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As I was not able to finish my commentary during this session, I will conclude my sentiments below. As per usual, we have to see our mayor and his crony councilwoman to his left snicker and mock the point made by the second speaker about not being able to pay her rent (which many other Lewisville residents are experiencing) due to this alleged "affordable housing" period that is occurring in Lewisville. I find it is not only unprofessional, but inappropriate for these two to disregard the needs of residents because they remain in the condescending six-figure bubble "family" and are oblivious as to what occurs beyond the two miles adjacent to City Hall and Old Town. Regarding the fourth speaker requesting that the city construct and be a "landlord" to a senior's only complex, this is not a good solution given the questionable financial dealings that the city currently engages in. Also, according to federal housing regulations, an organization (which includes municipalities) cannot discriminate by accommodating one group over another. This sounds like another Tan Parker directive. I find it interesting that the city leaders have no problem in voting themselves handsome salary raises, yet do not blink an eye when it comes to raising the property taxes to offset the cost. And as usual, the mayor and staff will always point the finger and tell residents how WRONG they are with their math and how they shouldn't read social media commentary which often reveals what they want to cover up. Lastly, I think that all residents (including myself) would appreciate it if Councilwoman Cade would refrain from sidebar comments and whispers into her mic when others are speaking. Again, if she has something to say, then she should address it openly since this is a public meeting rather than acting like a 16-year-old adolescent who is engaging in secretive gossip. How unprofessional!

came for the pipes here years ago, stayed for the drumming keep tradition alive!

NOTE: Any of the below commentary generated by myself via this post is not intended to antagonize, inflame, offend, disrupt or be irrelevant in any manner. My commentary is based on observations and experience in attempting to work with the city council and the mayor and is intended to offer a differing point of view. Any allegations or inferences regarding "trolling", “negative” or “yelling” behavior is solely the opinion and/or bias of the person alleging such behavior. I assume no responsibility for any individuals offering assertions to such. While I usually follow along via live chat and offer feedback as I go, there are a few concerning issues raised in this workshop/council meeting that warrant further comment. Regarding the matter of the board/committee candidate selection, I fail to see why there is so much concern for formalities now from council members. Both the city council members and the mayor made it very clear during a recent prior city council meeting that board/committee appointments are all about the city council/mayor crony system. The gateway sign is certainly fantasy window dressing for Old Town, but I fail to see how this is even a project being considered since Old Town has received enough attention and funding over the years. Clearly, yet another pet project for the Parks Director. Lewisville heritage is NOT solely about City Hall! Further, the city can’t even finish the police and fire building projects let alone start a new pet project. This “Proclamation” certainly explains why our mayor is so supportive of the United Way of Denton. Having a crony who not only served as a former Assistant City Manager of Lewisville, who was provided exorbitant raises while Mr. Gilmore was on the city council and who helped both Mr. Gilmore get elected as Mayor and our current City Manager be elected to the United Way Board certainly explains why they both will support Ms. Galler’s organization with full vigor. However, given the MAJOR conflicts of interest present (conflicts our City Attorney continually turns a blind eye to) and the questionable ethics regarding how the money is being handled by this crony system, many (including myself) would call for an audit and an investigation. Sadly, I just remembered that Ms. Galler's husband used to be the Assistant Chief of Police in Lewisville. Rather convenient for the three of them. Corruption at its finest........ Regarding the ordinance vote for MCL, why is there an MCL ordinance vote when councilman Kelly currently serves on MCL's Board of Trustees, a position that was formerly held by councilman Jones? Again, conflict of interest! Also, it is inappropriate for the City Manager to have "business lunches" with land developers and builders. The City Manager’s job is to run the city, not to make under the table zoning deals and act as decision maker for Lewisville residents without the city council’s knowledge, which given these Castle Hills resident conflicts, appears to have occurred both with the former City Manager and the current one. If I didn't know better, I would think that this is councilman Kelly's under the table deal which he may have directed to go through the City Manager to avoid it appearing as a conflict of interest. Doesn't Councilman Kelly live in Castle Hills? And didn’t Mr. Kelly during a prior recent city council meeting elect his fellow "neighbors" from Castle Hills to Lewisville’s boards and committees? From a larger picture, however, I think it is pretty rich for councilmembers and the mayor to talk about the importance of communication, especially since those on the city council and the mayor have refused to answer resident's emails whom they personally do not like, thus brushing aside their issues. What Mr. Gilmore didn't say is that some residents have had police officers follow them around city hall when they came in good faith to address issues. So, is it any surprise why people are frustrated to come in person and have chosen to air their concerns on social media, especially when they are not being heard? Once again, we have a failed system in Lewisville due to failed leadership.

