My Bio
I'm a retired professional from a 38 year career in the Oil & Gas Industry, retired as a Senior Director of Construction. I've been married for 48 years, with three children and six grandchildren. I graduated from Texas A&M in 1978 with a degree in Architecture and started my career working with an Architectural firm designing multi-family, residential, and custom homes.
I soon transitioned into industrial design and construction within a major industrial engineering and construction firm, beginning as a designer. I was retained throughout numerous major corporate transitions and mergers as I worked my way through virtually every department management position such as project management, logistics, contracts, quality control, commissioning, and finally as a Senior Director of Construction at the end of my career. This experience refined my ability to understand overall goals, develop detailed planning and execution, how to effectively communicate, and how to lead and work with others.
I specialized in large ($100M to $2B) project feasibility and execution, often travelling to global locations to implement project management training. I developed most of the training materials and presentations that were used to teach, to motivate and to mentor other leaders.
After retirement and moving to the Conroe area in 2012, I published a number of articles related to the practices of the Montgomery County Appraisal District. I also created a petition drive to elect and not internally appoint Texas County Appraisal board members, which was later submitted to the Texas Legislature. The purpose of this effort was to educate and inform the average citizen of what really happens within the appraisal process and how the state tax code can be used in their favor.
I was also was the chairman of the Infrastructure Committee for a large Conroe neighborhood. This was a private non-annexed community and was responsible for its own streets, water, utilities, access, etc. This committee managed the entire range of community necessities, including all maintenance, utilities, new projects and repairs.
More recently, I utilized my professional background within the core community group resisting the selection of a site directly adjacent to I-45 and in the center of residential/business locations for a natural gas compression station by Blackfin Pipeline LLC. Thanks to the upholding of a restrictive covenant on the property and a cross-community effort that extended all the way to the governor's office, our group was successful in removing this hazardous facility from the proposed site. I'm all for natural resources, and with a background in Oil & Gas, this was clearly a hazardous facility within a congested area, directly next to a major vehicle artery.
In December 2025, I was elected by the Conroe City Council to the board of the CIDC - Conroe Industrial Development Corporation. This is a 7-member board created to promote commercial and industrial development in Conroe. I intend to utilize my professional experience to work together with other board members to establish and coordinate new immediate, mid-term and long-term planning to revitalize the purpose of the CIDC.
My wife and I have long since made the decision to call Conroe our "forever home" and we are proud to be participating members of this community. As such, I want to do more than live here, I want to work with others to make a difference in this city. We've been paying the price out of our tax dollars and utility fees to that Good Old Boy System for too long. Help me work towards honest change with integrity.
Let me be clear - I am not employed by, supported, nor affiliated with any corporation, developer, or special interest group. My support is within the community and I have seen what an educated and involved community can accomplish. Make no mistake, the special interest groups will move a lot of in-state and out-of-state funding towards their chosen candidate. It's not about helping Conroe; it’s about retaining power. My campaign might be compared by some as David and Goliath, but all David needed was faith and a rock. I'm bringing my commitment and my faith - your vote is that rock.
My Key Issues
Controlled development
We are seeing the results of uncontrolled development with a lagging infrastructure, gridlocked roads and high density developments built on every available patch of land. I intend to work towards controlled planned developments that preserve tree and vegetation as much as possble - no clearcutting - and I support impact fees for developments.
Water and Sewer Infrastructure
Water has been severely underfunded since 2011 and for the past couple of years we've trying to catch up. Our acquifers (groundwater) are dropping - fortunately we are able to use surface water for our needs. Our two wastewater treatment facilities are reaching capacity levels and we are in consideration of the construction of a new wastewater facility. I will support expanding our water and sewer infrastructure to meet our needs today and for the future. Water is now the new Blue Gold in many areas of the country.
Clear Permitting Processing
Our current permit submittal and processing, including status, is understaffed and often difficult to navigate. I will work with our city departments to reduce turnover, support the further development of software that identifies and gives real-time status of permit submittals, including inspection scheduling.
Strengthening our Ordinances
Our current city council has worked to strengthen some of our ordinances, but more needs to be done. I will work with citizen input to ensure that our ordinances, including our tree/vegetation ordinance and industrial facility ordinance, are revised to ensure we protect our environment, our citizens and our property values.
