City council election results from major precincts

Precinct 125 (Kensington Trails, turnout: 4.43 percent)

1. Koch 26.36 percent
2. Parsley 25.45 percent
3. Kaufman 20.91 percent
4. None of the candidates 18.18 percent
5. Willis 9.09 percent

Precinct 126 (Waterleaf, turnout 5.85 percent)

1. Koch 29.69 percent
2. Parsley 23.96 percent
3. Kaufman 23.44 percent
4. Willis 12.5 percent
5. None of the candidates 10.42 percent

Precinct 127 (Bunton Creek, turnout 4.43 percent)

1. Koch 34 percent
2. Parsley 24 percent
3. Kaufman 18 percent
4. Willis 18 percent
5. None of the candidates 6 percent

Precinct 128 (Post Oak, turnout 5.64 percent)

1. Koch 43.24 percent
2. Kaufman 17.57 percent
3. Parsley 14.86 percent
4. Willis 12.16 percent
5. None of the candidates 12.16 percent

Precinct 129 (Amberwood, turnout 4.99 percent)

1. Kaufman 25 percent
2. Koch 23.44 percent
3. Parsley 23.44 percent
4. None of the candidates 20.31 percent
5. Willis 7.81 percent

Precinct 130 (Steeplechase, turnout 6.18 percent)

1. Koch 28.79 percent
2. Parsley 20.71 percent
3. Kaufman 17.68 percent
4. Willis 17.1 percent
5. None of the candidates 16.16 percent

Precinct 220 (Plum Creek, turnout 13.39 percent)

1. Koch 39.27 percent
2. Parsley 31.95 percent
3. Kaufman 21.95 percent
4. None of the candidates 4.63 percent
5. Willis 2.2 percent

Precinct 221 (Plum Creek/Spring Branch, turnout 7.47 percent)

1. Koch 34.6 percent
2. Kaufman 28.91 percent
3. Parsley 26.07 percent
4. None of the candidates 6.64 percent
5. Willis 3.79 percent

Precinct 223 (Silverado/Old Town, turnout 7.4 percent)

1. Parsley 27.18 percent
2. Koch 24.76 percent
3. Kaufman 21.84 percent
4. Willis 16.02 percent
5. None of the candidates 10.19 percent

Precinct 419 (Hometown Kyle, turnout 9.72 percent)

1. Koch 35.32 percent
2. Parsley 29.36 percent
3. Kaufman 14.68 percent
4. Willis 12.84 percent
5. None of the candidates 7.8 percent

Precinct 420 (Blanco River Crossing, turnout 21.9 percent)

1. Willis 54.55 percent
2. Koch 27.27 percent
3. Kaufman 9.09 percent
4. None of the candidates 6.06 percent
5. Parsley 3.03 percent

Voters consider city council (a) irrelevant, (b) incompetent, (c) both

Admittedly, odd-numbered-year elections don’t attract that many voters. Over the last 20 years, the average statewide turnout in odd-year elections (those elections without a candidate seeking a U.S. House or Senate seat on the ballot) is just a little over 9 percent of registered voters. Compare that to a presidential election which attracts more than 60 percent.

So perhaps it should come as no surprise when the official canvass of the Nov. 2 election revealed only 7.36 percent of Kyle’s registered voters took the time to vote, even though that was still 2 percent below the statewide turnout. But it was also markedly lower than was registered by our neighbors to the south (San Marcos’s turnout was 9.92 percent) and the north (Buda’s was a comparatively robust 13.65 percent).

But Kyle’s numbers become even more alarming when you examine them more closely.

In the citywide District 5 city council contest, incumbent Mayor Pro Temp finished first, receiving the support 32.6 percent of those who voted. Daniela C. Parsley finished second with 24.8 percent, Leah Kaufman was third with 20.6 percent, Donny J. Willis was fourth with 12 percent and (wait for it!), None of the Above finished fifth with 10 per cent.

That’s right! One out of every 10 voters said “A pox on all your houses. None of these four candidates has earned the right to receive a vote from me.” Were those voters saying (a) “I’m only interested in voting for the constitutional amendments and I don’t give a damn who wins the city council race” or (b) “Not one of these four candidates has done a damn thing to earn my vote”?

No exit polls were conducted at any of the 10 voting precincts that participated in the Kyle City Council election, but it really doesn’t matter. Either answer, when added to the dismal turnout among Kyle voters compared to our neighbors to the north and south, demonstrates just how irrelevant or incompetent (perhaps both) voters view the council.

The story doesn’t get any better (it could even be successfully argued it gets worse) when you look at the District 6 race in which incumbent Michael Tobias received 75.5 percent of those who cast ballots in the district. That may look like an overwhelming mandate except for one fact: He was unopposed! That means one in every four District 6 voters said basically the same thing, either “I don’t care about the city council race” or “I’m not that fond of Tobias.” Of course, many of those candidates could have skipped the race thinking “He’s the only candidate in the race, why should I waste my time voting for him since he’s obviously going to win anyway.” But, if that was the motivation, those voters were still considering taking a mere millisecond to vote for someone for the Kyle City Council “a waste of my time.”

And there’s one more piece of evidence that illustrates the “I-could-care-less” attitude of District 6 voters: Only 5.25 percent of the district’s registered voters even bothered to take the time to cast a ballot. That’s more than 2 percentage points lower than the city’s pathetic overall showing.

The message is clear: Residents care about what the city staff does. They want navigable streets, safe neighborhoods, decent and convenient shopping/restaurant options, park/recreational facilities and a safe/economical/reliable water supply (not necessarily in that order of importance). But they don’t care one iota about what the city council does or, for that matter, who even sits in the council. I’ve heard that message and The Kyle Report’s coverage of city government will follow those dictates.

Koch, Parsley headed for council runoff

In an election that featured a dismally low turnout — less than 5 percent of Kyle’s registered voters — challenger Daniela C. Parsley forced incumbent Mayor Pro Tem Rick Koch into a Dec. 7 runoff Tuesday night in the race for City Council District 5.

Koch finished with 99 more votes than Parsley in an election in which only 1,302 persons voted. That’s 4.98 percent of the registered voters in Kyle and only 8.4 percent of the total number of voters who cast ballots in last year’s city council election.

The final tally showed Koch leading with 463 votes, or 35.56 percent of the total votes cast. Parsley had 364 votes, or 27.96 percent. Leah Kaufman finished third with 290 votes (22.27 percent) and Donny Willis was fourth in the four-candidate race with 185 votes (14.21 percent).

Last year, which admittedly featured a presidential race at the top of the ballot, saw 15,473 votes cast ballots in a city-wide council race.

Koch has slim lead in early voting, appears headed for runoff

Mayor Pro Tem Rick Koch, seeking his second three-year term on the Kyle City Council, is slightly ahead of Daniela Parsley in the four-candidate council election race following the tabulations of the early and absentee voting, but is falling significantly short of a majority.

Koch leads Parsley by a scant 34 votes. Koch collected 34.17 percent of the 720 early ballots cast. Parsley has 28.75 percent, Leah Kaufmann is third with 21.81 percent and Donny Willis is currently in fourth place with 15.28 percent.

The Kyle Report’s City Council Candidate Forum

 Early voting for next month’s city council election begins today. The two council seats being contested this year are the at-large District 5 seat, currently held by Mayor Pro Tem Rick Koch, and the single-member District 6 position held by Michael Tobias. Both Koch and Tobias are seeking re-election to second terms on the council. Tobias doesn’t have an opponent. Three persons filed to challenge Koch in District 5.

I sent a five-item questionnaire to three of the four candidates in the District 5 race: Koch, Daniela Parsley and Donny Wills. I tried several times and failed each time to reach the fourth person who filed, Leah Kaufman. To be frank, I’m not certain this person even exists. She has not made an appearance at any candidate forum. I was told that a float bearing her name was included in the recent Founders Day Parade, but no one with her name was on the float. So there’s that.

Here, in the alphabetical order of the respective candidate's last name,  are the responses I received from the other three District 5 candidates:

Rick Koch

1. What are your qualifications for serving on the City Council?

I know what I don’t know. 

The truth is, we often elect local representatives to make big decisions that impact our quality of life who don’t know enough about how their city functions, and base their decisions on personal experience.

While serving on the Planning and Zoning Commission for two years, a city-appointed board that studies and recommends changes in our land use matters, I learned there is a lot a city council member should know before starting their service.  An unwise city council can do a lot of long-term damage. I’ve heard many former council members explain that once they figured out what was going on, they spent their time and taxpayer money fixing the mistakes of those who came before them, and then their own.

