Candidates discuss positions during virtual forum

Candidates for San Marcos City Council places 5 and 6 expressed their views on various issues during a candidate forum hosted by the League of Women Voters of Hays County.

City council Place 5 candidates incumbent Mark Gleason and contender Zach Sambrano along with city council Place 6 candidates Jude Prather and Mark Rockeymoore spoke during the Zoom forum on Thursday.

After the opening statements, Gleason and Sambrano were asked what their priorities were for marketing the city to developers.

Gleason emphasized the importance of the land development code as well as being clear and concise on the rules regarding city development.

“I think the biggest thing we do is give them clear rules on what the community wants and I think we did that with our land development code, that we gave them a roadmap to work with and what the community wants and where they want it,” Gleason said.

Sambrano focused more on housing development and affordability for the community.

“If we do not approve more housing, the price of housing because of supply and demand will continue to go up,” Sambrano said. “So we can’t say that yes we have this plan, this is what you need to follow, follow it and then it comes before us and we just shoot it down.”

The place 6 candidates were asked the same question. Prather spoke of development predictability and geography.

“The most important thing is predictability. The developer knows that if they buy a piece of land or are interested in investing in our community, they know beforehand what they can build and where they can build it,” Prather said.

Prather mentioned that there are many people that drive through the Interstate 35 corridor and that the geography of San Marcos serves as an ally for development.

Rockeymoore proposed that because of the growth and development of San Marcos, the city has the freedom to choose whatever developments they want.

“We don’t have to accept every single development that wants to be here, we don’t have to accept every single job offer that wants to come here,” Rockeymoore said. “We can pick and choose what fits with us here in San Marcos.”

The next question presented was how would the candidates mitigate the top two challenges the city faces.

Sambrano proposed that the top two challenges in San Marcos include housing availability and infrastructure. Prather expressed that he would focus on public safety and utilities.

Both candidates spoke of how weather can play a role in challenges faced and how the city must be prepared for flooding.

Rockeymoore further explained that the weather is the top challenge that the city faces.

“That includes both mitigating river, flood issues and also preparing for future environmental extremes like the extreme heat that we experience sometimes in the summer as well as extreme cold that leads into the winter,” Rockeymoore said.

Gleason put infrastructure at the top of his list along with COVID recovery.

“We have a lot of small businesses, a lot of people lost their jobs,” Gleason said. “One of the things we need to do is be mindful of bringing good jobs in to replace the jobs that were lost, but also keep the small businesses open that we have now and a lot of that has to do with transportation and parking issues and including the infrastructure projects to those small businesses.”

Candidates were then asked how they would promote the top two resources of San Marcos.

Prather proposed that Texas State University graduates are valuable to the city and that it would help the city if they stayed after earning their degree. Prather also considered the San Marcos Regional Airport as a top resource.

“It’s a sizable asset that the city has and I think it's going to be really important in the 21st century economy,” Prather said. “Airway distribution is going to be another key growth industry in the 21st century.”

Rockeymoore focused on promoting the river and the geographic location of San Marcos.

“Those who seek to bring us technological businesses, tech businesses, perhaps some Silicon Valley in California, we’re a great place for you to locate, plenty of places for your folks to come and have fun,” Rockeymoore said.

Gleason agreed with Rockeymoore that geographic location could help San Marcos develop and bring job opportunities to the community. Sambrano agreed with the fellow candidates regarding location while also highlighting the Mermaid Society.

“I think we need to continue to promote that and one way that we do promote that is making sure that we protect our river,” Sambrano said.

The next question asked was what would guide the candidates’ decision-making in their role as a city council member.

“I am going to listen to everyone who speaks to me and those who don’t speak to me directly,” Rockeymoore said. “I plan on having town halls at least once a quarter.”

Gleason mentioned that the most important thing for him is that he’s representing his constituency as well as the entire city.

“I think it’s really just listening to everybody and trying to find a compromise to make it work for everyone,” Gleason said.

Sambrano said that his heart and community will help guide his decision-making

“It’s listening to the community,'' Sambrano said. “It's having those town halls, it's having those meetings and it's just directly talking to those people and hearing what they see, what they feel and what they think needs to change.”

Empathy and compassion are what Prather expressed would help him.

“I want to bring civility to city hall. Every decision I make I try to look through the lens of empathy and ‘how does this affect the least amongst us’ and the most important is compassion,” Prather said.

The candidates then had the opportunity to answer questions from the audience regarding various issues. Afterward, each can didate ended with their closing remarks.

To view the full forum, visit https://my.lwv.org/texas/hays-county.