Norwalk Election 2021: Heather Dunn For Common Council

NORWALK, CT — Election Day is approaching fast, and a number of key positions in town will be on the ballot.

To help readers make an informed decision on Nov. 2, Patch has reached out to local candidates to share their views on a few topics.

Independent Heather Dunn, 56, is running for Common Council (District D) in Norwalk.

Occupation: Norwalk High School Special Education Teacher

• Husband: Steve Morenberg, Creative Director
• Son: Max Morenberg, NHS '15, Lehigh University '19
• Daughter: Laney Morenberg NHS '18, Lafayette College '21, Columbia University

Family in government: Yes, my sister is a senior economist with the Federal Reserve Board in DC.

The single biggest issue in town is ______, and I plan to do this about it:

Poor long-range planning has negatively impacted quality of life and Norwalk's infrastructure, which has resulted in the need for a continuous stream of costly fix-it plans.

Residents, like myself, are eager to become engaged in civic matters. However, they often feel their input has been ignored or willfully misrepresented, or that they are brought into the process too late to have any meaningful impact.

I will work to represent the concerns of our residents, including addressing flooding and traffic issues, protecting our waterfront, historic resources and tree canopy, and making sure that all residents have access to a safe and healthy living environment.

Critical differences between me and my opponents:

I am the only candidate who has experience representing our district (D) at the neighborhood level. As the current president of the Norwalk Area of Silvermine Homeowners (NASH), I have been an advocate for better development and mitigating the impact of outside forces that might destroy our identity and fiscal health.

I have the most experience after 35 years of advocating for our neighborhoods and developing positive relationships with city department staff.

Accomplishments:

Throughout my entire adult life, I have been dedicated to advocating for Norwalk. My civic engagement began with the non-profit SoNo Arts Celebration. As President, I wrote grants for arts programming and public art installations and managed 200+ volunteers throughout the year.

Currently, I am a member of Norwalk's emergency response team and a volunteer with the American Red Cross, where I serve as Recovery Supervisor for Western Connecticut. These positions requires strong communication skills and the ability to identify community resources for our families experiencing loss.

I also serve our community as president of NASH, a not-for-profit formed to help advocate for my SIlvermine neighborhood. Most notably, we collaborated recently with our neighboring Cranbury association to stop the outsized development of a Main Avenue Brownfield site. We have also advocated for lowering and burying power lines, and worked to creating Silvermine historic/village districts.

Other issues:

I consider myself an activist and advocate for our local community, but have always remained unaffiliated politically.

Personally, I am very disheartened by the current political climate and the way it has impacted civil discourse and the ability to get things done. I am not interested in engaging in that approach to politics.
By teaming up with the Independent Party, which offers a platform for alternative views and ideas, I believe I can be a part of bringing new energy and vision to Norwalk.

What else would you like voters to know about you?

On Nov. 2, whether I am elected or not, I look forward to working with what I hope will be a more balanced and inclusive Common Council. I will continue to roll up my sleeves and put in the hard work to protect, and improve, what makes our city such an incredible place to live and work!