Elect Todd Kinsey

Vision, Leadership, Values


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Sound Money Management

lc-watertower

Hidden Lakes water tower

Since joining council in 2012 we have more than tripled the city’s water capacity. We added to that total this week when the new water tower went up in Hidden Lakes on the city’s east side, near Clear Falls High School.

Making these investments hasn’t been easy. When I joined council, spending and debt had skyrocketed to unsustainable levels.In fact spending had reached nearly $205 million and the city’s debt was a massive $282 million.

Over the last four years we have paid down over $40 million of that debt load while still making significant investments in our three core infrastructure needs: streets, water and drainage (sewer).

In fact, the 2017 budget makes the largest investment in the city’s core infrastructure in League City’s history, while spending less money than the previous council spent in 2012.

Yes, you read that right. Because of sound money management and conservative financial policies, the city will spend $13 million less in 2017 ($192M) than the previous council did in 2012 ($205M) while making record improvements to the city’s future without adding any new debt.

Make an investment in your future and re-elect Todd Kinsey to city council.

 

 

 

 

 

Paid Pol. Ad. by Todd Kinsey Campaign – H. Kinsey, Treasurer: 1150 Rustling Wind Lane, League City, TX 77573.


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A picture is worth a 1,000 words

We’ve all heard the expression “a picture is worth a thousand words.” Well I thought I’d post some of my favorite photographs so you can get to know me a little better.

Giving back to the community
My beautiful wife, Heather & I
My buddies and I waiting to leave for the Gulf War
Hiking the Appalachian Trail
Hard men after the Gulf War
Community Leader – A speech at the American Legion
Jumping out of a perfectly good plane… For fun…
Life rewards effort
My son Christopher with family at Clear Creek graduation
Briefing my squad
Defending liberty
Discussing issues facing League City with Sen. Cornyn
On vacation at Fenway Park
Ironman Triathlete
My son Matthew being promoted to LSU ROTC Corps Commander
Racing for the US Army Cycling Team
Coaching the League City Little League Champions!
That which matters most… My family
Business Leader
Mentoring the next generation of leaders

 

 

 

 

 

Paid Pol. Ad. by Todd Kinsey Campaign, Heather Kinsey Treasurer.


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Five-Corners Realignment Starts… Finally 

After more than twenty five years of inactivity and passing the buck, League City has finally begun the biggest traffic project in its history. The Five-Corners realignment will help alleviate traffic at one of the city’s biggest intersections; the intersection of Egret Bay, FM518 and FM2094. 

Five-corners is a prime example of why the city needs to be proactive in completing its infastructure projects. This project could’ve been completed when the city’s population was half of what it is today for a fraction of the cost. 

I’ve been working for hard the last four years to be proactive and get projects done at their inception rather than piecemeal. A vote for me in November will ensure we stay on track. 

Demolition begins on the Five Corners Realignment project.


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Running for Re-election

img_0113When I joined city council in 2012 the city had a number of problems, chief among them was the out of control spending. In fact past councils had racked up a staggering $280 million in debt. Since joining council we’ve been able to reduce the city’s debt load by about $40 million.

I also ran on a platform of making investments in the city’s water capacity. Since joining council we’ve nearly tripled the available water supply so now when you try to wash dishes or take a shower after work during the hot summer months, water actually flows out of the faucet rather than a trickle.

If re-elected I plan to apply that same tenacity to getting the city’s traffic moving. Unprecedented growth has led to gridlock, lengthening  commute times when they could be spending quality time with their families.

We have to be more proactive in working with developers to get them to understand that with today’s interest rates and the rising cost of construction, it’s less expensive in the long run to build roads up front rather than inconveniencing our residents and causing traffic delays by building roads piecemeal… Remember the traffic nightmare on 646 in Victory Lakes?

League City also has to work with the school districts in our city to ensure that new schools are built so that access is not on major thoroughfares. We have far too many school zones on main roads. We need to encourage setbacks like CCISD’s Education Village off of League City Parkway that promotes traffic flow and ensures the safety of our children.