This year the City of Kyle has a $172 million budget. When people say that being on council is a heavy responsibility that is not an overstatement. 

If you’re not aware of your limitations, of what you don’t know, or where to look for the best answers, you’re going to make bad votes that have a lasting impact in a way you didn’t intend.

2. What changes in the way the city prepares its annual budget would you support?

The budget is a road map of what we as a city plan to accomplish in any given year. I have seen the city benefit from starting the budget process earlier in the year, as we have the last two years. The council has added several more meetings to allow for better planning, setting of priorities, and execution once approved. 

That was evident this year with road planning during the budgeting process. Council is moving forward to approve plans for the engineering of 13 new road projects. They encompass all areas of the city and range from Old Stagecoach Road and Center Street to Bebee Road and Windy Hill. Being a proactive city by better understanding our goals during budgeting is resulting in moving many long ignored projects along. 

3. Here, listed in alphabetical order, are eight areas municipal governments can focus on: (1) Economic Development; (2) Environment and Sustainability; (3) Government Performance and Financial Management; (4) Housing and Homelessness Solutions; (5) Public Safety; (6) Quality of Life, Arts, and Culture; (7) Transportation and Infrastructure; and (8) Workforce, Education, and Equity. Please rank them in the order you think the Kyle city government should consider most important through least important and briefly explain why you ranked them in the order you did.

Safe neighborhoods, green space and attention to infrastructure and traffic congestion are my priorities. While serving as mayor pro tem, I’ve led Kyle to become one of the safest cities in Hays County, reallocated spending and invested heavily in infrastructure, roads, park land and public safety.

Due to our rapid growth, like it or not, we must concentrate on all areas to protect and improve our quality of life. What is important to our city’s long term prosperity is finding ways to fund our growing needs through business growth and economic development. It wasn’t until recently that our sales tax revenue finally surpassed our property taxes. That’s a good direction for us as a city to stay focused on for the betterment of everyone.

There are several public improvement projects under construction right now in Kyle. They are the result of uniting our city leadership, so instead of kicking the can down road we identify and fix the problems now! 

4. List the names of four persons born on or after Jan. 1, 1900, you would place on a political Mount Rushmore.

I don’t spend much time admiring nationally known political figures. My Mount Rushmore would probably be more local and reserved for people belonging to Team Kyle — the people who’ve mentored me, work with me, and challenge me to make the most of my time on city council. 

The Mount Rushmore question is similar to a question The Hays Free Press asked candidates: If I was Left Brained or Right Brained. I consider these to be political questions and honestly, I feel most political questions rest on the idea of division. I have spent the past three years on city council looking for ways to bring people together rather than pointing out what makes us different or choosing sides, even if it’s just picking the side of our brain or deciding on a Mount Rushmore of politics. 

If a city council member wants your vote, the expectation appears to be that they need to belong to the team you’ve decided to associate with, regardless of the candidate's desire to represent the interests of every constituent.

I understand why we as humans move towards tribalism, which can manifest into “us” versus “them” mentality. Tribalism can bring people together, but also drive them apart. I respect that there are benefits that this way of thinking brings, but I also acknowledge the detriments and separation it can cause. 

City council is non-partisan by design. We aren't supposed to let party rhetoric interfere with the day-to-day needs of the city. From the beginning, I have pledged my allegiance to Team Kyle, not to a party. If I need to create a team to beat, I’ll gladly make the rivals Buda or San Marcos, not that I wish harm on them, because I love our neighbors, and Hays County as a whole. But when it comes to Kyle, I want us to WIN in the region on all fronts. My vision is to offer in Kyle, a better quality of life, to be united in the things that matter most in our daily lives, and to have the kind of city staff and leadership that represents more than empty words. 

When first running for city council in 2018, I knocked on neighborhood doors in the midst of the Supreme Court (Justice Brett) Kavanaugh hearings. The good people of Kyle would answer their doors, often with CNN, Fox News, or MSNBC in the background covering the proceedings. Imagine being caught up in this national story and a local citizen running for city council comes knocking on your door.

It made for quite an experience. Without hesitation, nine out of 10 times the first question fiercely asked of me was whether I was a Republican or a Democrat, followed by a stern look, ready to pounce if I gave the incorrect answer. 

Based on many factors, I knew exactly what answer they wanted to hear. Sometimes it was obvious by what they were watching, how they phrased the question, or what political signs they had in their yard. But the No. 1 indicator was their primary election voting record, which by state law requires all of us to pick a side if we want to participate in the primary election vote. 

Knowing all this, I did not give them the answer they wanted to hear that could have easily won the day. That would be doing anything for a vote and I'm not going to represent myself that way for a nonpartisan seat on city council.

Instead, I did my best to redirect and find a city issue that mattered to my neighbors such as talking about roads, neighborhood patrols, keeping crime low, or how we should grow the business community to shift the tax burden off homeowners, etc.

While a few doors did abruptly slam in my face when attempting to talk city issues, I am happy to say that most of the time voters didn’t allow political party to be a hard and fast dividing line. Most engaged with me and shared their thoughts, experiences, and expectations for the City of Kyle. 

It said something to me about the invested citizens of our community. Through long and thoughtful conversations, I came to a real-time tested conclusion that at Kyle’s core, most voters want the same things when it comes to our community, a place where people want to live and thrive, share common goals, connect, contribute, and have freedom of expression. 

I do my best to represent Kyle as a whole, as a growing city. Through sound policy, I aim to create ways for our quality of life to grow for every resident, no matter our individual take on national issues. 

I recently spoke on a national podcast sharing my thoughts on Kyle and where we are going as a city… It is my hope that we, as a community, can continue to create policy that is in our best interest, that brings you and I together, and increases the chance of connection instead of division.

5. What was the last book you read?

The last book I really enjoyed was Empire of the Summer Moon.  It was recommended often by people who love Texas history. I like learning about the history of where I live so I decided to “read it” through Audible while on a family road trip to New Mexico.

Little did I realize I had set my family up for a treat. The book is about the Comanches and how they lived and fought for the Great Plains, the land spanning from Texas to New Mexico. As settlers from the east were moving in and claiming areas of Texas, it illustrates in full brutality the history of that time.

As I drove by San Saba, Texas, I heard the story of the San Saba Massacre, a dangerous western territory that cost many people their lives in their attempt to inhabit it.  I didn't I plan to experience Empire of the Summer Moon this way, but it made for a one-of-a-kind drive to New Mexico.

Daniela Parsley

1. What are your qualifications for serving on the City Council?

Although I understand that my love for Kyle and desire to see it succeed are not enough, I do have an engineering background which makes me very analytical and a critical thinker. I was also a small business owner in a downtown area. I have experience with development, business codes and regulations. I also worked as a personal banker for Wells Fargo, and I have a good understanding of budgeting and planning.

2. What changes in the way the city prepares its annual budget would you support?

I would change the interaction that residents have with the budget. I believe residents need to pay more attention and get engaged when we talk about budgets. Once it passes, and things get done, that’s when residents tend to complain.

3. Here, listed in alphabetical order, are eight areas municipal governments can focus on: (1) Economic Development; (2) Environment and Sustainability; (3) Government Performance and Financial Management; (4) Housing and Homelessness Solutions; (5) Public Safety; (6) Quality of Life, Arts, and Culture; (7) Transportation and Infrastructure; and (8) Workforce, Education, and Equity. Please rank them in the order you think the Kyle city government should consider most important through least important and briefly explain why you ranked them in the order you did.

I believe that having great plans in place for Kyle’s successful economic development and doing better market studies on Kyle’s needs, as well as analyzing demographics, will lead to increased revenue from the businesses and industries that set roots in Kyle. This will, in turn, provide an increase in the taxes collected, and therefore, more funds to be allocated for every sector of our city.

4. List the names of four persons born on or after Jan. 1, 1900, you would place on a political Mount Rushmore.

I’d not limit myself to elected political figures, but rather people that, in my opinion, have changed the way I perceive the world: Rosa Parks, Muhammad Ali, Ronald Reagan (and) Maria Corina Machado.

5. What was the last book you read?

Educated, by Tara Westover

Donny Wills

1. What are your qualifications for serving on the City Council?

I was the platoon sergeant in the U.S. Army that led elements as large as 120 soldiers. I was the VP of Guardian Overwatch, a national charity that assisted veterans. I also own several successful local businesses. These have given me the knowledge of how to properly lead our city. City council is one of the most basic political seats in our country, and doesn’t require someone to be a career politician to lead us. It requires someone with compassion, problem-solving skills, and someone who listens to their community.