RIP patrick vandam

I had all the memories with it😢

I would like to see more stores/shopping. Plz bring back Macy's, JCP, Lane Bryant, Chicos, Soma, and high end stores

The one prody in the orange skirt trying to direct the show😂

It is very disappointing & troubling that so few Lewisville residents bother to vote in our local elections.

Lewisville Texas ?

Man, when that started I was half-expecting Shoots and Ladders. Which would have been pretty badass too.

For public clarification, we have not removed any comments or live chat entries from this thread. There are only five City staff members who have access to do so, and none of them have ever removed a RUclips comment. City Council members do not have administrative access to any City-run social media account and do not have City Charter authority to instruct staff to remove a comment. The comment you posted that corresponds to the time stamp you described is still there, but the chat time stamp does not perfectly match the video time stamp. You might need to scroll down a little farther to see it.

It is once again with deep sadness and frustration that the City of Lewisville has chosen to censor chat commentary from Lewisville citizens which address issues that are pertinent to the public. It is clearly obvious that the chat comment generated by me between 46:00 and 48:00 of the meeting was deleted at the behest of a councilman whose feathers were ruffled by the comment, who places more attention on homeless dogs rather than on the homeless human beings of Lewisville and who wants to cover up the extensive participation the city councilmembers have with the Lewisville Chamber of Commerce, of which conflicts of interest occur. At present, about 90% of the Lewisville City Council, including the mayor, is involved with the Lewisville Chamber of Commerce, and via observation of their involvement, I conclude that they, along with a state senator are monopolizing and influencing the chamber to further their own agendas, both political and personal. But as I had stated in my chat commentary, these council meetings are showing the increasing level of personal cronyism by the mayor and council towards both each other and via their cronies. When, during the appointment of people to occupy committee and board seats, did we hear outside resident names being mentioned? The process only invites the same names, the same faces from the same departments/organizations whom the mayor and the councilmembers all have crony relationships with. This is also observed via advisory board appointments and other board seats where there is at least one councilmember appointed/elected to it. For the record, The City of Lewisville is not a "Fortune 50" corporation, despite what the consultants brainwashed the mayor and city leadership to believe. This power hoarding of key business/organizational board seats is not appropriate and are conflicts of interest. Furthermore, I feel that there are personal agendas at work here which do not have anything to do with the welfare and success of these organizations/businesses in Lewisville, but rather the leveraging and exploitation of them by our city leadership to solely advance their own careers, power and political clout. Lastly, I feel that these "proclamations" and excessive pats on the back by our mayor towards both departments and towards law enforcement are merely a manipulative means in an attempt to cover up and divert attention away from these conflicts of interest and corruption. In conclusion, I find it quite interesting that Leadership Lewisville, in conjunction with the Lewisville Chamber and Senator Tan Parker all supported and organized a trip down to Austin to schmooze with politicians a week before our local election, and then our mayor, TJ Gilmore mysteriously wins re-election for mayor, who by the way is a crony of Mr. Parker..... Clearly, a recall is necessary here. I trust that this comment won't be censored and removed as it contains factual information, not crony circle rhetoric.

Vote NO aren't you tired of your property taxes going up constantly!!!??? Better yet vote other government officials in, I am tired of them putting their hands in MY POCKETS!!

VOTE NO!!!! stop putting your hands in our pockets my property tax is already too much from the last 4 years!

Can we get a direct link to a readable article on these Props? Thank you.

More bonds, more taxes, more parks, more traffic to go with more apartment complex development. Don't even recognize Old Town anymore. Voting No, because inflation and the mess at the national level is going to destroy all these plans.

Appreciate the very detailed rundown of the bond proposals.

WAY TO GO LEWISVILLE!

Dear Matt, I have loved your videos for their information, quality, and fun. With this video, you outdid yourself!

