Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Letter: Respecting the Past; Planning for the Future

Flower Mound has been my home for 22 years. The changes in those 20 years are bittersweet.  We’ve grown from a sleepy town that was more country than city to one of DFW’s most desired communities.

Throughout this time I have always answered the call to serve Flower Mound either through PTA, United Way, Journey to Dream or town committees. My longest service was on the LISD Board of Trustees. During that time, the Board helped steer the district on a course that created one of the top performing school districts in Texas. We are fiscally sound and repay our debts over 40% faster than other districts.  Academically we are in the top 25 districts in Texas. I’m proud we achieved all of this while experiencing increasing diversity and more than doubling in size to over 55,000 students.

Leading LISD through these changes was not always easy. It required making some tough and not always popular decisions. Whether it was voting no on the proposed Flower Mound West Zone boundary changes or staying the course on LISD’s 1:X initiatives, I have never been afraid to make a decision and accept the personal consequences. I am proud to say that a year after voters made a different choice, not one major LISD policy has shifted dramatically and the district has continued to be a shining example in Texas education.

As a long time resident, I know Flower Mound didn’t become a great community without making carefully planned and rigorously debated sacrifices. Political discussions in Flower Mound are most productive when we embrace our diversity and work in a balanced, respectful way toward our future.

I am asking for the opportunity to serve on Flower Mound’s Town Council because we are at a place and time where the needed balance and respect is becoming increasingly lacking. Council meetings have become polarizing events and residents are increasingly being asked to declare themselves either pro or anti-development.

This is a horrible waste of energy and time. Candidates with little experience and understanding have stepped up to try and freeze Flower Mound in time.

My opponent is one such candidate. He is a recent California transplant who has tried unsuccessfully to achieve higher political office twice.  The last time he did not even bother to move to the community he was asking to serve.

My opponent’s approach seems to be to give the most vocal residents what they want and let them live with the consequences. My fear is that these consequences will be the loss of a significant portion of our tree canopy and filling vacant land with low value retail and office or ill-planned homes or if the State Legislature is successful, gas wells.

What my opponent does not understand is that leadership is not about listening to the loudest voices, it is about listening to ALL voices, gathering facts and then making the best decision under the circumstances.

Flower Mound is headed for some challenging times. DFW is one of the fastest growing areas in the country and that is putting pressure on Flower Mound to grow more rapidly than we are always comfortable doing. At the same time the Texas Legislature is moving to limit local government control in a wide variety of areas including taxing authority, land development and gas drilling.

Flower Mound needs a Town Council that can quickly evaluate and distribute information to residents, work with other regional governmental bodies and make sound decisions to protect Flower Mound. My opponent’s lack of experience in Flower Mound and his tendency to adopt the opinion of the loudest residents will not help to build the council Flower Mound needs.

I am asking for the opportunity to use my experience serving not only Flower Mound but LISD and Denton County to help build the Council Flower Mound will require to successfully navigate through the days ahead.

I ask that you vote for me, Carol Kyer, for Flower Mound Place 5.

Carol Kyer
Flower Mound, TX

CTG Staff
CTG Staff
The Cross Timbers Gazette News Department

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