It has been my honor and privilege to serve the City of Burlingame and its residents for close to 25 years while working alongside so many dedicated public service professionals in both our outstanding staff and my council colleagues. After much discussion with my family and friends as well as a desire to advance my career in a specific area of public focus, I have decided to retire from the Burlingame City Council at the end of this 2022 term.
As a four-time mayor, councilmember, and former planning commissioner, most of my working career has manifested in a passion for civic engagement. I am fortunate that during these years, and in collaboration with many talented professionals, we have achieved in Burlingame a unique balance of forward-looking inclusive planning while maintaining the quaint town feel that has made Burlingame a jewel of the Peninsula.
During my 17 years on the Council, I have served as Mayor four times allowing me to steward economic development with my most important project being the renovation of Burlingame Avenue that has brought beauty and commerce together to delight shoppers and residents. Other city defining projects on which I have been happy to collaborate include the renovation of our downtown Safeway, development of the new Mills Peninsula Hospital, attention to grade separation and other critical infrastructure needs including the development of an all-electric Burlingame Community Center, stewarding our revised Envision Burlingame general plan, and championing new ways to build and include affordable housing for our workforce and seniors. Most recently as Mayor in 2021, I was able to lead Burlingame to become an Age Friendly Certified City and learned that was my passion.
Prior to joining the Burlingame City Council, I was a nurse specializing in mental health. I then became a Legislative Aide for San Mateo County Supervisor, David J. Canepa. As I depart City Council, it will be to continue my position as Strategic Alliance Lead with the Center For Age Friendly Cities (CAFÉ) as a liaison working with other cities in San Mateo County and beyond to obtain certification. As our population ages here in San Mateo County, this work will be critical to keeping our residents healthy and happy. I see it as a continuation of my public service and passion to care for people and help make their lives better. It has been my great pleasure to serve Burlingame and I thank my colleagues in the city and on council for sharing this experience with me and the voters who supported me these last four terms.
Ann has lived in Burlingame since 1975 and attended Our Lady of Angels Elementary School and Mercy High School in Burlingame and then the University of San Francisco where she earned her BSN and MSN degree in Nursing. She worked in Mental Health in San Mateo County. She is the mother of two and daughter to Katie and Denis O’Brien who also reside in Burlingame.