Given the implied comments that both Councilman Troyer and Councilman Jones made during this session regarding social media commentators, I feel that this warrants further clarification of the topic. To address Mr. Troyer's concerns that social media commentors are a "threat" to both the city and to the work that the council is doing, I would strongly disagree. Quite the contrary, people who contribute differing and diverse points of view have been shown to be beneficial in many organizations regarding strategy, decision making, culture and planning. Further, one of the leading causes of toxic and declining organizational cultures is groupthink. Embracing diverse and differing viewpoints whether one personally likes them or not helps alleviate groupthink. So, to Mr. Troyer's concern, is he honestly encouraging the entire city council and city leadership to engage in groupthink and think in the exact manner as him, thus not being a "threat"? In my experience, I have found that those who feel threatened by differing viewpoints and the people who have them are really afraid that something about them and their organization might be exposed. As such, I highly doubt that Mr. Troyer feels threatened because he is trying to cover something up within the city and is suggesting to eradicate those commentors who are exposing it via differing viewpoints, thus keeping the status quo of corruption....... One final point regarding Mr. Troyer's labeling those social media commentors with differing opinions as "Trolls" in an attempt to slander them and their reputation throughout the city. Never before on any municipal or governmental council or committee have I seen such unprofessional behavior and retaliation toward those who do not share the same viewpoint as he. This same behavior has been shown toward commentators by Councilwoman Cade. This is inappropriate behavior for a councilmember and such members should be held accountable under the same rules that govern the Visitor's Speaker Forum. Councilmembers are not humanly above residents either in status or in being deserving of respect. Please review slide #9 entitled "Honorable Conduct" that has been proposed. Regarding Mr. Jone's assertion that social media commentors are simply covert complainers who do not wish to become involved, I would say that this assertion is completely false. As noticed in prior city council meetings, what Lewisville resident wants to come to a city council meeting to express their point of view and be limited to only 5 minutes, have a councilwoman interrupt them several times and try to bully and intimidate them when they have a differing point of view (as has happened on more than one occasion) and then see the council and city leadership (aka "the family" as Ms. Cade describes it) all look at each other and snicker and mock the speaker because of their views? Certainly not anyone I know, including myself. I also find it interesting that both Mr. Troyer and Mr. Jones are forgetting that they did indeed have a resident awhile back who wanted to express her concerns. This resident took the time to come to City Hall and was eager to participate. Sadly, her viewpoints would have exceeded 5 minutes, so she didn't elect to do the Citizen's Visitors Forum but instead try and catch councilmembers after the meeting to start a dialogue. How was this resident treated? The council had two police officers follow her around City Hall, both when she visited the rest room and also when she tried to engage with Mr. Troyer and Mr. Jones. Furthermore, the only responses she received from them were the silent treatment from Mr. Troyer and a terse reply of "we are engaging now" by Mr. Jones as he rushed to get into his car. Frustrated, the resident even went to the police officer and stated "they refuse to engage" in which everyone walked away. True story. So, to Mr. Jone's assertion, I find his comment to be way out of touch with the true manner in which he treats residents who comment on social media and who make the effort to engage at City Hall. Again, residents do not wish to attend and engage if they are going to be snubbed by councilmembers and followed around by the police. As above, please see slide #9 entitled "Honorable Conduct" that has been proposed.

He brought the vibes

For some reason it looks sped up when they’re clapping or they just clap rly hard lol

very good playing outside, Kelly is a real trooper

I miss the fishing barge. It needs to be Rebuilt

Rip Lewisville iconic water tank I draw their water tower for tribute

If I am interested in using a space for an indoor soccer facility who would i contact?

Ok, hilarious, I was not sure If I was still watching the same video.

My grandfather wrote this song.