Supporting Small Businesses
Businesses are the lifeblood of a growing community. Small and medium businesses are often challenged by the current city permitting and occupancy permitting process. In addition we must ensure that our infrastructure can meet the needs of both our new and existing businesses.
Animal Shelter
The care and welfare of any animal hits close to my heart. Our family has been blessed with almost a couple of dozen rescues and strays throughout our life. It’s unimaginable to think of the suffering that many animals are subject to and I am an absolute supporter of having a viable, fully staffed, fully equipped animal shelter in Conroe. I will support our shelter becoming a model of what a growing city needs. This includes additional updated retaining pens, sound reduction, adequate secure exercise and holding areas, a full-time veterinarian, adequate staffing, a revised adoption process, and a robust volunteer program. Salaries must increase in order to attract and maintain qualified staffing – they are currently below the area averages.
Hyatt Hotel
Conroe had no business getting into the hotel business, and the Hyatt hotel is a contractual minefield that we must tread through very carefully. At the same time, the financial debt is woven into our budget through three liens, all of which require debt servicing. Combined with contractually required renovations, the debt risk is high and is having an impact with lowered bond ratings. Thanks to the previous city council and administration, Conroe pays for everything and would not see a dime of profit until 2050, which is insane. This was a special interest project that is now on the backs of every taxpayer and the impact of this hotel colors every financial decision the city makes. I will support any reduction to the financial burden on our taxpayers as we work through the contractual obligations of this project.
Oscar Johnson Center
The Oscar Johnson Enrichment and Development Center is named after a very significant figure in Conroe - Oscar Johnson, Medal of Honor for Valor veteran, Conroe's first black city councilman and mayor pro tem, with a family business well established in Conroe. This facility should indeed honor this man and his accomplishments. However, the project itself was not planned or executed properly, resulting in a current $42M debt load on the city. From a professional design and project management perspective, there is much that could be improved to better serve our citizens and honor the Oscar Johnson legacy. I will work to address the debt load and to ensure that this facility operates efficiently.
Homelessness and People in Need
This is a demographic usually forgotten in campaigns because frankly their voter turnout is low. These are real people that are all around us and we can’t just ignore them. Some are homeless by choice; most are homeless due to circumstances that have impacted their lives. Older residents are an increasing portion of this group – they are no longer able to afford their residence, or their care funding has run out. This is a tragedy of our senior population. Many are families, not just individuals, with children as the highest risk group. There are numerous city, county and private non-profit organizations that exist to serve this population and I believe that the city should expand its role in assisting them. They work at ground level and understand the daily issues and needs of the community. Consider the wasted costs associated with the Hyatt, even a portion of these costs could have helped hundreds of people. Many of the area grocery chains support the local food banks and I think that these programs can be bolstered along with city-supported clothing drives and city involvement in the planning and execution of streamlined area non-profits support, especially in times when fast response and implementation is needed, such as floods and deep-freeze temperatures. We don’t need additional bureaucracy in emergencies.
Traffic
We can all agree that traffic is mind-numbing, especially over the past 5 years. Certainly as Conroe grows, traffic will increase, but it's obvious that roads will be in a continuous catch-up mode. High density developments have been the driver in the area for a number of years and I believe that uncontrolled high-density residential and apartment developments are at the core of our traffic issues. We must control our development and work with our city, county, and state departments and agencies to accelerate our current mobility plans.
Inherited Issues
Conroe is at a crossroads, working to move forward, yet dealing with significant issues related to underfunded infrastructure, mobility, and past projects that are current financial disasters. We’ve seen the impact of unrestricted development on our infrastructure and roads, but we are encouraged by citizen involvement at city council, the adoption of recent city charter amendments, the unified community response to the proposed Blackfin Compression Station, and the ongoing work trying to deal with the debt that has been incurred from past administrations, in particular the disaster that is the Hyatt Hotel and Convention Center, the debt load of the Oscar Johnson Center, along with a massively underfunded infrastructure. I’m running because there are still high-density developments that have already been approved for construction but are on the way as the water moratorium is lifted. We must continue to deal with these realities.
City Debt
I would put financial stability as our biggest challenge, since funding is the fuel needed to mitigate other challenges that we have. Conroe has substantial debt and the city’s bond rating has suffered thanks primarily to the downgrading of the Hyatt Hotel financials. As a general snapshot, the city has approximately $750M inherited debt and a budget allocation of approximately $382M. It should be noted that no new debt was incurred in fiscal year 2025 but there is debt servicing that will be coming due in 2026. Capital Improvement unfunded projects are $800M, with a new wastewater treatment plan estimated at $500M. Bottom line is that the city must plan for approximately $2B in longer term costs on a $382M yearly budget.