2. What changes in the way the city prepares its annual budget would you support?

We really need to dig down and look hard at what citizens actually need: roads, infrastructure, public safety. We need to ensure these funds aren’t wasted on unneeded items. Mismanagement of funds is an extreme issue in all forms of government. It’s the citizens’ money and it needs to be spent appropriately on items that have the most impact on the local residents. 

3. Here, listed in alphabetical order, are eight areas municipal governments can focus on: (1) Economic Development; (2) Environment and Sustainability; (3) Government Performance and Financial Management; (4) Housing and Homelessness Solutions; (5) Public Safety; (6) Quality of Life, Arts, and Culture; (7) Transportation and Infrastructure; and (8) Workforce, Education, and Equity. Please rank them in the order you think the Kyle city government should consider most important through least important and briefly explain why you ranked them in the order you did.

3,5,6,7,8,1,2,4

Government Performance and Financial Management. The government needs to properly manage finances in order to be able to do anything.

Public Safety. The public needs to feel safe and be safe to go spend money at businesses and to enjoy our parks.

Quality of Life, Arts, and Culture. If the quality of life is poor and there is nothing to improve locally, residents will not live here and/or spend money in the outlying towns.

Transportation and infrastructure. If the roads are bad and transportation is scarce, how are residents going to enjoy our parks and local businesses?

Workforce, Education, and Equity. If we don’t have a sustainable, educated, and equitable workforce, residents will work and spend their time and money elsewhere.

Economic development. When a city has great economic development this will keep residents working locally and spending their time and money locally.

Environment and Sustainability. While the environment is important, Kyle is doing a decent job at not destroying it and coming up with solutions for sustainability locally.

Housing and Homelessness Solutions. Kyle has a relatively small number of homeless people and while the market is doing its best to keep up with housing and affordability issues, much of this issue can be solved by focusing on some of the other issues and will be solved as a byproduct of another issue. 

4. List the names of four persons born on or after Jan. 1, 1900, you would place on a political Mount Rushmore.

Martin Luther King Jr., Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Ronald Regan, (and) John Glenn.

5. What was the last book you read?

2021 IRC Building Code Book. I will say it was only for reference for building.

Early voting

Those wishing to vote early may do so today through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.; Monday, Oct. 25 through Wednesday, Oct. 27 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.; and Thursday, Oct. 28 and Friday, Oct. 29, between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. at the HCISD transportation building, 21003 Interstate 35 Frontage Road; the Live Oak Academy High School, 4820 Jack C. Hays Trail; or Simon Middle School (HCISD Clothes Closet), 3839B East FM 150.

Election day is Nov. 2.

Tobias unopposed, three challenge mayor pro tem for council seat

District 6 council member Michael Tobias will not face any opposition in his bid for a second three-year term on the city council, but Mayor Pro Tem Rick Koch has drawn three challengers in his race for a second term to represent District 5.

District 6 predominantly includes the Spring Branch subdivision on the west side of I-35; and the Amberwood, Steeplechase, Kensington Trails, Southlake Ranch, Lakeside Crossing, Indian Paintbrush and the Meadows of Kyle residential areas on the east side. District 5, however, is a citywide at-large district and thus will require more financial resources to wage a successful campaign

Lined up to challenge Koch are medically retired Iraq war veteran Donny Willis, insurance service consultant Daniela Parsley and Leah Kaufman, who listed her occupation on her ballot application as “director of nonprofit” and has only lived in the state for 19 months.

Of the four candidates in the District 5 race, Willis has been the most active, creating a campaign Facebook page on which he wrote: “Kyle is having unprecedented growth and the management of that growth has myself and many citizens worried.” He specifically mentioned city streets that he said are “falling apart or being ignored.” He also made a reference to “the mistrust of the current administration,” but did not specify whether he was referring to elected officials or the city’s staff, or even the nature of that mistrust. He did, however, vow to attempt to meet as many local residents “as I possibly can and addressing these many issues head on.”

Although Koch has a history of service to the city, having served as the chair of the city’s Planning & Zoning Commission, among other volunteer positions, neither Willis, Parsley nor Kaufman are members of any existing city boards or commissions.

Mayoral candidate Abdel endorses Mitchell in runoff

 David Abdel, who finished third in last week’s mayoral election, announced today he is supporting incumbent Travis Mitchell in next month’s runoff, but stopped short of encouraging all those who voted for him to support the mayor’s re-election bid.

Mitchell and former council member Linda Tenorio, who finished first by only 36 votes out of 15,416 cast, will face off in the Dec. 8 runoff. Abdel collected 15.64 percent of the total vote in the four-person race.

“Based the interactions I’ve personally had (or in some instances didn’t have) during this campaign with each of the candidates, I’m more inclined to believe in the leadership and management capabilities of Travis Mitchell,” Abdel said in a statement posted today on a social media site. “Based on the information available from the two candidates throughout the campaign, I’m more inclined to support the plan/vision that Travis Mitchell provides.”

Abdel said his decision was also based on what he called a “kind of back room handshake deal” among others involved in the election designed to undermine Mitchell’s candidacy that “rubbed me the wrong way.”

“Right after the campaign I was reached out to, along with the other candidates (not Mitchell) and were asked if we would like to coalesce our efforts to make sure Travis Mitchell didn’t win,” Abdel said. “I rejected the offer respectfully because that kind of back room handshake deal seemed counter to the idea of transparency and fairness I believe our political climate is missing. I don’t believe in hanging up on a candidates, or partnering to take someone out. I believe each candidate should voice their information and allow and free and fair electorate to make educated decisions. It rubbed me the wrong way.”

Along those same lines, Abdel said his decision to endorse Mitchell is “my opinion … one solitary opinion” and encouraged the 2,411 persons who voted for him in last week’s General Election to vote their conscience in next month’s runoff.

“I’m not encouraging anyone to vote based on my opinion,” he said. “I don’t think it’s my place to say ‘my supporters should…’ in regard to their upcoming vote. I’ll continue, as I have all along, to encourage each individual person to look at the options, do their research and vote their conscience.”

Swearing-in, runoff dates announced; Scheel gives farewell address

 Ashley Bradshaw and Yvonne Flores-Cale, the city council’s two recently elected members, will be sworn in during the council’s Nov. 17 meeting and the mayoral runoff election between incumbent Travis Mitchell and challenger Linda Tenorio will be held Dec. 8, it was decided Wednesday night.

The Dec. 8 date was chosen because it corresponds with runoffs already scheduled for that date in San Marcos.

In addition to the swearing-in ceremonies at the next council meeting, a special ceremony will be held for the two departing council members, Tracy Scheel and Alex Villalobos.

Scheel bade the council and the public a tearful farewell during last night’s council meeting.

“I want to thank all my fellow council members for being wonderful people to work with for the past three years,” she said. “It has been a joy to serve the City of Kyle and I do appreciate all of you. This is not my end of service for the City of Kyle. I will be here to do anything anybody needs.”

Scheel offered some words of advice for Flores-Cale, the person who defeated her in Tuesday’s election.

“You will be working with a great group of people,” Scheel said. “Please work with them and understand that they just as passionate about the city as you are and want what’s best for the city. Please work with them. That is the best way to make this city a better overall place to live, work and just have fun in.”

She said she hoped the city would “come together” so that it was not a case of “east versus west, not the originals versus in the implants, not downtown versus uptown.”

At-large council member Robert Rizzo, who is a resident of the district Scheel represents and who, somewhat ironically, was disqualified from running against Scheel in 2017, thanked her “for all the work and all the time commitment you gave to our district.”

Scheel never had to run for election before this year. When she first announced her candidacy in 2017, Rizzo filed to run against her. But on the day the candidates convened at Hall City for the ballot placement drawing, the city secretary pulled Rizzo aside and told him he had been disqualified because the residence listed on his voters registration at that time was not within the city limits. Scheel stood there looking somewhat stunned realizing she had become a city council member without having to seek election.

Villalobos, who did not seek re-election this year, told Scheel that the two of them are leaving the city in a better place than it was when they both joined the council three years ago.

“I am just happy I got to work with you in having a small part in what this city is today,” Villalobos said.

Mayor Mitchell told Scheel “It is hard to imagine this council without you. You have been such a strong, steady, caring, passionate, compassionate presence on this council.”

After acknowledging that “I might be out there with you,” Mitchell praised Scheel for “devoting yourself to the City of Kyle, not only for the last three years, but longer, and I anticipate in the future as well. Thank you for your service. Thank you for everything you’ve done for the City of Kyle.”