While I shared quite a bit of sentiments via the streaming chat during this council meeting, I feel that it would do the Lewisville community a great level of disservice if I didn't expound on two specific topics that were raised during the meeting. The first is the "Mayor's Red Kettle Challenge" for the Salvation Army. As explained numerous times in previous commentary, I feel that it poses a conflict of interest for our mayor to host and promote a drive for the same nonprofit which does business in the very city our mayor leads. Mr. Gilmore has done the same with Christian Community Action and with The Denton County United Way while the city council and the city attorneys turn a blind eye. Furthermore, I feel that it is a farce that now Mr. Gilmore wants to support the Salvation Army of Lewisville when a few years ago, while serving on the city council, he sat by idly and turned a blind eye when there was embezzlement and exploitation occurring at the Salvation Army Lewisville Service Center just a block away from city hall. Where was his enthusiasm for the for the Salvation Army then? Regarding the $2,024 proceeds raised by Lewisville, I say this is a complete abomination! Given the rather handsome annual salary that the Lewisville Salvation Army Executive Director earns, combined with the exorbitant annual salaries that Lewisville Sr leadership earns (ie. City Manager and City Attorney, $225,000+ each, City Directors, $125,000+ each.......), I would say that $2024 is a slap in the face and an insult to the poor and homeless who struggle each day in our town to survive. Quite frankly, if Sr. Leaders can afford to buy Maseratis, BMWs, and Lexus's then they certainly could do much better in giving to the people in this town who certainly need it, rather than turning their condescending noses up toward them! Greed is good in Lewisville TX.......... Lastly, the remaining $3,367 donated from our neighboring affluent cities just goes to show that residents in these cities are more interested in buying million-dollar homes, golfing at the country clubs, and spending time on their boats than they are in helping the poor and homeless. How much did your Senator crony representing District 12 donate to the cause Mr. Mayor? Didn't think so....... The second topic that needs to be addressed is the rather arrogant and cavalier approach that two of the councilmembers displayed when speaking about how they address (or rather fail to address) resident concerns. Mr. Kelly's response of only selecting certain residents based on if they have something interesting to say by his standards is a dereliction of his duty as a councilmember. As an elected official, one cannot just pick and choose to listen to someone based on the subject matter or if that person likes him/her. There must be impartiality and a willingness to listen. That is his job! Regarding Ms. Green's excuse of having a percentage of resident concerns that appear to be under a specific data metric threshold, I would ask Ms. Green what "consultant" hired by the city taught her to take this approach? Like Mr. Kelly, it is Ms. Green's job as an elected official to listen and address all resident concerns, regardless of how large or small the number of respondents. As I said in my chat commentary to the right, perhaps people aren't writing to our councilmembers with concerns because they have lost faith in our city's leadership and feel that you would either give them the silent treatment like you have given a few Lewisville residents or not bother to read their emails, thus wasting their time. This isn't all about you, regardless of what councilmembers may think! Lastly, regarding Ms. Cade's diatribe regarding the "legality" of the timing of her STR, I really do not think that the date alignment was the main issue, but rather why she didn't see fit to be transparent and honest about owning a STR in Lewisville from the onset. This would have at least provided her some credibility with Lewisville residents as to her level of transparency and honesty throughout this entire debate and would have expelled any hint of doubt as to bias on her part. Yet, now that this has been revealed, this explains volumes as to why she aggressively interrupted the resident speaking time of those with opposing views and bullied them into cowering down and letting her win. While it was a nice try politically, it backfired right in her face. Quite frankly, the city council has no room for this type of unethical behavior. I am happy that the council will soon choose a date for voting. It's time for our current city leaders, city mayor and city council members to be replaced by people who are resident centric and are able to listen to those besides themselves.

I lived in Lewisville then, but I was only 16 at the time, so I didn't make it to the festival. However, me and some of my friends cruised through the goings-on at the lake, but were too chicken to get too close to where the action was.

Fun to see this period of my former town from 1968, which included my 9th and 10th grades at LHS. This was the year that the new high school opened on FM1171, way out in the boonies then. My mom still lives in the house on Milton St. that I grew up in, and I'm lucky to be able to see her there on a regular basis.

