Sedona, AZ — We never know in life when fate interferes and brings us to where we truly belong. Such is the story with council member and city council candidate Melissa Dunn, drawn to Sedona by the magic of the Red Rocks and is now a permanent resident.
“We were living and working in the Seattle area at Microsoft and Amazon,” she said. “In 2012, we moved to the Chicago, Il area to work for Sears Digital. In 2015, we moved to the UK and worked for a large company through Covid. We were able to move back to the US in April 2021 and have lived full-time in Sedona since then.
“Like so many residents, my Sedona story began with a simple hike. A friend from Phoenix brought me here, and the moment we stepped onto the trail, the world shifted. The quiet was profound, the beauty undeniable — the kind that reaches past your thoughts and straight into your heart.
“I was working an intense, full‑on job at the time, and in that stillness, I felt something I hadn’t felt in years: my whole soul exhaled. That one moment of serenity was enough. I knew, without question, that one day this would be home.”
As a consummate professional, her career includes numerous achievements, positions and roles, including those of a mom, stepmom, wife and dog lover; roles she believes empowered her with compassion, strength and other noble attributes.
“I’ve done many things in my career,” she said. “I’ve been a software user‑experience developer, a software trainer, and a conference speaker. I’ve written books and articles on software development. I’ve served as a Principal Product Architect at Microsoft, as Director of Search Technology and Digital Product Management for Sears Digital, and as Director of Digital Product Management, Copywriting, User Experience Research, Search Taxonomy, and User Experience Design for Sainsbury Argos in the UK.
“And I’ve lived the roles that don’t come with titles or résumés: mom, stepmom, spouse, and dog mom more times than I can count. These roles didn’t pay as well, at least not financially, but they shaped me just as deeply. They taught me patience, resilience, compassion, and the kind of perspective no job description ever captures.
“Money isn’t everything. A meaningful life is built from all the ways we show up — at work, at home, and in our community.”
She says her desire to serve her community comes through her living here and experiencing daily the many challenges Sedona has, and of her determination to resolve them.
“I live the realities of Sedona every day — the traffic, the loss of housing and families, the strain on community life, the noise and air pollution from cars and OHVs, and the disappearance of creek-side and riparian habitat as private land is developed within existing zoning,” shew said. “These aren’t abstract issues to me. They shape the place I call home.
“When we returned after Covid, I knew I had to step up. I became a Friends of the Forest trail ambassador to help protect our trails. I joined Keep Sedona Beautiful to support the land and community I love. And as a lifelong problem solver, I felt called to do even more.
“That’s why I ran for Council in 2022 — to help address the challenges we all face and to work toward a Sedona that remains vibrant, connected, and true to its natural beauty.”
Her desire to run for office again boils down to one word –LOVE!
“Because I love this community, I believe Sedona can be more than a second home market, a resort town, or a place where people come to retire. I believe Sedona can be a thriving, connected, resilient community — one where the people who live here feel seen, supported, and proud of the future we’re building together.
“Over the past four years, we’ve made real progress. We’ve strengthened our quality of life, improved our community health, and managed the pressures of high tourism on a small-town infrastructure. But there is still more to do — and I’m not ready to step away from that work.
“And so, here I am — choosing to run for reelection. Not because the work is easy, but because this community is worth every ounce of effort. I believe in Sedona’s future, and I believe in what we can create together.”
She believes the biggest danger Sedona now faces, is the loss of its sense of community.
“Sedona’s sense of community is at risk,” she said. “As short‑term rentals replace long‑term homes and more properties become second homes, many neighborhoods are losing their sense of place. And as festivals and events increasingly focus on tourism, our local identity is being lost.
“We can change this. We can foster more neighborhood and community‑centered events — opportunities to tell our stories, celebrate our heritages, and strengthen our bonds with one another. We can create more gathering spaces, including pocket parks woven throughout our neighborhoods. And we can build a single, easily accessible community calendar bringing all our local happenings into one shared space, making it easier for residents to connect, participate, and belong.”
The issue of affordable housing is paramount to her. She wants Sedona to be affordable to workers and young professionals, artists and others who can flourish living here.
“Sedona is at an inflection point,” she said. “We can continue becoming a resort and second‑home community, or we can choose to remain a vibrant, living city — a place where young families, entrepreneurs, artists, seniors, visitors, and everyone in between can thrive, lifted by the beauty of the Red Rocks and the spirit of this community.
