Folks,

Many of you may be wondering why I am running for Mayor and asking for your support. The Highland Village economic outlook is good with the new shopping areas changing our contribution from sales tax from about 6% two years ago to over 12% today. We are about built out with respect to our residential properties. We are the safest city in Texas according to the FBI. One might say that things could not be better and as a former Councilmember for Highland Village I guess that I should take some credit for being a part of this progress.

In my training as a geologist, I learned to study the present to get clues about the past. The corollary to that is the statement that the past is key to the future. Applying these principals to city government means I know that if we keep doing things the way we did in the past, we will continue to get the same results -- results that are not necessarily best for all our citizens.

We need to focus on a couple of pieces of history that will allow us to better work together in the future. Our charter was put in place as a "Council-Manager" form of government. In section 3 the position of Mayor is described as follows: "The Mayor shall preside at meetings of the Council, administer oaths and be recognized as head of the city government for all ceremonial purposes and by the governor for purposes of military law. The Mayor may participate in the discussion of all matters coming before the Council and vote but shall have no veto power." In other words, the Mayor, other than being the ceremonial head of the City and recognized as head of the City during times of emergency, is no better or worse, has no more or less votes, than any other member of the Council. I think that this key point in our Charter has been forgotten by our last two Mayors of Highland Village. We nee! d to know our history and get back to the way that the Charter intended us to operate. Council first, not Mayor.

Secondly, if we look back at issues and the way that they were handled in the past, we see times of turmoil with respect to road improvements, 2499 and Brazos, economic development, Opus, Double Tree, and Regency. We have seen the diminishing of the general respect for each individual and his opinions that can come when people disagree. In my opinion we can do better. We are about to embark on the final stages of putting a road through Highland Village that many still oppose. This road quite probably will go through no matter what the opposition may be from the citizens of Highland Village because it is now in the hands of the County, State and Federal authorities. What could we have done to prevent the controversy? We could have been doubly sure that everyone was informed that there is a road coming and made every effort to do a better job of soliciting input from our citizens to make sure that the road coming through was not going to be viewed as having negative impact on the community, but viewed as an asset. We still can make this the best road we can have. However, the only way that this will happen is to involve all the folks that are impacted by the road in the final planning with respect to placement of stop signs and lights, toll facilities, safety walls, and sound/visual pollution walls. I pledge to you that if I am successful in convincing our sitting Council that this is the way to do things, we will learn from our past mistake of building something and then informing citizens about that building.

How about future development? Let's look at the changes that will take place on the the east side of town with the advent of the DCTA rail line in 2010 and the widening of I 35E. This will have a tremendous effect on our residents on the east side of town. Let's learn from the past and involve the citizens now not later in the planning with the consultant that has been hired by Lewisville and Highland Village to develop the overlay zoning that will lay out the plan for development around the new rail station.

Brazos Boulevard improvements were approved in a bond issue that included landscaping within the median. Because of the rise in material costs, the landscaping had to be put aside for another bond issue. I would think the time is now to produce a proposal to the citizens of Highland Village that would provide for this landscaping. Again, let's not forget past promises. We need to put in place the things that are expected when the citizens approve a bond issue.

Finally, because of my background with environmental issues associated with my work in geology and as a contractor to the EPA, I am firmly convinced that there are things that are necessary for us to assess regarding the preservation of our Highland Village environment. We are the safest city; can we be the most environmentally respectful? I do not advocate going down this road in a "willy nilly" fashion, but let's investigate the return on investment associated with the use of solar and wind power to offset the high costs of electricity to the taxpayers that pay for the electricity that runs our city buildings. Let's have a demonstration plot or even use xeriscaping, landscaping that is not dependent upon supplemental water, as a policy with respect to city landscaping. Let's arrange to have more than twice a year pick up of hazardous home waste. Lastly, let's make the environment of the Council chamber! s during our meetings a more friendly and collaborative environment for our citizens, an improvement that is long overdue.

Fred Busche

972-318-1723

Cell 214-673-7312