NOTE: This commentary can also be found on the condensed duplicate version of this video posted by The City of Lewisville. It is not my intent to provide multiple commentary but wish to ensure that my comment isn't unnecessarily deleted. Since the city is now making duplicate copies of its council meetings to selectively promote to the public, I will copy my below commentary to both versions. As always, these meetings draw concerns, and this meeting is by no means an exception...... Both Mr. Luedke and Ms. Berry provide a convincing argument regarding the future of the 121 corridor. But the question remains as to why they hired a team of exorbitantly paid consultants to do the work that they both are paid to do? Mr. Luedke and Ms. Berry (both earning HANDSOME salaries at the City of Lewisville) were perfectly capable of conducting the resident feedback portion of the evaluation while departments such as Streets and Traffic could have easily provided the technical details of the roads and intersections along the corridor. Yet, the city saw fit to spend twice the amount for two teams which could have easily been executed by both Mr. Luedke and Ms. Berry. It appears we have another case of the City Council and the Planning Department unnecessarily spending taxpayer money to ensure that their consultant cronies continue to enjoy rolling project engagements with the city. Regarding the approval of the Parks Director to issue grants, I think this is totally unacceptable, especially since Ms. Anaya has essentially been given the purse strings to the city's capital budget by both our Mayor and the City Council. It has always been normal protocol for ALL city grants to go to the City of Lewisville Block Grant Committee, not for the Mayor or the City Council to simply provide these grants to one of the city's directors carte blanche. This needs to be investigated! Lastly, there was much profound talk about improving communication and "building community" from our Mayor. Yet, Mr. Gilmore and the retiring Police Chief he mentioned have made little effort over the years to get out and build community themselves in an attempt to practice what they preach. And sorry gentlemen, but attending a chamber luncheon or a Rotary Club meeting just doesn't cut it........ To provide an example, how many community residents (not of the city employee ranks) attend city council meetings, attend the Mayor's quarterly update meetings, or who attend workshop sessions? Outside of your Sr. Executive/City Council municipal crony circle at City Hall, Mr. Gilmore, how many efforts have you made to reach out to residents to discuss their concerns, even the residents whom you personally disagree with or whom you may not like? Is this setting the example for the rest of the city leadership to follow? And for the retiring Police Chief, how many times did you set up roundtable discussions, Mr. Deaver, so that residents could discuss their concerns with you and the department (not solely after the BLM demonstrations)? When it was time for the police open house where residents could come and build community with the officers and staff, why weren't they held? And how about the Lewisville resident who helped save your department thousands more in police vehicle damage by quickly taking action to identify and notify the police when a criminal began slashing tires in the parking lot. Did you try and build community with her via a plaque of appreciation and a simple thank you, or did you provide all of the accolades to some of the officers at City Hall and not even give her credit? So, I must disagree with Mr. Gilmore's assertion that you were exemplary in building community with the residents of Lewisville during your tenure as Chief of Police. I hope that future council meetings will finally start producing the truth as to what really occurs around City Hall.

Since the city is now making duplicate copies of its council meetings to selectively promote to the public, I will copy my below commentary to both versions. As always, these meetings draw concerns and this meeting is by no means an exception...... Both Mr. Luedke and Ms. Berry provide a convincing argument regarding the future of the 121 corridor. But the question remains as to why they hired a team of exorbitantly paid consultants to do the work that they both are paid to do? Mr. Luedke and Ms. Berry (both earning HANDSOME salaries at the City of Lewisville) were perfectly capable of conducting the resident feedback portion of the evaluation while departments such as Streets and Traffic could have easily provided the technical details of the roads and intersections along the corridor. Yet, the city saw fit to spend twice the amount for two teams which could have easily been executed by both Mr. Luedke and Ms. Berry. It appears we have another case of the City Council and the Planning Department unnecessarily spending taxpayer money to ensure that their consultant cronies continue to enjoy rolling project engagements with the city. Regarding the approval of the Parks Director to issue grants, I think this is totally unacceptable, especially since Ms. Anaya has essentially been given the purse strings to the city's capital budget by both our Mayor and the City Council. It has always been normal protocol for ALL city grants to go to the City of Lewisville Block Grant Committee, not for the Mayor or the City Council to simply provide these grants to one of the city's directors carte blanche. This needs to be investigated! Lastly, there was much profound talk about improving communication and "building community" from our Mayor. Yet, Mr. Gilmore and the retiring Police Chief he mentioned have made little effort over the years to get out and build community themselves in an attempt to practice what they preach. And sorry gentlemen, but attending a chamber luncheon or a Rotary Club meeting just doesn't cut it........ To provide an example, how many community residents (not of the city employee ranks) attend city council meetings, attend the Mayor's quarterly update meetings, or who attend workshop sessions? Outside of your Sr. Executive/City Council municipal crony circle at City Hall, Mr. Gilmore, how many efforts have you made to reach out to residents to discuss their concerns, even the residents whom you personally disagree with or whom you may not like? Is this setting the example for the rest of the city leadership to follow? And for the retiring Police Chief, how many times did you set up roundtable discussions, Mr. Deaver, so that residents could discuss their concerns with you and the department (not solely after the BLM demonstrations)? When it was time for the police open house where residents could come and build community with the officers and staff, why weren't they held? And how about the Lewisville resident who helped save your department thousands more in police vehicle damage by quickly taking action to identify and notify the police when a criminal began slashing tires in the parking lot. Did you try and build community with her via a plaque of appreciation and a simple thank you, or did you provide all of the accolades to some of the officers at City Hall and not even give her credit? So, I must disagree with Mr. Gilmore's assertion that you were exemplary in building community with the residents of Lewisville during your tenure as Chief of Police. I hope that future council meetings will finally start producing the truth as to what really occurs around City Hall.