It was also announced Tuesday’s election will be canvassed next Tuesday.

Bradshaw, Flores-Cale win council seats; Mitchell, Tenorio in mayoral runoff

Yvonne Flores-Cale and Ashlee Bradshaw registered decisive victories today in their campaigns for Districts 2 and 4, respectively, on the Kyle City Council; and incumbent Mayor Travis Mitchell was out polled and forced into a runoff with Linda Tenorio.

Both bond propositions and all of the proposed charter changes were approved with significant majorities.

Flores-Cale scored an impressive upset of incumbent Tracy Scheel, capturing 60.98 percent of the vote. Bradshaw collected 60.94 percent of the vote against Tim McHutchion, who was trying for the second time for the District 4 seat.

“I think both Tim and I had a great race,” Ms. Bradshaw said. “We both had a great campaign. It just came down to community outreach, just putting the word out there, getting my materials out there and doing everything I could do to campaign during these COVID times.”

She said the pandemic “really inhibited me from being able to speak to the community face-to-face in a way I had hoped to. But I think I was still effective in getting my message out.”

She said that her first order of business on the council will be “to get started on my main objectives which are focusing on the local economy and doing what we can to increase the community amenities. It looks like Prop B is doing very well so that’s a great place to start.”

(Updated material begins here)

In a statement posted today on Facebook, McHutchion said: “I humbly acknowledge Ashley Bradshaw as a new council person. I look forward to continue to serve you as a Planning And Zoning commissioner. This is a great first step in democracy for our city. I look forward to serving you in my capacity I will always have nothing but love for this city and all of us that have chosen to call it home. Let’s move forward to a brighter future.”

Flores-Cale attributed her victory to “my loyal supporters, for sure. I owe a hundred percent of it to my supporters.”

She said she plans to spend her first months on the council studying exactly how the city works.

“I want to observe as much information as possible,” she said. “I’m not going to go in there guns blazing until I can completely understand how the system works. That’s going to be a challenge for me because I am a very passionate person and I really, truly care about the people of Kyle, especially on the east side. So, for the first three to four months I’m going to observe and learn.”

Scheel said she hasn’t yet thought about what her next steps might be but she plans to “be always available to the city for anything it needs or wants.”

(End of updated material)

Ms. Tenorio collected 37.82 percent of the vote in her challenge to unseat Mayor Mitchell, who finished just 36 votes behind her, or 37.59 percent, at the latest tally. Dave Abdel finished third with 15.64 percent and Peter Parcher was fourth with 8.95 percent of the votes cast.

“I think he did a very good race,” Ms. Tenorio said tonight of Mitchell. “I think we both campaigned very hard.

She said she plans on approaching the Dec. 1 runoff exactly the same way she planned this race. “I will just be working on getting people out to vote,” she said. “Even without a pandemic it’s hard to get people out to vote, but they did come through.”

Mitchell said “While the results were not what we were hoping for, the outcome was not unexpected. This was a race with four candidates who each put in an effort campaigning in a presidential election year when thousands of ballots are cast. A runoff campaign is a completely different animal than running in a general election during the presidential year.”

Mitchell acknowledged far fewer voters would come to the polls to vote in the runoff than voted today.

“Extreme election fatigue is going to be the number one nemesis both for Ms. Tenorio and myself. Not only are the candidates exhausted, but the voters are exhausted and the last thing they want to think about is coming back to the polls two weeks from now to cast another ballot. But the possibility of a runoff is something I’ve been planning for since the day filing closed and I knew I had three candidates in a presidential year. I’ve been preparing for a runoff since the beginning and am ready to kick it into another gear, which is what it is going to take.”

Mitchell complimented Tenorio’s campaign.

“Linda campaigned to win,” Mitchell said. “I am proud of the effort she and her team put in to run the race the way that they did. They did a good job. Linda ran a very clean race. She had a great ground game.”

Mitchell was especially excited about the passage of Proposition B, which will pay for park infrastructure. Mitchell said the passage of that bond proposal along with the overwhelming approval of Hays County’s proposition to fund parks throughout the county could mean a significant financial windfall for Kyle. He said the money Kyle should receive to upgrade the city’s trail system will be more than Kyle has spent on all of its parks combined throughout the city’s history.

‘We’ve never invested heavily in park infrastructure,” he said. “I am so thankful that the voters gave the city the opportunity to build some really great parks and the council will now have the mandate to build some really great parks for our city. I can’t wait. It’s mind-blowing. I’m extremely excited because this is exactly what Kyle needs. We need a better parks system in our city — better trails that serve quality-of-life initiatives — and we got ‘em!”

Mitchell narrowly leads Tenorio, voters approve property tax increase

 Incumbent Mayor Travis Mitchell held a razor slim two-vote lead over Linda Tenorio  in early returns for the Kyle mayor’s race released this evening. Both bond propositions appeared to be cruising toward approval.

Yvonne Flores-Cale and Ashlee Bradshaw had significant leads in the other two city council races.

The early returns in the mayor’s race showed Mitchell with 5,172 votes (37.46 percent) to 5,170 (37.44 percent) for Tenorio. David Abdel (16 percent) and Peter Parcher (9.1 percent) trailed badly and appear out of the contest.

Interestingly, the early returns showed 254 more voters cast ballots in the bond proposition for the new police headquarters than in the parks bond issue. However, both were passing easily with 55.39 percent of voters favoring the police headquaters and 56.07 percent backing the parks.

Flores-Cale collected 60.28 percent of the early votes in her council race and Bradshaw commanded 60.92 percent of the vote.

Partisan races in Hays County showed a startling blue hue (Biden led Trump by over 12 percentage points and Hegar had an almost seven point lead over Cornyn). Two notable exceptions, however, were in races involving two former Kyle City Council members. Alex Villalobos (49.42 percent) narrowly trailed Gary Cutler for sheriff and Daphne Tenorio (49.87 percent) was slightly behind Jenifer O’Kane for tax-assessor collector.

Council campaign financial filings are, with limited exceptions, a mess

 I’m going to chalk it up to inexperience. Not stupidity. Not deliberate subterfuge (I’ll leave that to all the conspiracy theorists who flock to the Nextdoor websites). Just plain inexperience. But, gee, you would hope that persons asking for the voters to trust them enough to place them on the city council would at least learn how to file their campaign finance reports on time and correctly.

Two council candidates — District 2 incumbent Tracy Scheel and District 4 candidate Ashlee Bradshaw — apparently failed to even file their first campaign finance report that was due yesterday, although Scheel is exempt because, when she filed to run, she opted for “Modified Reporting,” meaning that she planned on accepting no more than $900 total contributions and spending no more than $900 in seeking the council seat.  Bradshaw filed papers naming a campaign treasurer, the act that requires her to file the proper financial reports on time and she did not complete the Modified Reporting documents with her filing papers.

Two mayoral candidates — incumbent Travis Mitchell and Peter Parcher — turned in a report that doesn’t appear to contain at least one glaring error. However, this is Mitchell’s third campaign and so, by now, he should know how to get this done correctly; and Parcher claimed he only received $20 in contributions and contributions under $90 are not required to be itemized so he has every right not to divulge the source of that $20. (Besides, who cares? It’s a paltry $20. On multiple occasions, I saw drivers hand a $20 bill to panhandlers in the Lakewood neighborhood of Dallas.)

Let’s see, where to start on the rest.

Mayoral candidate Linda Tenorio claimed she spent $1,040.67 out of the $1,300 she received in contributions, but the public is not going to have a clue as to what she spent that $1,040.67 on, because she failed to file the required campaign expense form.

Mayoral candidate David Abdel under-reported his total political contributions by $320 on Page 2 of the report’s Cover Sheet.

In his Cover Sheet, District 4 Tim McHutchion claimed no political expenses but later in his report detailed $740.82 in campaign expenses.

Flores-Cale did not list her individual contributions, but that could be because they were all under $90. I have reached out to her to get the “official reason” and will update this report if and when I receive a reply. (Updated at 11:37 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 14) She subsequently contacted me and said as much: "The largest donation I received at one time was $50.00."

For those keeping score on such things, Mitchell reported the most in contributions, $1,790 (not really that high an amount for a mayoral campaign), followed by Abdel ($1,509), Tenorio ($1,300), Flores-Cale ($150), Parcher ($20) and McHutchion ($0). Mitchell’s largest contribution, $750, came from Elite Realty Advisors, a licensed real estate service provider in Kyle. Abdel’s biggest contributor is Anthony Delmonico of Austin who gave the campaign $200. Tenorio’s largest contribution of $500 came from Estella Anderson of Kyle.

