative communities also taught me how to nurture relationships with people with very different views and life experiences than my own. I fundamentally believe that there is more that unites us than divides us, and I try to live this value every day.