“Achieving this future requires affordable housing and real support for families. It means creating homes not only for lower‑income workers who support both residents and visitors, but also for our first responders, educators, health‑care professionals, and seniors who want to age in place — the people who keep our community strong today and will sustain it into the future.
She believes the city needs to be innovative and develop a strategy and plan to deal with the growing traffic situation.
“On days when tourism doubles our population or more, we have two ways to address traffic: disperse vehicles through alternative routes like the Forest Road Extension or reduce the number of cars on the road through shared use paths and public transportation such as trailhead shuttles and on‑demand transportation,” she said. “Both approaches matter. But getting people out of their cars — onto bikes, shared‑use paths, or public transit — brings added benefits: less noise, cleaner air, fewer accidents, smoother roundabouts, and fewer parking conflicts.
“Expanding the days and hours of on‑demand shuttles will make them more practical for residents. Adding routes to popular destinations — a business and attractions circulator, for example — can further reduce the need to drive. And increasing our network of shared‑use paths will make biking safer, more accessible, and more appealing across the entire community.”
Addressing the effort to rebuild the amphitheater in the Cultural Park, she wants assurance all the bases are covered when it comes to its construction and operation.
“At least two groups have come before Council expressing interest in building an amphitheater at the Western Gateway,” she said. ‘In both cases, several critical questions must guide any decision:
Funding and maintenance — How will the project be financed and maintained, given that no city funds will be provided.
Land use priorities — How will the amphitheater be sized so higher priority community needs — an event lawn/festival grounds, community gathering space, and a recreation center, if this is the right location — receive first consideration.
Ground lease — Will the project be able to pay an appropriate ground lease to the city.
Noise, traffic, and litter — How will these impacts be mitigated to protect nearby neighborhoods and the broader community.
Parking — How will parking be handled, given the Dells cannot be used for parking.
Visitor impacts — How will the influx of event specific visitors affect the rest of the community.
Long‑term viability — What happens to any structures if the enterprise fails.
“I wasn’t living here when the original amphitheater operated, so I don’t carry any emotional attachment to its past. But I do believe a small, thoughtfully scaled amphitheater — perhaps in the 1,200–2,000‑seat range — could offer real community value. It could give local musicians a place to perform, allow more of us to comfortably attend the Red Dirt Concerts, attract touring groups preferring intimate venues, and create opportunities for outdoor theater and cultural events during good weather (not too hot or cold and no monsoons).
“The key is ensuring any proposal aligns with community priorities, protects the character of the Western Gateway, and strengthens Sedona rather than burdening it.”
On the issue of employee housing, once again, she wants to attract and retain families to ensure a better future for the community.
“To create a vibrant future for Sedona, we need to attract and retain families,” she said. “Creating a housing stock including town homes, duplexes, starter homes that can grow with a family and a mix of rental and ownership is an important step we should take. To ensure we retain families, we need to provide housing for educators increasing the level of our schools and provide housing for people who provide family support services, from programs to babysitting to health care. To ensure the safety of our community during an emergency, such as evacuation, we want our first responders to live here rather than having to drive 25-45 minutes just to get to their offices. To ensure the health of our community, we need to have affordable housing alternatives for younger healthcare professionals to stop the cycle of healthcare providers retiring or moving to an affordable area every few years.
“Sedona cannot provide enough housing to support everyone who works here now and everyone we want to live here. The Community Development director has been working on a balanced housing strategy, the final draft to be presented this fall. What we know so far is that the plan calls for a variety of housing types from townhomes to starter homes. The number of units suggested is 775 over 10 years, with 221 units already built, being built or planned across the city. This slow growth fits our small-town persona.”
She strongly supports Home Rule for Sedona.
“I’m voting Yes on Prop 400 because Home Rule has allowed us to get real work done,” she said. “With Home Rule, we approved over 80 decisions to improve parks, recreational facilities, and events, including Pickle Ball Courts, expanded Red Dirt Concert schedules, extended Pool hours, buildout of Ranger Station Park, new playground equipment and shade structures throughout the parks, water refill stations and more.
“We built 12 miles of shared‑use paths, repaired 33 miles of residential streets, authorized trailhead and on demand shuttles, diverse housing options and higher fines and fees for short-term rentals.
