Tell us a little about yourself. You can include your personal background, family, outside interests that are important to who you are as a person and a candidate.
I am a licensed mental health counselor, School Adjustment Counselor, and public school employee. As a Vermonter by birth, I’ve spent most of my adult life living in urban settings until we moved to Lexington from Somerville 10 years ago. I’ve loved living in Lexington with my husband, and two children, both of whom are recent LHS graduates. In my free time, I enjoy taking my dog, Toby, for long walks and playing ball with him.
I earned my B.A. in psychology from Case Western Reserve University and Masters in Counseling from Boston College. Most of my adult working experience was in clinical work and ultimately in program development and management in human services working with people with diverse abilities. Ten years ago, I took postgraduate courses at Salem State to enable me to work in school settings as a School Adjustment Counselor–it’s never too late to make a change!
Why are you running for Town Meeting?
I’m running for Town Meeting to represent residents in Precinct 8 and to assure them that they have a voice through me. Over much of the past year, I’ve rekindled my past volunteer work in building communities as I’ve organized and led my neighborhood in educating ourselves about Town Meeting, the roles of various town government departments, boards, and commissions. I have interests in issues at the forefront of the town, including Section 3A (The MBTA Communities Act) and potential ramifications of Article 34, including fiscal implications, budgetary concerns, and impact on livability. I gathered signatures from dozens of concerned residents to bring forth the Citizens Petition, known as Article 2 at the Special Town Meeting. I also have an interest in the environment, and a specific interest in the role of our Conservation Commission and protecting our wetlands bylaws which at times is in direct opposition to proposed developments.
How has your past experience — whether in your professional life, elected office, or as a community leader — prepared you for a role in Town Meeting?
All of my adult life I have worked with people, and for people, including professional and volunteer community roles in program development and management. My work history reflects my values in listening to people, understanding a variety of perspectives, and being flexible and thoughtful when making decisions. Prior to moving to Lexington, I volunteered with the Somerville Children’s Network, where I fundraised and wrote grants to provide enrichment activities and programs for young children and families. One of the most fulfilling experiences I had as a volunteer community member was when I collaborated with my alderman and the YMCA to create a twice a week free winter indoor playspace for young children. At the time, there were little to no indoor places for children to play in the winter since indoor recreational facilities were limited. My experience in program management and development, volunteer community leadership, and school leadership positions serves as great preparation for a role in Town Meeting.
What is the most important issue in this election to you personally, and what ideas do you have about how to address this issue?
The most important issue in this election to me is Article 2, the Citizens Petition introduced at the Special Town Meeting in February to amend the MBTA Communities Act zoning (Article 34). Throughout the past year, I’ve organized and led neighborhood efforts to become educated about the MBTA Communities Act, studying the state guidelines and comparing the state’s guidelines with the bylaws which Lexington enacted after receiving an abutters notification for 231 Bedford Street, a proposed development in the Village Overlay district in a sensitive area of land, with the North Lexington Brook in the backyard.
As a town, we zoned over 4.5 times the amount of acres of what the state required and have 1,100 units currently in the pipeline, which accounts for 30% of all units of the 177 mandated communities in the state. Unfortunately, this rate of rapid, dense development will require infrastructure needs, most of which haven’t been planned, and some of which may not be possible; for example, is it possible to widen Bedford Street, a primary artery into Lexington? In addition to fiscal and budgetary concerns, the increased traffic and parking needs particularly in areas which are already busy including Bedford Street and Worthen Road may be difficult to manage with large developments, especially 3-4-5 Militia Drive. It’s to be commended that we are going to be increasing the housing supply in Eastern Massachusetts, but continuing at this rate and density is not tenable, and that’s why I am a strong supporter of Article 2.
This is a fantastic question, as I have contemplated this question with residents in my precinct prior to making a decision to run as a Town Meeting Member. First, I would encourage constituents to communicate how they feel about different issues coming forth to town meeting since I would take my role as one of the people who represents them with privilege and sincerity. Part of my training and who I am as a person is to gather a lot of information prior to making decisions; I also have extensive work experience mediating issues between students, working through problems, and collaborating with systems including teachers, students, staff, families, and state agencies. I’ve found that looking at all different perspectives can foster greater understanding and supports identifying commonalities which is key to productive collaboration.
I would be honored and privileged to serve the residents of Precinct 8 as a Town Meeting Member and would take my responsibilities seriously. This is an extremely important town election–please vote on Monday, March 3rd!
Thank you, Lisa