Incidentally, these financial reports used to be posted routinely on the City of Kyle’s website, but when I could not find them there earlier today and inquired as to why, I was told I had to file an Open Records Request for them. 

The Kyle Report’s City Council Candidate Forum

 Early voting for next month’s elections begins Tuesday and this post is designed to give you a glimpse of those running for spots on the Kyle City Council.

On Aug. 27, I sent a five-item questionnaire to seven of the eight candidates running for a spot on the Kyle City Council. I wanted to reach all eight, but I could not contact mayoral candidate Linda Tenorio, the only candidate of the eight who redacted all of her contact information on her filing papers. I contacted more than a dozen individuals I knew who were associates of the candidate to see if they could or would contact her so that she could participate in this exercise, but for some reason I never received a reply.

I gave the candidates until 6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 2, to reply so that I would have the time to compile the responses and publish them before early voting began.

Here are the items in the questionnaire:

1. Why are you running?

2.  What is the single greatest challenge facing Kyle and, if elected, what specific proposal or proposals would you recommend/endorse to the council to overcome this challenge?

3. Here are five areas (listed alphabetically) municipal governments can focus on:

• Clean, Healthy Environment
• Culture, Arts, Recreation and Education
• Economic Vibrancy
• Efficient, Effective and Economic Government
• Public Safety

Please list them one through five with one being your top priority should you be elected, through five, being the area you would prioritize the least.

4.  What four individuals born on or after Jan.1, 1900, would you place on a political Mount Rushmore?

5.  What’s the last book you read?

Here are the responses I received, listed by council seat and then alphabetically by the candidate’s last name.

MAYOR

David Abdel 

1. I'm running because I am not particularly fond of the direction that Kyle seems to be heading. While I believe this council, and those preceding it have done a lot of hard work in developing this town, I would like us to refocus on building a small-town culture. There should be more for the families here to do, it should be more affordable, and we need equity across the entirety of the town. It seems as though Plum Creek is getting all of the focus.

2. Affordability. It is simply getting too expensive to live here for too many people. My plan on lowering taxes will help. Other initiatives can ease the overall cost of living as well.

3.

1. Efficient, Effective and Economic Government
2. Culture, Arts, Recreation and Education
3. Economic Vibrancy
4. Public Safety 
5. Clean, Healthy Environment

4. President Lyndon Baines Johnson, President Barack Obama, Senator John McCain, Madeline Albright

5. How to be an Anti-racist by Ibram X Kendi 

Travis Mitchell 

1. Kyle is home. And Kyle is changing. Every day more people move to our city for a variety of reasons. This creates challenges. The city council is working very hard to keep up with growth while balancing the tax rate. Our new budget is $134 million, and of that, $91 million is to be spent on infrastructure, including a new wastewater treatment plant, a major new water source, more road improvements, and two new cash-funded public parks. We have accomplished this because we are requiring more from the development community than ever before if they wish to come to our city. We have also successfully recruited over $100 million of new commercial development which has helped us diversify the tax base. Since I was elected, we have lowered the property tax rate in Kyle by more than 11 percent which leads all of Hays County and nearly all of the Austin region.

2. For decades now, the single greatest challenge before the city council has been to properly manage the growth we are experiencing in Kyle.

The reason is straightforward. In order to properly plan for growth, the city must often install regional infrastructure — with ample capacity — years ahead of when those services come online and generate revenue. What’s more, as growth happens, our existing road infrastructure deteriorates at a faster rate while streets and schools become more congested. If the city does not prepare for and properly manage the growth, it will cause increased taxation without a corresponding increase in city services.

But there’s another side to the story. Healthy, properly managed growth can lead to new community amenities like restaurant/retail districts, office districts, quality parks and open spaces, small business opportunities, employment opportunities, recreational facilities, better-funded schools, expansion in the arts, new community programs, upgraded roads, increased pedestrian mobility, a diversified tax base, and much more. The key for Kyle is to understand what we specifically need, and then we must strategically create opportunities to meet those needs through partnerships and targeted investments of city resources. We must also be willing to say “no” when a project or proposal is not in our best long-term interest.

In 2016, when I was first elected to office in Kyle, there were many factors that I felt kept the city from realizing its potential. These problems represented systemic, perennial threats to affordability and our overall quality of life. Looking back, I would summarize the challenges we faced in 2016 as follows:

1. Reliance on entry-level single-family residential development to fund city operations
2. Inadequate sales tax generation per capita. For example, last year Kyle collected $202 per resident in sales tax. Buda collected $318 and San Marcos collected $600.
3. Disjointed and spread out developments which requires even more investment of city resources to upgrade roads and wet utilities rather than infilling our already constructed infrastructure. 
4. Over reliance on IH-35 and Austin. 80 percent of our population commutes out of town for work. This is not ideal because local quality jobs give residents more time with family, more time to volunteer, more discretionary income spent locally, and less expenses related to travel.
5. Lack of public amenities such as parks, trails, and activity centers.
6. Lack of private amenities such as restaurants, hotels, and areas to shop.
7. No significant industrial/office projects
8. Downtown district underperforms compared to the region
9. Languishing road reconstruction projects
10. High city debt relative to taxable value of the city
11. Highest tax rate in Hays County

In my time on council, we have addressed these 11 issues, and more, as follows:

• Reduced city tax rate by more than 11 percent which leads all municipalities in Hays County over that time period. We no longer have the highest tax rate in Hays County. 
• Cut our debt relative to city size in half (2016-2019). 
• Added more than 1 million square feet of private industrial space, totaling more than $55 million of taxable investments, with more private investment on the immediate horizon. 
• Voted against and resisted most residential development proposals outside city limits.
• Increased design standards inside the city to require sidewalks, better street widths, more pocket parks, better fencing, better architecture and neighborhood design, all for new single-family residential developments.
• Opened the first section of our Plum Creek Trail from Lake Kyle to the Waterleaf Subdivision in east Kyle.
• Opened Ash Pavilion, a new roller-hockey court at Gregg-Clarke Park. The project cost around $700,000 with $300,000 coming from private philanthropic contributions.
• Completed eight city road construction projects totaling $39,400,000. These dollars represent the largest investment in road upgrades in our city’s history. 
• For the first time in our history, we have established a dedicated, replenishing fund to perform sidewalk repairs throughout the city.
• Established TIRZ#2, a funding mechanism that will allow for our new mixed-use district, Uptown, to finally develop. The TIRZ collects 50 percent of city and county taxes produced by new development in Uptown to pay for 100 percent of the maintenance of public amenities proposed for that area. The remaining revenue generated by private taxable investments — estimated to be over $1 billion of new construction in the next 10 years — will serve as surplus to fund city operations, new public capital improvement projects, and will help facilitate tax relief for the residents of our community. 
• Allocated $2.5 million in funding towards renovations of the landscaping at our historic square plus a modest three-story building across from the Krug Activity Center. The new building will be home to a restaurant on the first floor, private office space on the second floor, and a quaint small event space on the third floor.
• Opened two new hotels, multiple new sit-down restaurants, and dozens of new small businesses.
• Closed multi-million-dollar deals for Alsco Linens, ENF Technology, Amazon, Lowes, and more, to establish logistics/manufacturing/office hubs in Kyle. Of these companies, only ENF Technology received a small performance-based financial incentive, primarily because the average wage at ENF is considerably above the median wage of other businesses locating in Kyle. ENF Technology’s investment is expected to bring the city of Kyle $598,506 in net tax revenue over five years while also bringing Hays County $401,602. Additionally, Hays CISD is expected to receive $747,602 as a result of the project by the end of the five-year agreement. 
• Lobbied for and received CAMPO/County funding to eliminate the at-grade rail crossing on Kohlers as well as prevent the train from ever blocking a downtown Kyle intersection again.
• Installation of the first of four (all cash funded) quiet crossing zones to eliminate the need for the train to blow its horn coming through Kyle. 
• Established the city’s first parking ordinance which, among other things, reduces fines for things like wrong-way parking from $150-plus to $30.
• Established the First Year on Us small business grant program designed to offer modest financial assistance in the form of a one-time tax credit to small and medium sized businesses who locate or expand in the city. 

