College Station City Council Elections: Students Challenge Incumbent

College Station City Council member Dave Ruesink is facing a challenge for the council seat in Place 6 from two Texas A&M University students: Cliff Eggers and Chandler Salome.

Ruesink has served on the on the city council for the last three years, and the Bryan-College Station newspaper The Eagle said in a recent editorial that he “has shown himself to be more than up to the challenge of the job.”

Ruesink supports funding for a permanent farmers marker in a visible central locations, and noted that having a market in Central Park would be a step forward but that a better location should be found. Also, Ruesink supports “smart growth,” as opposed to urban sprawl, and has proposed the possibility of rasping property taxes on undeveloped property within the city to “make it more attractive to sell than to hold onto the land.”

The construction of a new city hall has been an issue of great concern, and Ruesink had the most thoughtful approach to the problem. While agreeing that the city needs to be expanded, he also noted that it might not be possible to expand the current city hall efficiently in its current location. Ruesink said that “it would be more effective to being a totally new building that could incorporation “green” methods for construction.”

*Note: Ruesink did not respond to Brazos Progressives questions about the US Mayors’ Climate Protection Agreement, the curb side recycling program, or access for pedestrians, bicyclist, and wheel chair users.

Clif Eggers is both a Texas A&M student and a veteran of the United States Navy, and as a fellow veteran I am both grateful for his service and for his involvement in local politics. Eggers decided to run for office because he felt that rather than “complian (sic) about government, I have volunteered to stand up to be a part of the solution.” Eggers has placed his name on the ballot for city council presenting a platform that is anti-red light cameras, anti-landlord registration (Eggers is a landlord), and generally pro-limited government.

Eggers has questioned whether or not the College Station City Council passing over 200 ordinances in less than two years was well thought out and perused with diligence. Also, he believes that there has been too much interference from the local government without the residents’ consent, asking on his Facebook group how residents “feel about red light cameras, speed cameras, surveylance (sic) cameras in town, moving city hall, landlord registration, penalizing private citizens for crimes committed by other citizens, and ordiances (sic) that restrict what you may do on your own private property?”

While there is a need for pedestrians, bicyclist and wheel chair users to have access to all places of residence, commerce and employment within the city, he is not in favor of giving access in “all places.” Eggers believes that sidewalks in Northgate negatively affect places of worship and thinks that College Station should continue to make progress without “creating undue hardships on the churches and businesses.” Eggers is also against funding for a permanent farmers marker stated that he does not “believe that running a business, or supporting a business, is a legitimate function of government.”

Eggers does support “smart growth” and limited urban sprawl by renovating areas area College Station such as the South Gate area, and said that creating parks and “with some new roads and development investors might have incentives to build new houses.” Although Eggers is against building a new city hall, he did not offer any ideas for an expansion of the current city hall or the possibility of building a city hall on a new site at a future date.

While Eggers does support the US Mayors’ Climate Protection Agreement, he believes that “warming on a global scale may one day be proven to be a miscalculation.” However, Eggers does support the curbside recycling program, and believes that the council should make efforts to raise awareness about the program.

Chandler Salome is a student at Texas A&M University and a member of the Corps of Cadets, and is expected to graduate from Texas A&M in December of 2010.

Along with the other two candidates Salome supports limiting urban sprawl and agrees with the principle of “smart growth.” Fully researching plan of redeveloping rundown neighborhoods is how Salome believes would be the best way to grow the city. Salome does believe that City Hall needs to be expanded but does not believe that now “is a great time for the city to spend money on itself” when it should be spending more money on infrastructure.

Salome supports the US Mayors’ Climate Protection Agreement, and believes that College Station “needs to increase its public transportation.” Also, Salome supports the curbside recycling program, and believes that the city should “reach out to those citizens [students] and get them involved.”

According to an article in the Eagle, Salome said that he would try to represent all of the residents of College Station, but he does not feel as if the students are adequately represented. Salome said the he feels that he “can represent a larger portion of the population that's not being represented.”

On Salome’s Facebook group, which has nearly 700 members, he has laid out his platform of student involvement in the local government, cutting city spending on projects, and preventing the further development on Northgate. The web site for Salome’s campaign is not up and running, although a note promises that the site should be up today.

While Eggers and Salome both valuable experience and are important members of their communities both do not seem to have the time necessary that is required of a member of the city council.

Eggers seems less concerned about representing the residents of College Station and more interested in voicing and promoting his own political opinions, and I question if he would listen to the citizens he would be elected to represent. The politics and positions that Eggers supports seem to be much more suited to a congressional campaign; the city council elections are non-partisan and it feels as though Eggers has forgotten that.

Salome seems to have a genuine interest in representing his community and has some interesting ideas. Perhaps Salome should run again for public office in a few years after he has completed college.

Ruesink has the experience of being on the council for the last three years, and because he is retired he can devote a far greater amount of time to the city than the other two candidates.

Left of College Station supports Dave Ruesink for re-election to College Station City Council Place 6.