For these reasons and many more, I hope you’ll re-elect me in November.


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God Bless the USA and the brave men who defend her

A 2nd Armored Cavalry base camp along the Czech border in the Fall of 1989 just before the fall of the Berlin Wall.

In August of 1987 my family waited anxiously with me at the gate as I waited to board a plane taking me to U.S. Army Basic Training. I was nervous, excited and a little scared at the adventure that awaited me.

The first few days of basic training are probably the worst because regardless of how much you think you know about the military, there’s little you can do to actually prepare you for the culture shock of entering military service.

Drill sergeants fill every minute of every day with some sort of training leaving very little down time. What little down time we did have was usually spent cleaning, shining or organizing something but every once in a while we had some fun time. One thing my platoon enjoyed was listening to the radio or as our drill sergeant called it, “going to the bar.”

Going to the bar meant we could listen to the radio as long as everyone was in the push-up position, known as the front lean and rest position, with their feet elevated on a support bar of the upper bunk of our beds which was about four feet in the air.

At first these sessions would only last a minute or two but as everyone got stronger, we could usually make it through a couple of songs before guys started to drop. Drill Sergeant Heflin was the brain child of going to the bar and he had great affinity for Lee Greenwood’s beautiful anthem Proud to be an American. In fact, he liked it so much that he made the entire platoon learn the song and often made us regale our instructors with our a cappella rendition.

So for all my fellow brothers in arms, I offer you this salute.
 


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How I voted for the ballot propositions

Many people are saying this is the most important election in our lifetime. While that may be a slight exaggeration it is certainly the most important election since Reagan defeated Carter.

The 2012 election is also an important election on a local level as well. There are three city council seats up for election and a number of vital ballot propositions. For what it’s worth, here is how I voted for the proposed changes to the City Charter.