These actions and more represent what I believe has been one of the most proactive and productive seasons in Kyle history. For myself, I have been laser-focused on bringing about long-term benefits to the city. I believe, with all of my heart, that it’s unwise to allow for growth without bringing forward the necessary investments to control and manage that growth. I think of Kyle 20 years from now, when my children are grown, and I ask myself, “What kind of town do we want Kyle to be in 20 years? A bedroom community? A city completely reliant on Austin jobs, IH 35, and single-family housing for us to survive?” Some may say these things are inevitable. But I believe we can be more than that. We can be the kind of city that diversifies its tax base, targets spending to receive maximum long-term returns, and systematically and comprehensively improves our overall quality of life in the community. It’s not an easy task, and nothing good happens overnight, but we are moving in the right direction. The next five years will be critical to establishing ourselves as a stronger city in the region.

3. These rankings were not established based on ideology or philosophy. Rather, I ranked them based on what I believe are the areas we should focus on based on the factors currently impacting Kyle, Texas:

1. Economic Vibrancy 
2. Public Safety
3. Efficient, Effective and Economic Government
4. Culture, Arts, Recreation and Education
5. Clean, Healthy Environment

4. Ronald Reagan, John K. Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Margaret Thatcher

5. The unfinished autobiography of Benjamin Franklin

Peter Parcher

1. As a resident of Kyle, I have been very frustrated by council not hearing residents. I will initiate changes where residents must be fully informed and sufficient time is given for resident participation.

2. The greatest challenge facing Kyle is the single-mindedness of some members of council to the detriment of all residents of Kyle. As mayor, I will interact with all residents and ensure all areas of Kyle are equally represented. I will ensure all residents have ample information and time to decide what they would like and the direction they want Kyle to take.

3.

1. Efficient, Effective and Economic Government
2. Public Safety
3. Economic Vibrancy
4. Culture, Arts, Recreation and Education
5. Clean, Healthy Environment

4. Rosa Parks, Cesar Chavez. D'Arcy McNickle and JFK

5. Oath of Office

DISTRICT 2

Yvonne Flores-Cale 

1. I am running for city council because I want to be part of changes happening in Kyle. I feel like many of the other residents in Kyle, who feel unheard and are unhappy with many of the current changes.

2. Without a doubt, Kyle’s biggest challenge is its growth. Our rapid growth makes it difficult for the city to plan for our future and focus on our immediate needs. I would recommend slowing down residential development until the city has updated our infrastructure (to include water treatment centers, sidewalks, streetlights and fire hydrants, to name a few) to match our current population.

3.

1. Efficient, Effective and Economic Government
2. Public Safety
3. Clean, Healthy Environment
4. Economic Vibrancy
5. Culture, Arts, Recreation and Education

4. Fred Rogers, Martin Luther King Jr., Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Tupac Shakur 

5. The last book I read all the way through was I’m not your perfect Mexican Daughter. The last book I read (but have yet to finish) is Freakenomics.

Tracy Scheel 

1. Currently I am the District 2 council member for the Kyle City Council and while I feel I have accomplished a lot, I feel I have not yet seen all of my goals to fruition, such as the downtown revitalization, several infrastructure projects and getting the Alliance Regional Water Authority pipeline servicing the citizens of Kyle.

2. The greatest single challenge for the City of Kyle is its growth and making sure that growth can be maintained with our current and prospective infrastructure.  We need to ensure we have the roads and utilities in place to handle all of our new residents without burdening our current residents.

3.

1. Public Safety  
2. Economic Vibrancy  
3. Efficient, Effective and Economic Government  
4. Culture, Arts, Recreation and Education  
5. Clean, Healthy Environment  

4. Martin Luther King Jr., John F. Kennedy, Jimmy Carter, Irene Stuber (My grandmother who fought for women’s rights)

5. Sue Grafton's Y is for Yesterday

DISTRICT 4

Ashlee Bradshaw 

1. Ever since moving to Kyle I have had a very clear vision of the potential this city holds, and I feel that it is my due diligence to do what I can to help the city reach that potential. I am very passionate about increasing the quality of life for our residents in Kyle by providing more community amenities, strengthening our local economy so we no longer have to drive to Austin or San Marcos, and reduce the tax burden put on our residents.

2. There are a few challenges facing Kyle that all fall under managing growth. As I am sure many can agree, there have been growing pains that have come with our increased number of residents, and I would like to work towards efficiently managing the growth happening now and plan for the future.

I would recommend or endorse projects to help expand our infrastructure (such as roads and utilities) to address our growing needs.

I would also recommend or endorse more opportunities for increased public and private amenities for our residents to use and benefit from such as parks, playgrounds, trails, fitness centers, and more dynamic dining and shopping.

3.  All five of these areas are an intricate part of my platform, and I believe they are all equally important in different ways. In order for this city to operate efficiently all five of these need to be addressed and taken into consideration simultaneously, rather than prioritized from most to least relevant. 

4. John F. Kennedy, Rand Paul, George H.W. Bush, Nelson Mandela

5. Everything is Figureoutable by Marie Forleo is what I am currently reading, but I make it a goal to read personal development books each month.

Tim McHutchion 

1. I am running for office so that the citizens of Kyle can have more transparency, communication, and participation in the administration of their city.

2. The COVID-19 pandemic is beyond a doubt the greatest challenge facing Kyle at this time. If elected, I will make recommendations to council to secure additional funds to provide PPE and testing to our citizens, continue providing utility assistance, rental assistance, and grants or low interest loans to small businesses in our community. It is vital that we maintain our current infrastructure in Kyle.

3.

1. Public safety
2. Clean healthy environment
3. Economic vibrancy
4. Efficient, effective, and economic government.
5. Culture, arts, recreation, and education.

4. Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., Representative John Lewis, Mother Teresa, Cesar Chavez

5. Community Association Leadership. This was a book given to me by the Plum Creek HOA when I became chair of the Safety Committee.

Council candidates engage in ho-hum forum

 Three of four city council candidates, including one incumbent, engaged in a forum today sponsored by the Kyle Chamber of Commerce that was mostly devoid of any news value with the exception of that aforementioned incumbent, Tracy Scheel, saying the city is on the verge of announcing two new significant businesses locating here and all three more or less endorsing the ballot referendum to fund a new police headquarters building.

One of the candidates originally scheduled to appear, Yvonne Flores-Cale, who is challenging Scheel for the District 2 seat, was forced to cancel because of a death in the family, according to chamber CEO Julie Snyder, who superbly moderated today’s forum.

“I wish we could make announcements, but we can’t yet due to non-disclosure agreements,” Scheel said during the forum. “Yet we have two companies coming in and I cannot wait for that announcement.” She said the principle reason why the unnamed businesses decided to locate in Kyle was because the city had already arranged for the construction of shell buildings to house these and other concerns, freeing the businesses from having to construct their own physical locations.

Scheel said that because she was a sitting council member she could speak neither for or against the ballot proposition to fund the proposed new police headquarters, but then, like others on the council, proceeded to “inform” voters why such a building is necessary. The other two candidates appearing at the forum, Tim McHutchion and Ashlee Bradshaw, competing against each other for the open District 4 seat, both supported the ballot proposition, with McHutchion being the more supportive of the two.

“As much as I’m going to bless seeing a more affordable option on the table on the November ballot,” Bradshaw said, “the community voted on the stand-alone site, which was the $37 million, and I will say that I fully support the mental health program and all of the benefits that I believe it will bring to the residents here in Kyle, Texas … (The Police Department) much deserve a larger building — a better option, a more suitable option.”

McHutchion said “It is our duty to ensure the safety of our public by having this new public safety center.”

Scheel said she generally opposed incentives for businesses to locate here, but she danced around the question of what she would do to encourage start-ups that don’t require those types of incentives, instead saying the proposed “Uptown” development would be a great location for a start-up. To be fair, neither of the two other candidates successfully answered the question about “encouraging” start-ups, instead falling back on answers concerning permitting and office space requirements that might streamline such a process for all businesses wishing to locate here, but would do absolutely nothing to specifically encourage start-ups.

Former San Marcos teacher, leader of recall effort join mayor’s race

Dave Abdel, a former San Marcos School District social studies teacher who currently works for the district as curriculum specialist, and Peter Parcher, who led the failed effort to recall the current Kyle mayor and another city council member, became the third and fourth candidates to seek the city’s top elected position beating Monday’s filing deadline by just hours.

Thus, the City of Kyle November General Election lineup is set with four candidates, including the incumbent, Travis Mitchell, running for mayor and two candidates each in the District 4 and District 2 races.

It’s worth noting that in two different sections of Abdel’s filing papers in sections labeled “Office Sought,” the term “District 4" was struck and replaced by the word “mayor.” 

