The following was submitted by the candidate.
David T. Burnes announced today his candidacy for the Milton Board of Selectmen.
“I am thrilled to kick off my campaign for Milton Board of Selectmen,” said Burnes. “I was born and raised in this community. I have chosen to stay here and raise a family here. I know what has made Milton great in the past, and I want to make sure Milton is the best community it can be in the future.”
One of six children of Maryanne and Charles Burnes, David was born and raised in Milton, attending Milton Public Schools like his siblings, and participating in athletic programs organized within the Town. David graduated from Boston College High School in 1992 and Boston College in 1996, and was recently inducted into the Boston College High School Hall of Fame. He is employed with JN Phillips after 13 years of municipal management experience working as the Deputy Director of Recreation with the City of Boston and subsequently as the Director of Recreation for the Town of Westwood.
“I am running for Selectman because I know this community and its history as well as anyone and I have a vested interest in maintaining the town’s legacy of excellence for my children,” said Burnes. “My life experience, municipal management experience, and passion for this community make me the best candidate to move Milton forward.”
David Burnes is married to Aprile (Chase) Burnes who grew up in Arlington. They have two sons, James, a second grader at the Glover School and Owen, who attends the Campbell School. David is a Little League coach and member of the Milton National Little League Board of Directors.
Milton has a three member Board of Selectmen and voters will elect one member on April 28, 2015. Surrounded by his family and friends, Burnes said “I uniquely represent the Milton of yesterday and the Milton of tomorrow, and I am confident that the voters will choose me to represent them.”
Mr. Burnes, congratulations on your decision to run. The town is well-served when an election is contested by qualified candidates.
I was hoping you could provide more details about your candidacy and the specific views and positions you would bring to the Board if elected. For example:
–I do not see your name on the most recent list of Town Meeting members (http://www.townofmilton.org/Public_Documents/MiltonMA_Clerk/Town%20Meeting/TMM.pdf). Have you ever run for Town Meeting? If not, why not?
–What was your position(s) on the last several override questions? What is your view on the need for a future override?
–What are your views on specific issues now facing the town (for example, the Hendries property; East Milton traffic and parking; the Master Plan)?
We are fortunate to have a site like MyTownMatters, where candidates can communicate their views directly to a large percentage of voters. I look forward to your answers and learning more about the specifics of your candidacy.
I was very happy to read, from 3,000 miles away, that my old friend David Burnes is running for Selectman in our hometown.
Dave and I grew up playing sports together – he was a far superior athlete to me! – and we graduated from BC High in the same class. I went on to what we then considered the far west – Holy Cross – and Dave went to BC.
The fact is that, when Dave and I grew up in Milton in the 1980s and early 1990s, we and most of our friends were “new” Milton. Our parents typically came from one of three places: Dorchester, South Boston or the west of Ireland. My and Dave’s own fathers proudly hail from Dorchester Lower Mills.
Today, again, there are lots of newcomers to our town. I’ve met some of them on my trips back to my native East Milton. And they are drawn by the same things our parents were: good schools, great neighbourhoods and wonderful parishes and communities of worship – all just a few T stops from downtown Boston.
So this election is not a case of “new” or “old” Milton. It is one Milton.
Unlike so many of us Milton guys and girls who left, David Burnes stayed. He and his wife, Aprile, are raising their children in the town we all love so much. He has more than a decade of experience of municipal government in Boston and in Westwood. He stands ready and able to represent and reinvigorate all of the people of our town. Let’s support and elect him on April 28th.
Best regards,
Larry Donnelly
Wicklow, Ireland
Former Milton Town Meeting and Warrant Committee Member
I have coached David in baseball and worked with David on several committees. David has great listening skills, works extremely well with others, and knows how to get things done. Milton is the town I chose to live in, teach in and raise my children. The talents David offers is what Milton currently needs.
Joe O’Neill