Matt Vanheynigen, candidate for City Councilor-At-Large
WESTFIELD – Several city residents stepped forward this week and took out nomination papers for City Council.
Ward 2 – which has been an unfilled position since former Councilor James Brown resigned last fall – has two candidates, so far, with Daniel Allie and Ralph Figy taking out papers Monday.
Matthew VanHeynigen, a member of the Planning Board, took out papers for an at-large council seat.
VanHeynigan, 39, said he believes his background can help meet the city’s needs.
“I’m very confident in the skill set I could bring to the council,” he said.
A 1992 graduate of Westfield High School and 1996 graduate of Providence College, VanHeynigen returned to Westfield in 2004 when he accepted a position at (then) Westfield State College, where he was part of a team that secured over $3 million in grant funding for Westfield. Since 2008, he has been serving as director of grants for Western New England University. He earned a Master’s in Public Administration, with a concentration in Community Development, Management and Planning, from Westfield State in 2007.
Prior to his work in higher education fundraising, VanHeynigen was employed in fundraising with The Nature Conservancy for five years, serving its global headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, as well as its Virginia and Adirondack Chapters.
He has been a member of the Westfield Planning Board since 2006, and cites that service, his professional work in grant seeking, and government relations as experiences that will assist him in serving the city on the council.
VanHeynigen said since returning to Westfield with his family, which includes his wife, two children and third child due this spring, he has wanted to serve his hometown.
“I enjoy public service,” he said. “I feel I have the background and skills well-suited to serve on the council. As a city councilor, you’ve got to weigh a lot, and I think I can do that in a fair way.”
VanHeynigen said he not only has budget experience, he also gained knowledge of the city as a Planning Board member.
“In addition to my professional experience in budget development, accountability to grant-making agencies, and community and government relations, including work in Washington, D.C., my service on the city’s Planning Board for nearly seven years – including representing the board on the Downtown Planning, Master Plan and Smart Growth Committees – has allowed me to engage directly with the public while gaining a significant understanding of both residential and commercial interests,” he said. “I believe my collective experiences in both the private and public sectors – and my own passion for civic engagement – will assist me in serving the citizens of Westfield on the City Council.”
VanHeynigen is the son of George and Louise VanHeynigen, both lifelong Westfield residents, and is a sibling to Susan Fratini and Tom VanHeynigen, also of Westfield, and John VanHeynigen, of Chester. He and his wife Melissa, a classroom teacher at Paper Mill Elementary School, have two sons, Lincoln and Beckett.
“As a Westfield native who returned to the City for both family and career, I have a unique appreciation for quality of life and economic development throughout the City,” VanHeynigen said. “Furthermore, as a parent of two children and the spouse of a teacher, I have a firsthand appreciation and understanding of the critical role that teachers and education fulfill in our city. I am not naïve to the fiscal challenges Westfield faces. I wish to apply my skills and experience in addressing these and other challenges the city is faced with, while helping to ensure continued economic development and quality of life for the benefit of all citizens of Westfield.”
VanHeynigen said he plans to make a formal announcement and campaign kick-off in June and will soon start knocking on doors across the city.
“I am really looking forward to meeting people face-to-face and listen to their concerns,” he said.
