Progressive Emma Mulvaney-Stanak is the first candidate to officially launch a campaign for Burlington mayor following Democratic Mayor Miro Weinberger’s announcement last month that he will not seek a fifth three-year term. Mulvaney-Stanak served on the Burlington city council from 2009 to 2012 and was chair of the Vermont Progressive Party from 2013 to 2017. She currently serves in Vermont House representing portions of Burlington. Mulvaney-Stanak tells WAMC North Country Bureau Chief Pat Bradley she is running because she is concerned about the direction of the city, alleging a divisive tone among city leaders:
We’ll not be able to solve the complex issues we're seeing with substance use disorder, with folks experiencing homelessness, with these big challenges around climate and affordability unless we put the partisanship aside and really start to work together as colleagues. So I'm really excited, frankly, to bring my experience from the Statehouse where I've worked side by side with folks of all political stripes back to Burlington and local government to set a different tone of one of collaboration and community building.
Emma Mulvaney-Stanek, you have listed as your priorities as mayor: community safety, affordability and climate resilience. Those are things that city leadership, not just the mayor but the city council, have been working on for some time. How would your approach be different and more successful?
I do appreciate that the city has started safety and climate resilience work. But I do think one of the biggest pieces that we're missing is one where we really make sure that everyone in our community feels safe and is safe and that we have a really comprehensive definition of what we mean by community safety. I'm also you know, I'm appreciative, again, of what's been done around climate. But we have to start really innovating. I have questions around the district heating plan and McNeil or if we can find more innovative and bold ways to move completely off of a carbon-based energy source. And also, frankly, to focus on pieces like the health of our lake which impacts people on a day-to-day basis. So I think it's a time to, again, come back to the power and the importance of convening our community, thinking about innovation and thinking about moving forward with an urgency where we implement solutions in a much more time sensitive way.
Emma, when we talk about community safety, some people will be looking at the Burlington Police Department and how they've been working at rebuilding from a few years ago when Progressives voted to downsize the department basically. Do you support the rebuilding of the police department and do you support Chief Murad?
Well, that's a great question. And police undoubtedly have a very important part of our community safety response. But they're not the only response. I think we need a right size Police Department. I think we need an appropriate and timely response system that sends the right professional to the right calls. Police are not social workers. Police are not mental health workers and I think we need to use them in the most effective and appropriate way possible. But we've learned a lot more now of what is going to keep our community safe. And we need a more comprehensive approach that does not rely only on police. And in terms of department heads, I need to be elected first before I would decide anything about particular department heads. But I will say with, with great certainty that I am going to have a high expectation for department heads, one that really thinks about building trust with the community.
How would you approach the city's BIPOC and New American communities and how the city interacts with those sectors of the city?
Well, I think we have much more to do in that regard. I've been disappointed about where our Racial Equity Inclusion and Belonging office has been able to get so far. I would like that department to be more integrated throughout all of our parts of city government and our communities. We have deeper work to do there,
Emma Mulvaney-Stanek, you are the first candidate to officially launch a campaign, but there are expected to be other candidates running for mayor. Why do you believe that you will be the strongest candidate for mayor?
That's a great question. I think I'm the strongest candidate for mayor because I have a pretty long track record of being an elected leader in the city and for the city. I served on the city council from two parts of the Old North End. I now serve as a state representative with both the Progressive and Democratic endorsement for a district that represents into the New North End and part of the Old North End. And I think the largest pieces I bring both an experienced eye but a critical eye on needing to rebuild our community to bring our community back together. One that values collaboration and listening to the residents here and one that also is around making sure we're not perpetuating more divisiveness, that we really can find solutions together.
Emma Mulvaney-Stanak has run for the state House as a Progressive/Democrat. In the mayoral race she plans to seek the Progressive nomination and see which candidates emerge before seeking other party endorsements. Burlington’s mayoral election will be held on Town Meeting Day, March 5th, 2024.
