Columbia Heights is where our family life happens day to day. Like many of you, the things I love most about this community are the simple ones: walking through the neighborhood, seeing familiar faces at local businesses and community events, and feeling like the people around you genuinely look out for one another.

Shortly after moving here, I leapt at the chance to get involved and give back to the community I love so much (thanks to Councilmember Buesgens and Jen Pyper-Muno for their encouragement). I’ve served two terms on the Columbia Heights Planning Commission, along with time on the Charter Commission and the advisory group for the city’s 2025 Comprehensive Plan. I also help organize the Kordiak Park Halloween Spooktacular each year—hands down the best day of the year.

Through these roles, I’ve learned how city decisions get made, and how important it is to have leaders who listen carefully but aren’t afraid to speak up when something isn’t right.

I’m running for City Council because I believe in showing up for this community—especially when it matters most. Over the years, I’ve spoken up for more affordable housing, advocated for safer streets, and worked alongside neighbors to strengthen our local democracy, including supporting the recall effort against former councilmember Jacobs and the broader push for accountability that ultimately led voters to choose new leadership.

Like many people in this community, I stood with neighbors who stepped up to protect families during the recent ICE crisis. None of that work belongs to one person—it was so many of us working together—but it reinforced something I believe deeply: Columbia Heights is strongest when we look out for one another.

On the council, I want to keep pushing for safer and greener streets, faster progress on Safe Routes to School, common-sense protections for renters, stronger accountability for absentee landlords, and stronger support for the diverse small businesses that give this city its character.

My political experience

• • • Two terms on the Planning Commission
    • Four years on the Charter Commission
    • 2025 Comprehensive Plan advisory group
    • One of the organizers of the Kordiak Park Halloween Spooktacular
    • Protecting our neighbors against ICE 

Professional background

After graduating from the University of Minnesota in 2004, I began my career as a community newspaper reporter covering Cottage Grove, St. Paul Park, and Newport. That experience shaped how I see the world to this day—spending time in people’s communities, listening carefully, and telling stories that help others understand what’s really happening.

Over the next two decades, my work took me through journalism, small business, and consulting. I spent nearly a decade as a business and outdoor recreation journalist covering industries like boating, motorcycling, and snowmobiling. Later, at Franchise Times, I worked closely with small business owners across the country and wrote extensively about the intersection of business, cities, and the built environment. I eventually founded Food On Demand, a national publication and conference focused on the rapidly changing restaurant delivery industry. What started as a small editorial project grew into a million-dollar media brand that still operates today.

Today, I work at Zan Associates, an urban planning and public engagement firm in downtown Minneapolis. Our work focuses on helping cities and public agencies design major infrastructure projects by working directly with the people who live there. Every day, I meet with residents, business owners, and community groups to make sure their voices shape the future of their neighborhoods. It’s work I care deeply about, because it reflects something I’ve believed throughout my career: good decisions happen when leaders listen closely and bring people into the process.