"Initially I was going back and forth with the decision to run for mayor or city council," Mr. Abdel said. "I wanted to serve, and after a long talk with my family, surveying the options, I came to the conclusion that narrowing my focus to my district may be best. However, when I went to apply, my voter registration never changed when I moved from Amberwood to Plum Creek, thus my ineligibility for running in District 4. I considered this to be a sort of divine intervention, pointing me toward running for mayor."

It’s also worth repeating that Mitchell also faced three other opponents when he first sought the office of mayor three years ago and, not only did he win without a runoff, but he captured more than 60 percent of the total vote. In a year when a presidential race tops the General Election ballot, thus attracting what will most likely be the largest number of voters ever to cast ballots in a Kyle municipal election, this could also turn out to be the most expensive campaign ever waged in the city. This is especially true because a larger than normal amount of votes will be cast early in the election cycle meaning the three mayoral challengers have a compressed amount of time to garner name recognition and get their messages out to the larger voting public. 

Linda Tenorio, the fourth candidate in the mayor’s race, who three years ago unsuccessfully sued the city she now desires to lead, does have the recognition that comes with having a family name that’s already familiar in local political circles. She also served one term on the city council, but Kyle is a completely different city today than it was in 2005 when Tenorio was elected and the city’s population was only 18,683, compared to 52,300 today. Parcher attracted some notoriety for his recall effort, but that alone won’t be enough for an election that will attract this many voters. In terms of name ID alone, Abdel faces the most formidable challenge of the four, although he appears to have established a significant Twitter presence. According to his Twitter profile, Abdel has 1,001 followers, compared to 403 listed in Mitchell’s profile. Of course, what isn’t readily apparent, is how many of Abdel’s 1,001 followers are registered Kyle voters and how many of them are followers of Abdel because of his tenure as a social studies educator in San Marcos. It should also be noted, however, that Abdel taught at Kyle's Lehman High School.

Earlier Monday, Abdel tweeted: “As many who know me understand already, servant leadership is more than simply something I believe in, it is at the core of who I am. I believe I've been put on this Earth to serve, to help, to educate. It is my purpose, and a passion that I give all of myself to. So, as of early this afternoon I am officially a candidate for the office of Mayor of Kyle! I believe I have the skills, vision and leadership required to transform our town into a destination for ALL people that is safe, affordable and community focused.”

Speaking of tweets, in a reference to the lawsuit Tenorio filed against the city, Mitchell tweeted this weekend: "The path to public service should not start with a lawsuit against the people you wish to lead."

In one of the other two races, District 4, which includes the subdivisions of Plum Creek (the most politically active neighborhood in Kyle), Hometown Kyle, Silverado, Cypress Forest and Brooks Crossing, will have Planning and Zoning Commissioner Tim McHutchion, who was defeated by incumbent Alex Villalobos for this same seat three years ago, facing Ashlee Bradshaw, who has been active in the Plum Creek Homeowners Association and the Negley Elementary School PTA. Villalobos was barred from seeking re-election when he became the Democratic candidate for Hays County sheriff.

The final race is in District 2 which covers a large swath of South Kyle including most of Old Town Kyle as well as such subdivisions as Waterleaf, Bunton Creek, Post Oak, Quail Ridge, Woodlands, Sunset Ridge, Four Seasons and others. That race features a contest between incumbent Tracy Scheel, who ran unopposed when she was first elected three years ago, and Yvonne Flores-Cale, also part of the recall effort targeting Mayor Mitchell and Mayor Pro Tem Rick Koch. In that race three years ago, Scheel learned the day names were being drawn for ballot positions that she would run unopposed when her listed opponent Robert Rizo was declared ineligible because his listed residence was outside the district. Rizo has since won the at-large Place 3 seat on the council. 

Woman who sued city files for mayor

 Linda Tenorio, a member of a prominent local political family and a woman who lost a lawsuit she filed against the City of Kyle three years ago, has filed to run for mayor of the city she sued against incumbent Travis Mitchell in the Nov. 3 General Election.

Tenorio faces an huge uphill battle against Mitchell, who, three years ago, captured more than 60 percent of the vote against three opponents in his initial mayoral bid.

Tenorio, along with her husband, Abel, filed suit Nov. 27, 2017, against the City of Kyle and the Union Pacific Railroad stemming from damages caused to her home on Live Oak during the so-called “Halloween Eve Floods.” In addition to the actual claims of damages, she also alleged the city and the railroad should pay her $30,000 for mental anguish as a result of the flooding and her husband asked for $25,000 compensation for mental anguish.

The Tenorios claimed the railroad trimmed trees in their neighborhood and that those trimmed branches ultimately blocked a culvert under the railroad that caused the flooding in their neighborhood. Linda Tenorio and her husband claimed the city was liable because it knew of the blockage and failed to correct the problem. In addition to the mental anguish claims, the pair sought $56,000 to restore their home and another $30,000 for diminished value on the home.

The city and the railroad prevailed in the lawsuit.

Linda and Abel are members of a family that also includes Willie Tenorio, the District 2 HCISD trustee, and Daphne Tenorio, former Kyle city council member and the Democratic nominee for Hays County Tax Assessor Collector in the November elections.

(EDITOR'S NOTE: An earlier version of this story incorrectly identified Linda and Abel Tenorio as the aunt and uncle, respectively, of Willie and Daphne Tenorio.)

Espinoza withdraws from council race, Plum Creek resident enters

Jesse Espinoza, the former Kyle police sergeant fired for insubordination who then sued the city in attempt to get his job back, has dropped his bid for a spot on the city council after “speaking with my attorney.” In a separate action, Ashlee Bradshaw, active in the Plum Creek neighborhood, has filed to oppose Planning & Zoning Commissioner Tim McHutchion in the District 4 race.

With the deadline for filing just four days away, that leaves five persons running in three races. Mayor Travis Mitchell and District 2 council member Tracy Scheel are seeking re-elections to second terms. Scheel is opposed by Yvonne Flores-Cale, who failed to unseat council member Dex Elllison in last year’s council election. McHutchion, the manager of a local self storage location and a member of the city’s Planning & Zoning Commission, and Bradshaw, active in the Plum Creek Homeowners Association and the Negley Elementary School PTA, are opposing each other for the seat being vacated by Alex Villalobos who defeated McHutchion three years ago, right around the time Bradshaw moved to Kyle.

Espinoza sent an e-mail to City Secretary Jennifer Holm yesterday saying “After reviewing the City of Kyle City Charter and speaking with my attorney I would like to withdraw my name from the District 2 Council seat.” 

Disgraced former police officer joins city council race

Jesse Espinoza, indefinitely suspended from the Kyle Police Department for “insubordination, untruthfulness, violating the city’s Code of Ethics, conduct prejudicial to good order, conduct bringing discredit to the department or profession” and several other offenses, has filed to run against incumbent Tracy Scheel in the District 2 city council election.

Yvonne Flores-Cale, who failed to unseat council member Dex Ellison in last year’s election, has also filed papers to oppose Scheel in the November elections.

Espinoza was indefinitely suspended from the Kyle Police Department on May 15, 2015 on charges he lied to investigators concerning allegations he conspired with Louisiana anesthesiologist Dr. Glen Hurlston to have Kyle Police Chief Jeff Barnett fired. Espinoza appealed the suspension but it was upheld March 2, 2018, by Civil Service hearing examiner Paula Ann Hughes who wrote: “The City has proved by a preponderance of the evidence that Espinoza violated numerous rules, orders, codes and policies of the City of Kyle. There is no mitigating circumstance that causes this to be an exception to proper police procedures and behavior. Having Espinoza reinstated to the department would impact the morale and efficiency of the department in a negative manner.”

In a somewhat ironic touch, Hughes also wrote in her decision: "Espinoza stated he was the third most important person in Kyle and he acted like the rules, procedures and processes did not apply to him. The City Council runs the city, not one policeman."

Now Espinoza is seeking to trade in that role of one policeman for a spot on the city council.

 

Move to November increases voter turnout, Plum Creek vital to election success

Election numbers released earlier this week reveal two interesting facts. First, election turnout was higher this year, when the election was held in November, than last, when it was in May. Second, it’s difficult, if not impossible, to win an election in which Plum Creek voters are eligible to cast ballots without winning in that subdivision.

It’s open to debate whether moving the Kyle City Council elections from May to November for the first time this year is the actual reason for increased voter participation in 2017, but the cold hard facts reveal that the number of registered voters in the five precincts located entirely within Kyle increased by only 280 from May 2016 to this election, but the number of actual voters increased by 522.

