Mayors Announce Reformation Of Corridor Cities Coalition Reformation, Hold Planning Meeting

“Central Texas cities are some of our nation’s fastest growing communities and dynamic drivers of our state’s economy. While our cities different in many ways, we share common challenges…”

By, Terra Rivers, Managing Editor

On Tuesday, October 25, mayors from the cities on the I-35 Corridor from San Antonio to Georgetown were in attendance at Austin City Hall for the first meeting of the Central Texas Corridor Mayors Coalition.

Mayor John Thomaides joined Mayor Steve Adler of Austin, Mayor Travis Mitchell of Kyle and Mayor Craig Morgan of Round Rock for a meeting Tuesday morning to plan an official meeting of the coalition before the end of 2018.

According to the agenda, the four mayors also discussed ongoing flood recovery efforts, prioritizing regional issues such as Public Safety, Transportation and Mobility, Economic Development, Disaster Preparedness and Recovery, Stormwater Management and Water and Air Quality.

Mayor Thomaides read a statement on behalf of all members of the coalition present.

Central Texas cities are some of our nation’s fastest growing communities and dynamic drivers of our state’s economy. While our cities different in many ways, we share common challenges, and we believe those challenges are best addressed by collaborating across jurisdictions.

One area of shared concern is the threat posed by the upcoming state legislative session to local control. Our constituents need real, meaningful property tax relief, not distractions and gimmicks.

We believe that real property tax relief can only come through the state legislature finally acting to fund our local, public schools adequately and equitably.

We oppose efforts to cap cities’ ability to raise local property taxes lower than current caps. the state’s continued failure to address school finance is the true driver of rising property tax bills in our cities, and our state leaders should focus their attention on fixing school finance, and not on local communities’ ability to tax themselves to fund public safety, infrastructure and public services our residents demand.

The Corridor Mayors Coalition is united on this issue and looks forward to a productive and respectful dialogue with our leaders in the Texas Legislature. Today’s meeting was to plan for re-initiating regular meetings of Central Texas Regional Mayors, with the mayors of the region’s cities to meet near the state of the next state legislative session.

“This is a group that used to meet, the mayors in the region, though it’s probably been a year or maybe a little longer,” Mayor Adler said. “A lot of times mayors get together regionally associated with the legislative session, and I think it’s important [Thomaides is] calling us back in to do that. Cities share a lot of common interests, but I also think it’s important to meet not directly related to a legislative session so that we can discuss regional issues like transportation.”

Mayor Adler spoke about some of the things discussed in the meeting; he said the main topic of discussion was the revenue cap proposed by the Governor’s office.

“Here in Austin, 72 percent of the property tax increase that we’re seeing in Central Texas over the last six years is kind of camouflaged and hidden in state property tax that has collected through the school district,” Adler said, “That is really what is causing everybody to feel like the taxes are going up.”

Adler said that the state’s property tax has gone up over 360 percent in the last six years; the state’s efforts to address property taxes by capping cities, like Austin, “is a joke and a misdirection.”

Mayor Thomaides spoke to the flood recovery discussion that took place during the meeting.

Mayor Adler said the meeting also gave him the opportunity to talk with the mayors who had offered assistance to the City of Austin’s recent water issues and boil water notice.

“Mayors here in the region really are the backstop for each other,” Adler said.