Five Gunter City Council Candidates Are Running Unopposed to Replace Aldermen Who Abruptly Resigned
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Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to include responses from Place 5 candidate William Stevens.
The Gunter City Council ballot is locked in, and the Grayson County municipality will have five new aldermen in May.
The candidates — all running unopposed — are Cyndy Davis, Alan Richins, David Self, Wade Burtsfield, and William Stevens. Gunter aldermen serve at large, meaning they represent the whole city, not just the district in which they live.
They’ve got their work cut out for them.
All five former Gunter City Council members quit their jobs in December, following a contentious battle over BNSF Railway’s plans for a 949-acre rail facility. The council unanimously approved the measure with no public input or discussion. The community responded with anger — at the proposal itself and the way it was handled. Some alleged corruption.
The council members walked out at the same time, holding their seats hostage and halting important city business that requires a quorum.
Mayor Karen Souther stayed at her post and worked with attorneys to have BNSF withdraw the railroad proposal. .
But those who stayed and those who will be sworn in to serve in May are focusing on the positives. Souther told CandysDirt.com she’s looking forward to working with the new aldermen.
The Gunter City Council election is May 4.
Meet The Candidates
CandysDirt.com reached out to all five candidates and heard back immediately from David Self, who will serve in Place 2.
The others either didn’t respond or requested questions by email, and their responses were not submitted by deadline.
It’s appropriate for Gunter City Council candidates to be a little gun-shy about talking to the media. The community has been through a lot. An in-depth Texas Tribune article prompted interest in the town of 2,500 that, until then, had flown under the radar.
Self, 53, works in sales for Swift Transportation and has lived with his family in Gunter for about nine years. He started going to City Council meetings last June when the railroad controversy was blowing up.
“Prior to then, I honestly had no interest nor intention of ever running for or holding public office,” Self said. “Seeing the actions and behavior of the current council and reading the documents that have been released … to me, the final straw was the aldermen all resigning at the same time, intentionally with coordination for whatever reason. We can only speculate, but it’s either ego, ignorance, or something nefarious.”
Self said he and the new aldermen hope to restore trust in the community.
According to campaign filing paperwork, Cyndy Davis is a professional recruiter. Alan Richins is self-employed. Wade Burtsfield is a sales manager. William Stevens is an attorney at a Grayson County law firm.
Most of the candidates have lived in Gunter for less than six years; Self has been there the longest.
Self said the city’s former legal team did a disservice in advising aldermen to sign off on contracts without a thorough review. Those attorneys left last year, too, and a new legal team appears to have “Gunter’s best interests at heart,” Self said.
He added that he’s become friends with Stevens over the past several months from interactions at City Council meetings.
“He’s a good man, and he’s an attorney,” Self said of Stevens. “I believe that having that arrow in our quiver on the City Council is another layer, another safety net, so something like this won’t ever happen again.”
William Stevens
William Stevens responded to our questions after this story was published March 14. Below are his responses in their entirety:
CandysDirt.com: Why run for City Council while the community is in such turmoil?
William Stevens: I’m running because the community is in turmoil. If I say the town needs help, but I’m not willing to step up, then all I’m doing is complaining. Rather than complain, I’d like to help make improvements.
CandysDirt.com: What are your ideas for restoring trust in the community?
Stevens: Trust comes from experience, from repeated encounters that went as expected, such that, eventually, you can expect (or trust) that a future encounter might go the same way. Trust also comes from a willingness to share, and finally, from openness. Hiding things doesn’t build trust.
CandysDirt.com: What needs to happen so the city can get back to doing business and recruiting new development and housing?
Stevens: That’s three questions. To get back to doing business, the city needs five new aldermen. That won’t happen until after May 4.
New development, assuming that the town wants that, comes from making Gunter business-friendly and business-ready. For that, we need coherent ordinances, sensible zoning, and infrastructure conducive to and supportive of businesses. For all of that, we need a master plan. I’m not talking about a marketing plan, I’m talking about a true master plan, with community planning, done by an architect, with an eye toward growth over the years to come. Where will the houses go? The grocery store? The gas stations? The dry cleaner? All of the things that make a community need to be thought about, and then there needs to be a plan for where facilities and businesses need to be in relation to each other. Where do the roads and Internet, the water, the sewer, the parking, where the traffic lights need to be? What needs to be next to what?
The housing question will work itself out the same way, and then all of that needs to be planned with an eye toward efficient use of our resources; all the while keeping that “feel” of Gunter intact (e.g. the space, the farms, the cows, and the wildlife).
CandysDirt.com: Do you think that a full clean slate of aldermen is up for this challenge?
Stevens: This current slate is a good mix of skills and experience. Perhaps most helpful in the immediate mix of alderman is that no one is “old” Gunter establishment, so none of the current candidates are mired in the “that’s-the-way-we-ve-always-done-it” mindset. This current group has a lot of experience in business and experience from other communities. I can speak best for myself as an example. I’ve worked in the design construction industry, the software tech world, and, since 2007, as an attorney. Aside from the obvious knowledge of law, I have a lot of experience with zoning, building codes, construction, master planning, campus development, and technology.
CandysDirt.com: What do you think you personally bring to the table in working with other elected officials and the residents?
Stevens: Grayson County has just gone through an election that has brought a lot of new faces into the various elected positions around the county. I know many of those new faces. I’m active in many of the groups in the county, which makes it easier to stay in touch with what is happening around Grayson County that might impact Gunter. As for what I bring to the table for residents of Gunter, I’m willing to hear what people have to say, and I firmly support the idea that sunlight is the best disinfectant. I am a strong proponent of open meetings. Over the years, I’ve found that honesty is the best policy. It’s not just a saying. Providing open, accessible, and accurate information helps everyone stay involved and informed. A clear, open channel of communication also helps to reduce rumors and speculation.
What’s Next For Gunter
Restoring trust with Gunter residents is a top priority for Self, the alderman-elect told CandysDirt.com.
“I’m going to spend time listening to the people who live in Gunter,” he said. “I’m not going to be violating [the Texas Open Meetings Act] or having conversations with former mayors or city managers. I’m here for the people of Gunter and Gunter alone. I’m not going to spend any time getting lobbied by any big industry.”
The new council members have at least one big item to take up at their first meeting in May.
“At the last City Council meeting we could have annexed some land that would have at least given us some buffer or control from a zoning standpoint that leads up to the boundary line of the railroad’s property,” Self said. “For whatever reason, our fine aldermen tabled that one. I think [BNSF] is going to do something there. I fully believe it’s not going to be as extensive as what they had planned when nobody knew about it.”
Self said Gunter has had opportunities for “good, clean, non-industrial growth for years.”
“We just haven’t had the right people in place to help that flourish,” he said.
Planning and Development Director Eric Wilhite is working with several businesses that have tried and failed in the past to locate in Gunter, Self said.
“It’s not a hazardous waste dump or a pig feedlot,” he said. “It’s actual businesses that will be beneficial to the city and improve home equity and not disparage it.”
