Bill King, former Mayor of Kemah, endorses GENE LOCKE for Houston's next Mayor

Great news today, Bill King, former Mayor of Kemah, has endorsed Gene Locke for Houston's next Mayor. 


As those of you read my missives know, I am deeply concerned about two principal issues regarding the City of Houston. The first is its financial condition. For most of the last decade, the City's recurring expenses have exceeded its recurring revenue. At the end of the current fiscal year, our general fund reserves will barely be above State required minimum levels. Additionally, we have promised billions in benefits to our current and future retirees without setting aside enough money to fund those obligations. These issues are going to be front and center over the next several years and will be compounded by likely sluggish revenue growth and ever mounting needs to construct and overhaul our infrastructure.

The second has to do with mobility. Notwithstanding that we now invest more than a half a billion dollars a year in Metro and even more in highway and street projects, traffic congestion continues worsen even as transit ridership declines. Traffic engineers project that unless major changes are made, the level of congestion will double over the next 20 years. The Texas Transportation Institute estimates that congestion costs the region $2 billion each year and is a contributing cause in about half of the automobile accidents. We must change this trend line.

The next mayor will have the daunting task of balancing severe financial constraints with these and other pressing demands for City service and infrastructure. It will be a time when many groups will be called upon to sacrifice and to come together to address difficult choices.

I am reasonably well acquainted with all four of the major candidates for mayor and I have had the opportunity to visit with each one-on-one about the issues and their views on how they would handle the job. I have concluded that Gene Locke has the best chance of success in the difficult days ahead. Gene has assured me that he is committed to the City living within its means and not leaving crushing unpaid debt to our children and grandchildren. He has also assured me that he is committed to real reform at Metro that will prioritize its mission to provide affordable transportation to working families. Gene also understands the importance of transparency in government and is committed to making the City and METRO more transparent.

That is not to say that Gene and I agree on all issues. In fact, we sharply disagree on some. But at the end of the day, this election is not a litmus paper test. We are hiring someone to do a job and we need to hire the person we believe can best do that job.
Nancy@CallNancyFurst.com