The former state legislator and Burlington city councilor would be the first candidate to publicly announce, aside from Mayor Miro Weinberger, a Democrat who confirmed on Friday that he’ll seek a third term in office. Queen City voters will elect a mayor at Town Meeting Day in March 2018.
Driscoll, a 43-year-old South End resident, said she hasn’t decided for certain whether she would throw her hat in the ring. But she said she has been meeting with Burlington organizations and individuals to test the waters.
Several people have approached her about running for mayor, both recently and in the past. “This is the first time I’ve seriously considered it,” Driscoll said.
She said she has not set a deadline for a decision and she has not yet decided whether she would run as a Progressive or an independent.
Driscoll’s platform — if she runs, she clarified — would be centered on the need for increased citizen engagement in city government. “People are feeling frustrated that the agenda of the city is determined by a small group of people — the mayor and the council,” Driscoll said.
Burlingtonians want to have a greater voice in determining the direction of city government, beyond just publicly commenting on decisions that have already been made, she said.
She would focus on building affordable housing, increasing affordable space for artists and businesses in the South End, and preventing gentrification across the city.
In the meantime, Driscoll said she is helping lead an “organically forming” group of those who want more say in city affairs. The group has been meeting regularly, but has no name, official platform or designated leader as of yet, she said.
The central question, Driscoll said, is “how can we most effectively change the dynamic of the public process in the city of Burlington?” For Driscoll, that could be leading a grassroots effort through this emerging coalition, running for city council in Ward 5 against Democrat Chip Mason, or running for mayor, she said.
Driscoll, a mother of two, is no political novice. She served as a Progressive legislator from 2000 to 2002. From 2003 to 2004 she served on the Burlington city council, but stepped down ahead of the birth of her first child. Driscoll has also served on the Burlington School Board.
She founded and continues to work at the Vermont Woodworking School in Fairfax. She also volunteered on Sanders’ 2016 presidential campaign, she said.
If elected mayor, Driscoll would follow in the footsteps of her stepfather, who served as Burlington’s mayor from 1981 to 1989.
Driscoll said she voted for Weinberger in 2012 and then served for a year in his administration as the assistant to the mayor for transparency, open government and mayoral initiatives.
Weinberger has been “very successful” in putting the city on firm financial footing, Driscoll said, but Burlington’s needs have changed. “We need to survey what we need from City Hall,” she said. Those needs are not reflected in “the priorities of our mayor.”
Weinberger defended his work, pointing to his record of promoting growth in the housing market, investing in infrastructure, pushing through development projects, and improving the city’s finances. “I’ve gotten a lot done, but there’s much more I’d like to do for the people of Burlington if they support me in this role,” he said.
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Quite the exciting development – I would hate to see another two years of Burlington being led by a puppet for the BBA
that would be great as long as she saw to it that more help for the homeless was made, Miro has done nothing about that issue!
I just met Carina for the first time the other day and was pleasantly surprised at what I saw. I know of her political history and would be delighted to vote for her in any capacity she chooses to run. Having the mayor and/or city council listen more to the citizens of this city is never a bad thing. The current crop, with a few notable exceptions, could take some lessons in that regard.
Hope she does run. I think she’d be great.
Yes, according to Driscoll, if theres one thing we do not have in this city, its increased citizen engagement in city government.
No one shows up at neighborhood planning association meetings. Nope. No one runs for city council. Nope. No one goes to city council meetings. Nope. No one participates in Burlington elections. Nope. No one makes their left wing voices heard on FPF or 7D.
The statement that Burlingtonians are not intimately involved in city decisions is a dumb and insulting thing to say. Burlington is the most democratic, inclusive city on the planet.
Give me one good reason why the agenda SHOULDNT be set by the Mayor and the city council? These are the people you elect to set the agenda! If the agenda is not to be set by your elected city councilor, then by whom?
When someone actually says shit like this, they dont deserve to be taken seriously.
“Weinberger has been “very successful” in putting the city on firm financial footing, Driscoll said, but Burlington’s needs have changed.”
Oh good, maybe Driscoll and her mother, Jane Sanders, can give the feds more work by creating some kind of illegal deal that costs the City of Burlington millions and ciphers more into the family coffers.
With “activists” like these, who needs villains?
She would have to be better than the developer in-chief mayor
Mayor developer has been an unmitigated disaster for Burlington
His damage will be hard to undo
His priorities are for the rich, the connected and especially real estate developers
He has been enabled by the likes of the dinosaur fake progressive councilor lifers like jane k
He must go but unfortunately his out of scale behemoth mall give away and the condos on the church waterfront land and the Burlington telecom deal will all out last him and be his lastly terrible legacy
No more sander related people Jane is being Indicted for fraud Bernie bought a house with Clinton payoff and his diehard supporters donations enough bs voters need to start using their brains
When someone actually says shit like this, they dont deserve to be taken seriously.
This summarizes your post nicely. Don’t worry about her running, though. Weinberger has such a large campaign fund built up that he should out price any competitor, something you’re supposedly against unless it favors your candidate, I guess.
It’s not more listening that she wants, it’s more agreeing with the voices that she agrees with.
@ Lade:
The comment that I was referring to by Driscoll was that there is a “need for increased citizen engagement in city government.”
If you claim to actually understand what Driscoll was supposedly saying, and agree with it, then please explain how the citizenry of Burlington is not “engaged” in local decision-making. Are Burlingtonians not allowed to run for office? Are they not allowed to vote? Are they not allowed to elect not one but two councilors to represent them, plus a mayor? Are they not allowed to vote for Mayor? Are they not allowed to attend neighborhood planning association meetings? Are they not allowed to attend City Council meetings and express their views? Are they not allowed to tell their Mayor and their councilors how they feel? Are they not allowed to comment on FPF, BFP, 7D, and may other media outlets? Are they not allowed to ask to be appointed to any number of municipal boards and commissions? Or is Driscoll suggesting that we should abolish representative government and have a city-wide referendum on every single daily issue of city governance? I repeat, Burlington has the most inclusive, participatory, engaged local government that I’ve ever seen.
“Weinberger has such a large campaign fund built up that he should out price any competitor.” Oh, I think Driscoll’s stepdad could throw a million or two her way, don’t you think?
Why would Bernie give her that kind of money? Is he planning on building a tall building on Church Street too?
“Why would Bernie give her that kind of money?”
Well what else is he going to use the obscene $100 million in campaign cash for? Certainly not to run for U.S. Senate in a state with about 300,000 people who vote.
A hundred million? I’m sure Sinex gave Weinberger much less than that.
Show the evidence you have that Sinex gave Weinberger anything.
Yeah, thats what I thought.