Still, that’s not really all that much to brag about. That translated into 8.9 percent of the registered voters casting ballots in the most recent election, but that is a significant increase over the 6 percent who voted in the May 2016 election.

The precinct-by-precinct turnout numbers released by Hays County earlier this week also revealed the importance of winning the support of Plum Creek residents: Precinct 221, which is basically Plum Creek, accounted for 29.6 percent of all the votes cast in this most recent election. In the mayor’s race, winner Travis Mitchell collected a whopping 72.3 percent of the Plum Creek votes. In the Silverado/downtown area, by contrast, he won only 39.7 percent, but that area accounted for only 14.7 of the total votes cast, less than half that of Plum Creek. Mitchell won the race by collecting 58.6 percent of the vote citywide.

Plum Creek also was significant in the District 1 special election won by Dex Ellison over Marco Pizana. While Ellison won citywide with 53.7 percent of the vote, he won the Plum Creek precinct with 67.4 percent. By contrast, Pizana won Silverado/downtown with 68.9 percent, but, again that’s not where the voters are.

The precinct with the highest percent turnout, although the lowest number of voters, is Hometown Kyle where 13.83 percent of the voters turned out. Interestingly, Hometown Kyle resident Alex Villalobos, who was on the ballot for District 4, won that precinct by only one vote. On the other hand, Villalobos won the important Plum Creek precinct, which is the home of the candidate, Tim McHutchion, he defeated in the election, with 52 percent of the vote and the Silverado/downtown area with a comfortable 74.7 percent of the vote, However, to emphasize the importance of winning in Plum Creek, Villalobos collected 82 more votes in Plum Creek than he did in Silverado/downtown and those 82 votes accounted for 85.5 percent of his total margin of victory.

The precincts with the most voters, Precinct 129 (Amberwood/Steeplechase) and Precinct 127 (Waterleaf/Southeast Kyle) had voter turnouts of only 6.94 percent 6.25 percent respectively.

Ellison attributes victory to block walking

Dex Ellison, the chairman of the city’s Planning & Zoning Commission who last night was elected to complete a two-year term as the District 1 representative on the Kyle City Council, said today he won because of hard work and "just getting out there and talking to people."

"I know a lot of people were concerned because I didn’t have the social media presence, I didn’t have very many signs out there and I know those are the visible things everyone can see," Ellison said in a telephone interview. "Not only am I happy that I won, of course, and that was just getting out in the neighborhoods, talking to people. I think that really resonated with folks to meet them on the front steps. I had many people surprised I was the actual candidate — they thought I was just somebody out there supporting the candidate. And I think that made a huge difference."

Ellison defeated Marco Pizana for the seat that became available when incumbent Travis Mitchell resigned to successfully run for mayor.

"I didn’t spend a boatload of money for this seat," Ellison continued. "It was just getting out there and talking to people and I think people want to vote for people they relate to and people they feel like they can have a conversation with. I had hundreds of conversations and I think that’s what ultimately led me to that victory."

Ellison, who won 56.3 percent of the 1,520 votes cast in the District 1 race, said many of the concerns he heard during his block walking will shape his policy-making decisions on the council.

"I really want to get the word out about what’s happening at City Hall," he said. "I can’t tell you how many times in those hundreds of conversations I had where I heard people say they just don’t feel informed. They don’t know what’s going on, whether it’s good or bad. We’ve made a lot of progress in the past couple of years, but I think there’s more we can do. We need to bring City Hall out into the communities and I want to start looking at those options."

He also said he wants to bring the knowledge he has gained while serving as a Planning & Zoning commissioner to the council dais.

Many of the other candidates running in last night’s elections posted their reactions on various social media sites.

"First and foremost I want to say thank you to my wife, my family and my friends for being there each step of the way," Pizana posted on Facebook. "Next, I want to congratulate our new elected City Council members. It was a great race. My journey is not over yet. I will continue being that voice that my community needs."

"I cannot thank you all enough," said victorious District 4 candidate Alex Villalobos, one of only two candidates in a contested race to receive more votes on election day than in early voting. "My family for your unconditional support. My friends for the positive encouragement. My campaign team for your tireless energy, believing in me, preparing me, walking with me and for keeping the campaign focused. To the City of Kyle who have spoken with your vote!

"I am honored to be your council member," Villalobos continued in a Facebook entry. "This is only the beginning of our relationship and I am very excited to enrich and create strong partnerships and a legacy of community we can all be proud of! Together we will form a more responsive, accessible and engaged city government."

Villalobos won 56.37 percent of the 761 votes cast in the single-member District 4 race to succeed outgoing council member David Wilson. The 215 votes cast for Villalobos on election day was one more than he received during early voting. Mayoral candidate Nicole Romero-Piche was the only other candidate to receive more votes (103) on election day than she did during early voting (76). Still, she finished fourth in that four-person race won by Mitchell.

"Congratulations Alex on a good campaign," Tim McHutchion, Villalobos’ opponent, said today in a Facebook posting. "I hope you do well as a new council member. I want to thank all my supporters during this campaign. It was quite a ride. Thank you everyone again from the bottom of my heart, I will continue to be strong in our community and I will continue to advocate for small business and continue to strive for the betterment of our city."

Tracy Scheel, who was unopposed in an election to succeed Becky Selbera as the District 2 council representative, posted this on Facebook: "Congratulations to Travis Mitchell, Dex Ellison and Alex Villalobos. I look forward to working with all of you on the Kyle City Council."

This election marked the first one in Kyle in this century that resulted in four persons assuming new positions on the council. In 2010, however, there was an identical council shakeup, but it didn’t happen in one election. Lucy Johnson was elected mayor in a special February election that year to succeed Mike Gonzalez, who resigned to run for county commissioner. In that same special February election, Jaime Sanchez, who placed third in this year’s mayoral election, was elected to replace Johnson as the District 5 council member. In the regular May elections of 2010, Diane Hervol won her first council contest to represent District 1, a seat she held until she was defeated last year by Mitchell; and Brad Pickett ran unopposed to succeed David Salazar in District 3.

Mitchell wins mayor’s race without runoff; Ellison, Villalobos take council seats

Updated at 9 p.m.

First-term city council member Travis Mitchell cruised to a commanding victory in a four-person race for Kyle mayor tonight in an election that also saw Planning & Zoning Commission Chairman Dex Ellison and police officer Alex Villalobos win seats on the council.

With 11 of 14 precincts or 78.57 percent of the vote counted, Mitchell captured 60.36 percent of the vote, forcing The Kyle Report to call the election for Mitchell. Perennial candidate Bill Sinor was second with 18.7 percent, Jaime Sanchez third with 11.64 percent and Nicole Romero-Piche fourth with 9.31 percent.

"I am very grateful to receive this degree of support," Mitchell said, "and now I’m going to try to repay that support by working as hard as I can everyday as mayor to make us stronger as a city. I want to congratulate my opponents on their campaigns. They, and all the candidates in this election, were striving to make Kyle a better place for all of us."

Villalobos, who was only ahead of his District 4 opponent Tim McHutchion by 11 votes after the early voting, won handily, capturing 62.5 percent of the votes cast today to win by a margin of almost 13 percent. With complete returns in that race counted, Villalobos took 56.37 percent of the votes cast in the race to succeed David Wilson.

The results are also incomplete in the District 1 special election race called to complete the two years remaining on Mitchell’s term but with almost 79 percent of the vote counted, The Kyle Report is declaring Ellison the winner with 54.35 percent of the vote. compared to Marco Pizana's 45.65 percent.

I’ve left messages with Villalobos and Ellison seeking their reactions to the outcome.

Posted at 8 p.m. First-term city council member Travis Mitchell took a commanding lead in early voting results tonight and appeared to be cruising towards an outright victory in the four-person race for Kyle mayor.

Mitchell captured an overwhelming 61.47 percent of the 859 total absentee and early votes counted, compared to 17.81 percent for Bill Sinor, 11.87 percent for Jaime Sanchez and 8.85 percent for Nicole Romero-Piche

Of the three city council seats up for grabs, the closest race was in District 4 where Alex Villalobos had an 11-vote lead over Tim McHutchion in early voting. In the District 1 special election, Dex Ellison had 54.67 percent of the vote over Marco Pizana. Tracy Sheel was unopposed in the race to succeed Becky Selbera in District 2.

Mitchell was the overwhelming favorite in the mayor’s race. The only question was whether he could avoid a runoff with four candidates in the race.

"The numbers are better than I anticipated," an obviously delighted Mitchell said at his watch party right after the early results were posted. "I’m just really happy to see the results come in as favorably as they did."