Chris Zimmerman, Chairman of the 2006 Arlington County Board, was first elected to the board in January 1996. Re-elected in 1998 and 2002, Chris has served as Chairman twice previously.
Recognized as a leader on transportation and transit-oriented development planning, Chris has also represented Arlington on numerous regional commissions and boards. Since 1998 Chris has represented Arlington on the Board of Directors of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, serving as its Chairman in 2002.
In addition, Chris serves on the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority, of which he is currently vice-chairman; the Transportation Planning Board for the National Capital Region, which he chaired in 2004; the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission, which he chaired in 2002; and the Operations Board of Virginia Railway Express. Chris is currently finishing a two-year stint as President of the Virginia Transit Association.
In 2005 Zimmerman was appointed by then-Governor Warner to a 17-member Study Commission on Transportation in Urbanized Areas, which recommended strategies for better integrating planning and transit options in Virginia's urbanized areas.
In 2004 Chris became the first recipient of the WRN Livable Communities Leadership Award. He has also been honored by the Arlington Coalition for Sustainable Transportation (2001), and by the Virginia Transit Association as Public Official of the Year (2003).
An active member of the community prior to his service on the County Board, Chris Zimmerman was a civic association president (Douglas Park), a delegate to the Civic Federation, a member of the Planning Commission, chairman of the Neighborhood Conservation Advisory Committee, vice-chairman of the Park and Recreation Commission, and a schools activist with involvement in several PTAs.
Chris Zimmerman was formerly Chief Economist and Committee Director for Federal Budget and Taxation at the National Conference of State Legislatures, where he worked from 1987-1998. He holds a Master of Arts in Economics from the University of Maryland and a Bachelor of Science in Political Science and Economics from The American University.
Chris and his wife Mary Beth live in the Douglas Park neighborhood of south Arlington with their three children; Madeleine who attends Gunston Middle School, Rebecca who attends Virginia Commonwealth University; and Nathan who attends Virginia Tech.