Gleason, Henderson, Marquez vie for City Council Place 5
Mark Gleason
SMDR: What do you see as the three major issues the city is likely to face in the next two years?
Gleason: Balancing historic preservation and the protection of existing neighborhoods and the environment with responsible, appropriate growth for San Marcos. Wise, transparent spending of federal disaster recovery grant money that will protect neighborhoods, homeowner investments, businesses, and the health of our rivers and the aquifer recharge zone. Improve traffic congestion and parking especially in the downtown area.
SMDR: How would you balance historical preservation efforts with environmental concerns? How about balancing historical preservation efforts with economic development opportunities?
Gleason: I would rather refer to historic conservation, which is the more complete term for care of historic structures. Historical conservation and environmental protection are essentially two faces of the same thing. Historic conservationists fondly say, “The greenest building is the one that’s already built,” which sums this up well. The environmental impact of a new building takes many decades to catch up to a re-purposed historic structure. With respect to economic development, historic conservation and economic development go together. Many historic cities have benefitted economically from their historic conservation efforts. We are blessed to have a very large catalogue of historic buildings and the San Marcos River, which has supported humans for over 12,000 years. Both are cherished in our community and each is part of the soul of San Marcos. There is not a need to balance historic conservation, environmental concerns, and economic development. They co-exist as one.
SMDR: In the wake of the Iconic Village fire, do you believe the city should revisit its fire code and consider making the rules for multifamily and purpose-built student housing projects more stringent?
Gleason: The Iconic Village fire this summer was a community tragedy, and my heart goes out to all those involved. We are grateful for the hard work of our generous community donors, city staff, first responders, police, and fire department for helping the victims. I would be pleased to listen to the voices of the newly piloted program with the city of San Marcos, Texas State University, and the Austin Tenants Council. This will generate a forum to assist permanent residents and student tenants with complaints and information. For years, residents have noticed and voiced concerns about the inappropriate locations and lack of maintenance of cheaply built multifamily and purpose-built student housing structures around town. Our fire code should definitely be reviewed to make our housing and future projects safer. I applaud city staff who are currently working to address all concerns raised by survivors and their friends and families.
SMDR: Regarding “workforce housing” — do you support the city’s efforts to make more affordable housing options available to local residents? What would you suggest as a way to make housing more affordable?
Gleason: With growth happening all around Central Texas, we aren’t the only city facing the issue of affordable housing. Let’s start by investigating how other Texas cities have addressed this issue and adapt them to our needs. It’s also important to reach out to reputable charitable organizations or private groups such as Habitat for Humanity. As acting Vice Chair of Planning and Zoning, I have evaluated concerns posed by residents, researched information such as traffic and environmental studies, worked with city staff, and voted on these tough housing issues. Part of my decision-making process includes listening as all stakeholders voice their opinions on increased availability while protecting our neighborhoods, rivers, and the character of our city. I support the newly formed Workforce Housing Subcommittee and the Workforce Housing Task Force which will try to address the interests of residents on the housing affordability issue.
SMDR: How do you think we should deal with increasing traffic congestion?
Gleason: To alleviate traffic congestion, there are several possible avenues to encourage alternative modes of transportation. First, I support our city’s attempt to partner with Texas State University to make both the University tram and CART bus services more efficient. This could provide wider-ranging service opportunities and increase the consistency and schedule. Second, we could improve the number and safety of bike lanes for cyclists. With so much traffic and insufficient parking, college students and residents alike could benefit from these improvements. Third, I would attempt to partner with Texas State University to discuss altering their policy of allowing freshman students living on campus to have vehicles. This is common practice at many universities around the country, and there could be exceptions in some special cases. These freshman students could utilize the bus service or bicycle around campus and be more integrated into campus life for their first year.
Rick Henderson
SMDR: What do you see as the three major issues the city is likely to face in the next two years?
Henderson: Improve transportation and mobility issues including additional sidewalks and bike lanes. Strategic municipal & regional market based economic growth initiatives. Economically effective investment in law enforcement, fire protection & infrastructure.
SMDR: How would you balance historical preservation efforts with environmental concerns? How about balancing historical preservation efforts with economic development opportunities?
Henderson: Historical preservation in heritage districts through a market based approach that does not create barriers to economic growth while maintaining historical neighborhood character. The SMTX Development Code addresses compatibility, specifically. Commitment to restore Capes Dam, recognizing the dam’s historical significance. Therefore, also protecting endangered species, and the Mill Race.
