The Town of Flower Mound has quite a few reputations; some good, some … not so much; and, some deserved, others definitely not. One thing everyone would agree on is, it’s not boring.
One of the not-boring things about Flower Mound is its past and current political landscape; as in tree canopy and tree ordinance. Flower Mound is all about trees—a tree’s even the center focus in the town logo. Trees and their preservation, or mitigation, are a core element driving, or halting, the development growth—both residential and commercial/business– of the town.
The fact that The Mound is all about grasses and native flowers, minus trees, is beside the point. Trees are the root of the town’s political atmosphere.
Unfortunately, that atmosphere is a cloud of apathy, when it comes to Flower Mound residents’ voting statistics.
According to the Denton County Elections office, there are 46,632 registered town voters (including those in suspension status). The total of early voters prior to the Saturday, May 7, official Election Day is only 3,264; less than eight-percent of eligible voters.
In the May 2015 election, there were only 2,201 early voters. Of the three council members elected last year: one is being investigated by the Denton County District Attorney for a town Ethics Code Violation; and, a second resigned, for health reasons, prior to being subpoenaed to testify under oath before an independent investigator hired by the town regarding the same violation.
The independent investigation cost the town residents more than $35,000. There is a financial consequence to low voter turnout.
