Dear Friends and Neighbors,
I have had the honor and pleasure of serving as your Town Council Member – Place 2. I am seeking re-election and once again, asking for your support. Here are some of the reasons why you should support me on May 8th.
Gas Drilling. I have a consistent record of opposing Urban Drilling in our neighborhoods. Like you, I believe that our neighborhoods are supposed to be safe places for our children. Not industrialized areas that can threaten our air, soil, and water. I fought to get Council to support the gas moratorium and oppose the zoning that will allow a Central Collection Facility close to schools and neighborhoods. But without a majority to agree with Council Member Tom Hayden and I, council rejected the Moratorium and passed the zoning for the Central Collection Facility. In fact, over 600 residents, an overwhelming record of people, came to town hall to agree with my position to no avail. I have a record of courteously listening to you and soliciting your opinion before I vote on issues.
I believe that it was a mistake to add variances to our Oil and Gas Ordinances that could allow gas wells within 300 feet of a residence. When the State Legislature threatened to adopt laws that would strip our community of local control over gas drilling, I went to Austin and lobbied hard to get our representatives to oppose those measures. We won that round, but I pledge to also be vigilant next state legislative session to not allow big government to take away our rights in favor of gas drillers and special interests.
Creating a Medical Community. I have a demonstrated record of bringing medical facilities to our community. I am proud to say that I helped bring the new THR Flower Mound Hospital to serve our residents. It will open in April, 2010 and bring with it over 400 new high paying jobs. I was also instrumental in bringing a second hospital to our community. There will be a rehab hospital located at CenterPlace that will employ an additional 110 jobs. Lewisville Hospital also opened a free standing Emergency Room close to the new hospital. Reports are that patients are seen quickly and efficiently with a high level of care.
I will work to leverage those facilities to create a Medical Community. I will work with our Economic Development team to solicit and entice medical service providers, equipment, insurance, and supply organizations to locate in our community. The Medical Community is the most recession proof industry during a downturn and that will, in turn, provide our town with steady resources.
Your Tax Dollars. Flower Mound has been lucky during this economic downturn so far. We have been able to keep all town services at the same level and avoid the layoffs and furloughs that have hit our surrounding communities. But our tax revenue is trending downward at over 12%. I have a financial background and have been Director of Finance for a major state agency. I also have over 10 years of governmental auditing and accounting experience. Now is the time for strong financial leadership to maximize our tax revenue and make sure that waste does not creep into our town government.
SMARTGROWTH and the Master Plan. I have worked to protect both SMARTGrowth and our Master Plan. When council created a Central Business District exempt of SMARTGrowth criteria, I insisted that we apply the criteria to this project anyway. It exposed many weaknesses to this project. There are instances where we will have to deviate from the Master Plan but I promise you, adding high density apartments to our community is not one of them. Developers are circling our community working to get a super majority on council to have the town approve developments that can include over 5,000 high density apartments. They know that Al Filidoro does not support higher density or rezoning commercial, potential tax generating, property for the purposes of adding high density apartments to our community.
Standing Up for What’s Right. Gas drillers and large developers are now constantly coming to town council threatening to sue our town in the hopes that we will not fight for our residents. Some members of Town Council constantly want to back down to lawsuits and give the Gas Drillers and large developers what they want. We cannot govern with fear. We cannot cave in just because they say we can’t win. Residents tell me that they want us to protect their rights and stand up for what’s right. I am an attorney. I use those skills to evaluate each and every legal situation. I have gone to court with our town to stand up for you and I pledge to continue to fight to protect our community from rapid industrialization by special interests. My record proves that I can do that successfully.
Right now council leadership has not sided with Council Member Tom Hayden and me on major issues that directly affect your health, safety, and welfare. Just one more vote will give them a veto proof council. Look at the decisions that have affected us lately. Do you agree with their decisions?
Al Filidoro
Flower Mound, TX
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