Chemist and biotech entrepreneur Amir Zuccolo joins Charlottetown mayoral race
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An Island chemist and biotech entrepreneur is entering the race to become Charlottetown’s next mayor.
Amir Zuccolo announced on Friday that she will formally launch her campaign at a public event on July 30, ahead of the city’s municipal election in the fall.
“Charlottetown is rapidly changing and growing, and I think that we need a new vision for leadership on how to achieve goals around housing and transportation to get our city to a place that we need to be,” Zuccolo told CBC News.
She said housing policy should focus on attracting and retaining people the city needs, including health-care workers, teachers and early childhood educators, by ensuring they can find places to live and build community.
She is calling for improvements to public transit and infrastructure for walking and cycling, along with greater public involvement in city planning and decision-making. Her platform also includes reducing closed-door council meetings.
On climate preparedness, Zuccolo said the city should move beyond declaring a climate emergency and focus on preparing for extreme weather events such as hurricanes, heatwaves and cold snaps.
Originally from North Vancouver, B.C., Zuccolo moved to P.E.I. in 2012 to teach in the department of chemistry at UPEI before moving into the biotechnology sector.
She later co-founded a biotech company, served as a councillor in the Rural Municipality of Brackley, and has worked in the non-profit sector and on many active transportation initiatives.
“I feel that I have the skills, expertise and interpersonal relationship communication style that makes me well-suited to be the mayor,” she said.
