Below is information for you on City Council Elections here in Arlington, TX.  Please read before you go and vote.

First Part written by Mark Strickland

Early voting starts Monday, April 30 and ends Tuesday, May 8. Election Day is Saturday, May 12. Please get out and vote!

If you don't know who to vote for, don't have time to do the research and trust our judgement, below is a list of our choices. Your ballot may not have all these names listed. The District in which you live determines who will be on your ballot.

Kecia Mays - Place 1 - Arlington School Board
Dr. Aaron Reich - Place 3 - Arlington School Board

For Arlington City Council:

District 1 - Ben Bruce
District 2 - Darrell Castillo
District 6 - Phillip Benge - at large
District 7 - Jerry Pikulinski - at large
District 8 - Charla Hawkins-Vinyard - at large

Please share this with your friends. I sent it to 35 Arlington residences. If everyone does their part, we can win!

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You can print this part above, and take it with you to vote.

Our primary objective is to eliminate the incumbents who are up for reelection in the Arlington City Council. Read below and you will understand what I mean.

If you want more information as to why we should vote for these candidates, below is an excellent email written by Buddy Saunders. As an example, it is interesting to note that the final vote on the proposed fines of up to $2000 per event, for watering your yard on prohibited days, and costly "water audits" every 3 years for businesses  has been postoned until after the May 12th election! Seems to me that there is an attempt to prevent exposure of what their plans are prior to the election.

Buddy Saunders input below:

Council Chronicles #4: Buddy’s picks for City Council and why

Ladies and Gentlemen,

I’ve been asked who I’m supporting in the upcoming city council races. The short answer is no one who is an incumbent, nor anyone new who will be a clone of those already sitting on the council. While the Arlington Voice does not endorse candidates, I am free to do so. Those currently on our council and all nineteen new candidates are all good people with a desire to serve the citizens of Arlington .  I question no one’s character.  My concern is their judgment and what they will support and not support as council members.

The second Tea Party candidate forum held last night at the Arlington ISD administration building was the last of the public forums for city council.  I attended all the previous forums—1st Tea Party Forum, Arlington Alliance for Responsible Government (AARG), Arlington Republican Club, Young Men of Arlington, and League of Women Voters.

Having attended these six forums and listened to the answers given by the candidates, I’ve decided who I will support and why. If you’ve been receiving my columns for a while—and most of you have—you know where I stand on issues.

Based on what I’ve learned, I recommend and will be voting for the following candidates.

District 1 -- Ben Franklin Bruce

District 2 -- Darrell Castillo

District 6 (citywide) -- Phillip Benge

District 7 (citywide) -- Jerry Pikulinski

District 8 (citywide) -- Charla Hawkes-Vinyard

These five candidates will return a citizen-driven agenda to Arlington .

The points listed below underscore why we need a change in Arlington .  These thirteen examples reflect the perspective and priorities of the current council as I and many other citizens see them. The five candidates I support join me in opposing the perspective outlined below.

1)      $51 million bike plan currently being funded in part with street tax dollars. See the need for two stop signs ($300) on Norwood Drive that the city council instead “solved” with a $100,000 fix for a good example of bike-laning a street.
2)      The rush to build stack and pack high density multi-story apartments that will increase city population/congestion to a level that will support mass transit.
3)      Allowing the current $400-plus million street maintenance backlog to grow while funding less important projects such as a network of skateboard parks, the first to cost $500,000.
4)      Proposed needless abridgement of water use rights with fines up to $2000, and for businesses costly “water” audits--$100 to $300 per property every three years. While some city council members say they now oppose the plan, others remain committed to it.
5)      Increasing city debt via “certificate of obligation” bonds that do not require taxpayer approval. Arlington has issued millions of dollars in such bonds. A mayor with a compliant council could fund the entire bike plan in five years by issuing $10 million in such bonds per year.
6)      Funding an online city newspaper at taxpayer expense and contrary to the longstanding separation of government and the press in America .
7)      Support for NCTCOG (North Central Texas Council of Governments) lobbying of the Texas legislature for $2 billion in higher car and gasoline taxes.  Funding for NCTCOG from the federal government is being cut, but city staff and council remain closely associated with this expensive bureaucracy.
8)      Local government support for the elimination of coal-fired power plants in Texas , leaving the state vulnerable to brownouts, job losses and negative economic growth.
9)      Using Tomorrow Fund gas well money to fund non-city projects while city needs are underfunded.
10)  Planned increase in the cost of trash service by converting that service from recycling tubs and trash bags to 64-gallon wheeled carts.
11)  Commissioning a NCTCOG analysis of the city’s contract and procurement history as a prelude to setting purchasing standards based on gender and ethnicity rather than on most qualified and competitive bidder, a policy that, if enacted, could cost Arlington taxpayers millions of additional dollars.
12)  Red light cameras to create a revenue stream for the city while accomplishing little in terms of safety.
13)  Turned off half the street lights on many major roads in Arlington to “reduce the city’s carbon footprint,” but turned them back on in time for the Superbowl because “We don’t want our out of town guests to drive in the dark.”

Further information on all nineteen candidates running for city council may be found at the following online voter’s guides: The Arlington Voice, the Arlington Chamber of Commerce, the Arlington Spectator, and at the Dallas Morning News.

You have it in your power to change things.

Get out and VOTE, folks, get out and VOTE!  And get your family and friends out to vote, too!

Early voting starts Monday, April 30 and ends Tuesday, May 8. Election Day is Saturday, May 12. Please get out and vote, but first know the candidates. Make your vote count.

NOTE: This is another in an ongoing series of columns concerning the future of the Arlington city council.

Sincerely,
Buddy Saunders, Chairman
SOS Arlington Streets Committee