“We invested in our community: increasing small‑grant funding from $250,0000 to $350,000, with 40–60% going to arts and culture nonprofits, plus another $200,000 divided between Sedona Arts Center and Sedona International Film Festival. We provide major support for our Library, Recycling Center, Community Center, Humane Society, Verde Valley Caregivers Coalition, Historical Museum, and Hope House through service contracts.
“We strengthened public safety by authorizing evacuation planning, emergency sirens, better police radios, and hiring an emergency coordinator. And we made more than 20 decisions to reduce noise and air pollution, lower heat impacts, and increase shade. We approved citywide heat‑mapping, purchased creek side land, and took other steps to protect the place we love.
“Most of this cannot happen without Home Rule.
“We have been under budget every year, saved over $100,000 in interest payments, added more than $58 million to city reserves, and launched a council working group defining performance metrics, developing a public facing performance metrics dashboard and defining an external auditor scope of work to assess results of major projects.
“Fiscal responsibility and Home Rule go hand in hand.
“The real conversation should be how we spend our money — not whether we’re allowed to spend it.”
On the issue of Flock surveillance in Sedona, she stands by the decision the council made to have the cameras removed.
“I heard from several community members that there were significant concerns about the Flock contract and the appearance of Flock cameras,” she said. “In response to those concerns, I requested Council hold a full discussion with a Flock representative so we could examine the issue openly.
“After that meeting, I believed, given the risks of broad data sharing and the potential for misuse, the safest course of action was to eliminate the ALPR system entirely. Without strict, enforceable controls, I was concerned that data collected by Flock cameras could be accessed or used in ways that conflict with our community’s expectations for privacy.
“At the time, I said: ‘At this point in our history, the only way for us to make sure that data is not broadly shared or abused is to not have any. So therefore, I agree. We need to cancel the contract. We need to remove the cameras.’”
She sees her leadership style as one of inclusivity and fluidity in adjusting to change and creativity.
“I have run many teams of various sizes and various disciplines,” she said. “I believe my leadership style is rooted in transformation — inspiring a shared vision, elevating community values, and focusing on long‑term outcomes strengthening Sedona for generations. I lead by helping people see what’s possible and by building the momentum to achieve it together.
“At the same time, my approach is grounded in servant leadership. I step forward to serve — listening and learning continuously, and ensuring my decisions reflect the needs, hopes, and lived experiences of all the people who call this place home. Stewardship of both community and environment guides my choices.
“I also practice democratic leadership. I believe in transparency, open dialogue, and shared problem‑solving. I invite diverse perspectives, value collaboration, and work to ensure residents have a meaningful voice in shaping our future.
“Together, these styles define how I lead: with vision, with humility, and with a commitment to building solutions honoring both our community and the land we share.
Despite the many challenges facing the city, she sees a bright future for Sedona.
“I envision a vibrant Sedona — a place where young families, entrepreneurs, artists, seniors, visitors, and everyone in between can thrive, lifted by the beauty of the Red Rocks and the spirit of this community,” she said. “A true “park once” culture — with shuttles and shared‑use paths — letting both visitors and residents spend less time in cars and more time enjoying the place we love. It’s a path toward a greener, more sustainable, more resilient Sedona.
“We also have the chance to explore how WeCom’s high‑speed broadband might help us diversify our tax base and broaden our community in meaningful ways.
“And as we look ahead, we should keep strengthening our identity through festivals, community spaces, and shared experiences that celebrate our history, our creativity, and the stories that make Sedona unlike anywhere else.
“At the heart of all this is a simple truth: Together, we ARE Sedona. And together, we can shape an inspiring future for the place we call home — a future worthy of the landscape surrounding us and the people who make this community extraordinary.”
Serving on the council was not only a leadership experience for her, but a learning one, as well.
“I have learned what is required to get things done. I understand how the city works — and how state laws shape what we can and cannot do locally. That knowledge matters when the issues are complex, and the stakes are high.
“I have learned this job takes time, energy, patience, and vision. I’m willing to put in the hours — to learn, to listen, to ask hard questions, and to keep a long‑term view even when the short‑term pressures are loud.
“I have learned that facts matter and I am fact-based. I separate personal feelings from data. I do the work to verify information. I’m not afraid to change my mind when new facts emerge or when someone brings a better idea.
“I have learned that being honest and transparent matters. I mean what I say, and I say what I mean. I explain the “why” behind my decisions because trust is built through clarity, not slogans.
“I have learned that if you care about our community, you need to compromise so everyone wins a little and we move our community forward to a future we have created together.”