SMDR: In the wake of the Iconic Village fire, do you believe the city should revisit its fire code and consider making the rules for multifamily and purpose-built student housing projects more stringent?
Henderson: If the City Manager and the fire department chief make a recommendation to reexamine municipal fire codes, I would support council direction to revisit the fire code relative to all multi-family and student-purpose-built structures in the city.
SMDR: Regarding “workforce housing” — do you support the city’s efforts to make more affordable housing options available to local residents? What would you suggest as a way to make housing more affordable?
Henderson: I support the most recent council initiatives through transferring monies from the economic development fund for that purpose. I suggest the recent support to facilitate brainstorming with local homebuilders and sincerely interested stakeholders to develop more affordable new and existing housing options in the short-term. The Development Code and related ordinances act as a guide for the private sector to step up and meet the demands of a changing marketplace. Energy efficiency requirements should accompany any new programs to reinforce the goal of reducing overall housing costs.
SMDR: How do you think we should deal with increasing traffic congestion?
Henderson: It will take regional strategic vision & planning with significant funding from a committed Texas legislature and TxDot to help alleviate the amount of traffic that runs in out of the city as a non-destination point. Improving the availability of transportation alternatives, especially bus transportation is important. Some neighborhoods have streets that should not be used as alternative shortcuts by drivers. This is a safety issue that has an impact on neighborhood character. If traffic studies and citizen input provide suitable evidence, I would support more stop signs, traffic lights, and “speed humps” to slow traffic and mitigate overuse of neighborhood streets. Walkable and bike friendly housing options are very attractive to many citizens.
Jocabed G. Marquez, PhD
SMDR: What do you see as the three major issues the city is likely to face in the next two years?
Marquez: Current physical infrastructure does not aptly accommodate our steady population growth — in light of that, we need to be mindful of how to best protect our treasured assets: the river, local businesses, arts & culture, the greenbelt, the welfare of our longtime residents as well as our many newcomers.The constant growth of Texas State University also poses a risk to the natural ecology of San Marcos in addition to social concerns; the University must do more to heal the rift between the so-called “town and gown.”
SMDR: How would you balance historical preservation efforts with environmental concerns? How about balancing historical preservation efforts with economic development opportunities?
Marquez: I was just in Berlin last month and it amazes me how the city has preserved many of its historical buildings. Historical preservation can facilitate economic development opportunities — historical preservation increases economic growth by attracting visitors from outside of San Marcos. Preserving our natural environment is priority for me, therefore, finding the balance between growth and sustainability will be the main priorities to pursue in City Council.
SMDR: In the wake of the Iconic Village fire, do you believe the city should revisit its fire code and consider making the rules for multifamily and purpose-built student housing projects more stringent?
Marquez: This issue is dear and close to my heart for various reasons. It is an issue of social justice. We failed to be responsive to the needs of people who live in apartments. I lived in apartments for 6 years in this town and indeed the fire code should be revisited to protect the marginalized population in San Marcos who cannot afford to buy a home. The deaths and injuries of the most vulnerable in our population could have been prevented if fire codes were enforced.
SMDR: Regarding “workforce housing” — do you support the city’s efforts to make more affordable housing options available to local residents? What would you suggest as a way to make housing more affordable?
Marquez: The City of San Marcos must develop policies for the creation of more sustainable housing that has minimal impact on the environment. Housing that is affordable to the majority of the students at Texas State University who are here on average from 5 to 6 years, those students coming to Texas State being first generation in college, whose parents cannot afford to help them with the rising costs of rent. Workforce housing caters to the population that currently comes to San Marcos and are employed by the largest employers in the area such as Texas State University, San Marcos ISD, Central Texas Medical Center, Amazon, and the outlets. Currently a taskforce was recently formed to address both issues of workforce housing and affordable housing by partnering with non-profit organizations.
SMDR: How do you think we should deal with increasing traffic congestion?
Maquez: Ideally, if people lived close to where they go to school and work, congestion and traffic would not be a big issue. The higher cost of living has forced people to live outside the city limits and therefore bring a car into the city. To alleviate some of those concerns, the city of San Marcos as well as Texas State University have recently partnered with VeoRide bike share program with the purpose of increasing mobility among residents. My concern is that they are no bike lanes, parks, or green areas on the east side of IH-35 — -making it difficult for residents from historically low-socioeconomic neighborhoods in San Marcos to travel to the downtown area. This issue goes back to social justice — who benefits and who is historically excluded from new programs implemented by the city.