West Side Recreation Center
The decision for demolition of this facility has been made and I believe that the area has also been considered as a feasible site for a future wastewater treatment facility. I can say that the original YMCA center was in need of substantial refurbishment when it was initially purchased without a structural and systems inspection. It was also regularly impacted by flooding as it is located within an actual floodway. This was brought to the attention of City Council by the Westside Center Manger. After an evaluation of repairs needed and the associated costs, City Council decided that demolition was the most feasible, though unpopular recourse. Unfortunately, it has left the west side area without a city recreational facility. In my view this 110 acre area can still be utilized by the city for its citizens with careful project planning, including coordination of a future wastewater treatment facility. This would include recreational facilities and features that are designed to resist intermittent flooding, the inclusion of a dedicated archery area, revitalization of hiking/biking trails, and a general recreation area. I would support the combination of a city/citizen planning committee to help develop a realistic plan for moving forward.
Planning Commission
. In my opinion, the last City Planning Commission was essentially a pass-through for virtually any development idea that came along. This was just brought to light again with the Blackfin Compression Station. I was involved with the core group working with the Bartholet family to resist this clearly hazardous facility being placed in the middle of a residential/business community and approximately 100 ft from I-45. We have documentation that clearly shows the involvement of this planning commission with this facility without initial knowledge of the city council. I believe that we need a strong Planning Commission comprised of citizens with professional and experienced backgrounds in residential, commercial and industrial development and project planning. This Commission would be vetted by city council and would communicate recommendations to both our city government and coordinate with city engineering to ensure a clear understanding of the impact – good and bad – of proposed developments.
High Density Housing
I believe we need to prioritize attracting business and industry to Conroe, not the construction of high-density housing on every available patch of ground. If we continue to foster uncontrolled development, Conroe becomes more transient. This also incorporates itself into the lack of infrastructure to support high density housing. One example is that an individual apartment typically uses less water than a single-family residence, yet TCEQ requires that both are rated at the same water tap capacity. So, in effect, an apartment complex of 150 apartments is treated the same as 150 homes. And it’s also obvious that a high-density housing development has a massive immediate impact to area roads and traffic. Consider the sudden outflow into adjacent roadways of 300-500 apartment units from an area that would originally be slated for 100-150 homes. It is massive in its impact. In my own neighborhood, it is virtually impossible to leave anytime before 9 am. Conroe is generally regarded as an affordable housing option for the Woodlands, Houston, and surrounding communities, but doesn’t really gain much from residents working and shopping elsewhere. We cannot be a high-density camp for other communities as we will quickly develop into a transient community. I don’t support further apartment construction in Conroe. Note that regardless of who is voted onto city council, there are still several high density apartment and housing projects already approved for development – and grandfathered in our tree ordinance - that will commence as soon as water and sewer infrastructure is available. Again, we can look to the history of the city council and related Planning Commission for what we must deal with today. I am not against development - I am for controlled development.
Seniors and Veterans
In particular, our over-65 and disabled population is already struggling with high costs, taxes etc. These are individuals that have put a lifetime of value into our social and economic systems, most of which are now on fixed incomes. In many cases they are driven from their homes due to affordability (or lack of it). We must ensure that they are assisted to the greatest extent from incessant property tax and utility bill increases, etc. I’m aware of the Lifeline Discount Rate program and it has merit. I would first request an evaluation of the water/sewer billing for the over-65/disabled portion of our residents. I would support an additional reduction of the water usage (gallons) discount and a further reduction of the current city property tax rate for seniors and disabled veterans.
Downtown Conroe
The City has poured millions into the downtown area without much of a tangible result. We cannot keep repeating this process and expect different results. At the same time, we must also ensure that city policies are fair and equitable to all business, especially small business in Conroe. I will propose a variety of different public attractions within the downtown district with the goal of establishing anchor facilities, such as in the examples of the Creighton and Owen Theaters. Having established anchor facilities within the downtown district is a key factor in attracting the public and more local small business.
Send Me a Message
Have questions or suggestions? I would love to hear from you!
Campaign Headquarters
206A S Loop 336 W, Conroe, TX 77304, USA