  1. YES – This proposition would make all future city elections coincide with national and state election in November rather than being held annually in May. Sadly under our current system, we only have about 5,000 people exercising their right and their duty to vote. By moving the election to November we should see these numbers drastically increase.- Shall Article II, Sections 1 & 3, Section 1, of the City Charter be amended to provide for biennial elections on a uniform election date in even numbered years and allow a member of Council to serve a four year term rather than a three year term, effective with the 2014 general election with adjustment of existing terms as necessary (not to exceed one year) to cause municipal elections to occur every two years on a uniform election date with the next municipal general election to occur in 2014 instead of every year as currently required for the terms of Mayor and Council members in the charter.
  2. YES – Proposition two would allow for council members or the mayor to serve only two terms in office. Depending on what other ballot propositions pass, we could end up with elected officials being able to serve 6 years, 8 years, 9 years or 12 years. Ideally, if Prop 1 and Prop 2 pass, elected officials will be able to serve two, four-year terms. – Shall Article I, Section 2, of the City Charter be amended to provide for more restrictive term limits such that no person may be a candidate for Mayor if serving a second consecutive mayoral term or be a candidate for Council if serving a second consecutive term. Currently no person may be a candidate for Mayor or Council if serving a third consecutive term.
  3. YES – Proposition 3 would require the mayor to become a voting member of City Council. As it stands now the mayor only votes to break ties which only happens if a council member is absent or abstains for some reason. To me this is a logical step to take after the citizens approved a city manager form of government. In the past, the mayor was the chief executive of the city and had direct interaction and authority over city staff. Since we changed forms of government, the city manager controls the day-to-day operation of the city with council providing oversight (mainly financial). As such, the best way for citizens to know what their mayor believes in is to have a voting record. – Shall Article II, Sections 1 & 13 of the city charter be amended to provide that the Mayor shall vote on any ordinance, resolution, action or question presented to Council, and be counted for the purposes of establishing a quorum? Currently the Mayor is prohibited from voting except in the case of a tie on City Council. (Which only occurs if someone is absent)
  4. NO – My understanding of Texas State Law is that a quorum is to be determined by a simple majority, which, in this case would be five (5). I don’t believe that we need to pass a charter amendment to perform simple math. – Shall Article II, Section 11 of the City Charter be amended to provide that a quorum of City Council for the transaction of business shall consist of 5 voting members of City Council. The current provision requires 5 councilpersons excluding the Mayor, and may be affected by other proposed amendments being submitted, including allowing the mayor to vote.
  5. YES – This is one of those lawyered up ballot propositions where yes means know and vice versa. I believe this was deliberately done by the city to try and confuse voters so that the red light camera cash cow would survive. Voting yes for this proposition means that you agree that we should not renew our contract with Redflex when it expires. Conversely, voting no means that you don’t agree and would like the city to renew its contract and keep red light cameras. – Shall Article IX of the City Charter be amended to include a new section 8, in order to prohibit the further renewal or deployment of photographic traffic enforcement systems on the City’s public rights of way when the contract with Redflex (Who is suing the City) expires pursuant to its terms? A vote for this proposition will prohibit red-light cameras a vote against this proposition will keep red-light cameras.
  6. NO – This proposition would require a super majority of council to consist of seven (7) members out of eight (8). Personally I would rather see this number be seventy five-percent which would be six (6) members of council. – Shall Article II, Section 22, Article 5, Section 4, and Article VII, Section 8 of the City Charter be amended to avoid any confusion in interpretation of the existing provisions by clarifying and adopting uniform language that a super majority consists of a four-fifths majority of the voting members of City Council, specifically including the Mayor, if given the right to vote. (This provision will make it so that 7 out of 8 members will be required for a super majority)
  7. NO – With a cursory read most people would probably agree with this proposition. After all, we expect our leaders to show up and do their job. However when you dig into the details of this proposition I fear it could be used as a devious tool to get rid of political rivals. For instance, let’s say a council member goes on vacation with their family over the summer and misses a workshop on Monday and a council meeting on Tuesday. At the council meeting, a special meeting is scheduled for Wednesday. Now said council member has missed three meetings and could be removed from council. I cannot support this ballot proposition in its current form. – Shall Article II, Section 7 of the City Charter be amended to provide that a council member remaining absent for three consecutive meetings of Council of any kind, including special meetings or workshops, shall be determined to have vacated office. The current provision provides for determination of vacancy upon a Council Member remaining absent for 3 consecutive meetings of City Council (Theoretically this would prevent a council person from taking a vacation if they missed a workshop the night before a council meeting, the subsequent council meeting and a special meeting called in the week after said meeting)

 


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What will our legacy be?

Todd understands that we must fix the debt crisis so that we don’t saddle the next generation with our problems.

I think every generation worries about the legacy that they are going to leave for their kids – at least I hope they do. So I ask you, what legacy are we going to leave for our children? Are we going to have the courage to make the tough decisions and do what’s right? Or are we going to stand by and watch as the nation crumbles around us?

For far too long government at all levels have been spending our hard-earned money like they’re playing a game of Monopoly. And it’s not just happening in Washington D.C. but right here in League City too.

In the last two years alone League City has approved over $200 million in new spending causing our city’s debt to increase by an astounding 65-Percent.

We are told that all this spending is for infrastructure but the new civic center is not infrastructure. We already have a civic center which was just remodeled and yet the city saw fit to build another. The hike and bike trail is not infrastructure. I’m not opposed to a trail system but we could put in decomposed granite for a fraction of what we’re spending on concrete plus it’s a non-porous surface which won’t add to the city’s flooding problems.

These are just a few of the many examples of the out-of-control spending in League City. To fix this we have to elect people who understand that every penny that government spends was earned by someone else’s hard work.

We have to elect people who understand the difference between wants and needs.

Twenty five years ago I answered the call of freedom when I enlisted in the U.S. Army. I served my country on the Czech border and was there when the Berlin Wall fell. I also served my country on the battlefields of Desert Storm where I was awarded two medals for leadership.

I believe my country is calling me again. The great Edmund Burke once said “all that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”

I cannot sit idly by while our country and our city are being spent into oblivion. Let’s let our legacy be that we had the courage to fix the debt crisis rather than saddling our kids with even more debt.

Together WE can do it but I need your vote on November 6th.

Thank You.