A summer of campaigning is about to begin for people running for Burlington’s vacant Ward 3 City Council seat.
The seat became available last month when Councilor Brian Pine, a Progressive, was appointed to a new role — director of the Community and Economic Development Office — by Mayor Miro Weinberger. His vacant council seat will be filled in a special election Aug. 17.
The Democratic and Progressive parties will hold nominating caucuses later this month. The Democratic caucus will be June 22. A firm date hasn’t been set for the Progressive caucus but it will occur before the week of June 21.
Rumors have been swirling in the city about who will throw their hat into the ring. So far, only two have confirmed to VTDigger that they’ll be running: Owen Milne, executive director of the Lake Champlain Community Sailing Center, and Ryan Addario, development and marketing coordinator for the Lyric Theatre Company.
The two have said they will seek both the Democratic and Progressive nominations. Ward 3 has historically been a Progressive district — a Democrat hasn’t won a council seat in that area of the city since the early 1980s.
And Ward 3 was a weak spot for Democrat Weinberger in the mayor’s race in March. Weinberger won 30% of the vote, well behind Progressive City Council President Max Tracy, who won 55%. However, Weinberger won enough votes elsewhere in the city to claim a fourth term.
Josh Wronski, executive director of the Progressive Party, said he thinks the Milne and Addario strategy — to seek both parties’ nominations — demonstrates the dominance of Progressive politics in Ward 3. He feels confident a Progressive will win the district.
“Anyone who’s going to be running and wants to have a chance of winning has to really work with Progressives in Ward 3 if they want to be the city councilor there,” Wronski said.
Wronski said details will be finalized soon about when exactly a Progressive nominating caucus will be held. He said he hopes it can happen in person, with a mix of virtual voting for people who don’t feel comfortable attending or cannot physically make it to the event.
Adam Roof, chair of the Burlington Democrats, told VTDigger that he’s talking with a number of people who are considering running as a Democrat. Asked if it was a priority to find candidates who would seek only the Democratic nomination, Roof said his party wants to find “electable” and “motivated” candidates.
“Democratic leadership is best positioned to work across all different levels of government, as well as across different party lines when it’s needed to get the job done,” Roof said.
He said the party views the Ward 3 race as an opportunity for growth in areas of the city where Democrats historically have not done well, just as Progressives look to expand their reach in parts of the city where they have historically done poorly, Roof said.
He said it’s still undecided about whether the Democratic nominating caucus will be held in person or virtually.
Because of his new role in the Weinberger administration, Pine said he’s become a “neutral party” in politics. He said he won’t be endorsing anybody in this race but has been providing advice to people privately who are thinking about running.
He did offer one prediction: It’s “very likely” the ward will go Progressive.
Addario’s views
Addario said he’s always thought about running for public office. He says his work for the Champlain Housing Trust, Steps to End Domestic Violence and now the Lyric Theater Company have allowed him to gain an important perspective on the city.
“I think there’s a large segment of folks that live in this community that aren’t able to kind of live the quintessential postcard Burlington life that we’d like to think everyone has access to,” Addario said.
He wants to expand access to affordable housing in the city, and also ensure there are enough support structures for people to retain their housing.
Addario described himself as a lifelong Democrat but said he’s become disillusioned with some of the party’s leadership in the Queen City. He said he voted for Tracy in the most recent election and has supported other Progressives in the past as well — which prompted him to seek both the Democratic and Progressive nominations.
Milne’s views
Milne said he has long admired Pine’s commitment to public service and the constituents he represents. He said he’s running because he wants to continue Pine’s legacy and ensure that people’s voices in the ward are heard on issues they care about most.
As a quadriplegic, he said he also wants to represent people who have disabilities.
Whoever wins the Ward 3 seat in August will serve until next March, when the two-year term ends. Milne said if he’s elected this August, it’s not a given he would run again. He wants to make sure his public service would align with his professional responsibilities at the Sailing Center.
He said he’s seeking the Democratic and Progressive nominations because he wants to work with both parties on pursuing ideas that would benefit the people of Burlington.
“Seeking the nomination of both parties, it holds true to that particular approach of servant leadership around really working to identify the kernels of the best parts of ideas,” Milne said. “No matter which party is bringing it to the forefront.”
