City Council Candidate Profiles | Thomas Renner

This article was written by Doug Phinney and Jenny Koppang

Seven candidates are vying for two open seats on the Winooski City Council this Town Meeting Day. The top two vote-getters will be elected to two-year terms. This election will be the first in the city to allow non-U.S. citizens the right to vote, a result of an amendment to Winooski’s charter that ensures that all residents can have a voice in municipal elections. 

These interviews have been lightly edited for length and clarity. 

Thomas Renner (he/him)

Q: How old are you and how long have you lived in Winooski?

I’m 32. I moved to Winooski about five years ago. I first started out renting here—my partner and I had lived I Colchester before. We rented for about a year, and then started our house search again and found a house that we completely fell in love with, in Winooski. My husband actually grew up here and went to elementary through high school in the area, so he’s the real long-term resident.

Q: What is your educational background?

I graduated from UVM in 2014 with a degree in Communications and Political Science. Four years after that, I got a master's degree from Norwich University in the field of Leadership.

Q: What’s your profession and work background?

I currently work for the University of Vermont Medical Center. However, in the past, I've worked for Senator Leahy, which is what really sparked my development in politics. I would say I was interested [in politics] way before that, which led me to intern for him. I’m on the Safe, Healthy, Connected People Commission [in Winooski]. I serve as the commission secretary as well as being a commission member.

Q: Why are you running for Winooski City Council?

So, I definitely believe in kind of building up a person's career in politics, if that's what they're interested in. So, I've gotten involved in the commission work because, just in general, I am politically oriented and really know that the best way to affect change is if we get involved in it ourselves. So, I got involved with the Commission. I've been really enjoying that work. But I really have wanted to be able to dive into more work for the city and be able to have the ability to create more of an effect on change in the city and help with the issues that are going on. The commissions have great work that we can do on there, but the true work is all done in City Council. So, when I saw that there were two seats opening up, I hadn’t necessarily planned on running for city council this early, but I figured I had to seize the moment. I love the work that I've done on the Commission, which has led me to really understanding city government more, and really appreciating it. So, the natural move for me was to run for city council.

Q: What do you see as the most important issue facing the city of Winooski?

Housing is definitely one of them, as well as creating open spaces that are useful for Winooski residents. I see all of the parks we have in Winooski, but they may not necessarily offer activities that are going to intrigue people from toddlers all the way up to retirees and past. I think that we have these spaces, and we should really be utilizing them to create opportunities for everyone to engage with them. You see that if teenagers, for example, have more things that are interesting for them to do in their cities that are safe and healthy activities, they tend to stray less into participating in more dangerous activities. So, I think that anything that a city can do in order to make itself a place that has appealing activities, sports or whatever they may be, for people of all ages, is something that I’d really be interested in working on.

Q: Winooski has an acute housing crisis. What ideas do you have for creating more affordable housing?

Housing is definitely something I’m concerned about. Like I said, I’ve purchased two homes at this point, one home in Winooski, and I’ve seen the increase in the price of purchasing a home. I am priced out of a lot of areas in the state of Vermont, and both my husband and I have full time work. So, we definitely know that there is difficulty for other people to become homeowners. I think that [home ownership] really is a key to creating middle class wealth. It's one of the few areas in which middle class people, and those under the middle-class line, can actually create wealth for themselves. Most people aren't really investing in the stock market, etc. So, I think that what I would be really interested in, is finding ways that the city council can advocate and create avenues for developers to come in and build housing that is affordable for people to buy. I think that there always is a focus on affordable rentals, which are great if they're done in a way that creates good, dignified, quality homes for people. But I also think that there should be options for people to purchase homes affordable rates. I know that the Champlain Housing Trust has a project that they're doing in Winooski at the moment, and I think those condos start around like $135,000—which is definitely something that's more manageable for a lot of people. Obviously, that leaves some people still out of the market, but I think it's a good start. So, policies that include bringing affordable home ownership, as well as affordable rentals, is definitely something that I would like to explore more if I were on the city council. I think homeownership is the key way for people to really bring themselves out of poverty and also start to create a really good investment portfolio for themselves.

Q: Winooski is schedules to receive $2 million in American Rescue Plan funding. How would you like to see that money spent?

As a commissioner on the Safe, Healthy, Connected People Commission, we have actually been discussing the American Rescue Plan funding. When thinking about these funds I think it's important to think about the long-term impacts of covid as well as what people have already experienced. I think any programs where we can get cash into the hands of businesses and residents will be successful in curbing the difficulties people have. Making the money easily accessible and making sure programs the city does create are well publicized are crucial. I know the city has already set aside $100k for businesses and I would like to see that amount raised to $150k. I'd also be very interested in seeing the money to be able to be used to help people to start a business. In addition, I think the money should go to programs that help people in need with their mortgages or rent, as well as utilities. For the outward look I think the money should be used for meal programs, childcare, as well as to subsidize activity camps run by the city.