How much of our precious tax resources were WASTED on this Cultural Appropriation?

It's not comfortable enough to sit on all night, because we don't want any homeless to feel welcome in our public parks. Our public parks are not for everyone, and they are only for those who conform to our approved lifestyle mandated by the city government. If you don't conform to our preferred lifestyle, then you're not welcome in our parks.

How nice of this pompous white lady to make a statue in honor of the Chin community, after researching their culture on the internet. So much for learning about other cultures through personal relationships, I guess, but she's not much of an artist anyway is she? Whoever makes these decisions should really be more discerning with our precious tax resources.

I'm so glad that the City of Lewisville mandates our "healthy" lifestyle by 'No smoking or vaping" city ordinance, because I don't want others who live differently to feel welcome in our parks, and the police don't have anything better to do than cigarette patrols, right?

As per usual, the city will post a duplicate of the meeting and promote the duplicate to the public instead of the original which has commentary and a chat thread. Such cover-up artists.......

For me she is better than Maodonna

While I had sincerely hoped that the holiday season would have allowed the Sr. leadership, the City Council and the Mayor to take some time to pause and truly reflect on the manner in which they are doing their jobs and the way in which they conduct these meetings, sadly this didn't appear to be the case as false information, half-truths and excessive self and crony admiration (ad nauseam) tend to remain. Perhaps the egg nog and spirits, bonus envelopes and presents (including conflict of interest awarded contracts) were good to everyone this year. But since we are on the subject of good data Mr. Kunke, let's discuss the real reasons why those resident participation numbers are low and why the data results are vague. You claim that in 2019, only 302 residents took the survey. Yet, you didn't explain that it may have been due to their lack of access to the survey. If I recall correctly, didn't your department use the cheap and unreliable Survey Monkey platform in which to host these polls at the time? Furthermore, weren't the links to take the survey broken and the survey itself filled with problems (and don't say no because I was the one who commented on Twitter to notify the city that the survey was inaccessible and had problems)? So, of course there would be a low amount of resident survey takers if residents couldn't access it or if they had problems with it. Lastly, you seem confident in the current data you have allegedly mined. Yet, if I am not mistaken regarding this past year's survey, many of the questions didn't even target the subject, but rather asked how satisfied they were with how the question addressed the problem (which I again pointed out via commentary on the city's Twitter page). So, regarding these surveys, I question why they are being undertaken solely by Mr. Kunke's department, which in years past has shown to be incompetent in using a reliable survey platform, formulating questions that will generate accurate data (not continued positive/fudged numbers to ensure that he and his staff keep their jobs) and in mining the data. In the future, surveys should be handled by two different departments, one which is competent in drafting survey questions and IT, which can choose a reliable survey application and which will utilize their data expert to mine the data correctly. Also, I find it ironic and quite hypocritical for both Mr. Gilmore and Mr. Kunke to speak about city leadership interacting more with Lewisville residents to obtain their feedback and garner the pulse of the city. Interestingly, it was both of them which had an open discussion in a prior workshop meeting about toning down and suppressing those residents who disagree with them. Furthermore, as has been shown above, I engaged via social media to point out problems with the survey. All I received was the silent treatment from Mr. Gilmore and Mr. Kunke. Tell me gentlemen, is this your definition of "engagement"? The only reason why both of these men are discouraging residents from reading social media is because it is the only way for the truth to come out in these political circles and for corruption to be uncovered in our city, corruption that would be otherwise dismissed at a council meeting with an escort out the door (aka cover up). I find it also ironic that the senior group lobbyists are back again in the hope of garnering more of our taxpayer money from our mayor and his political cronies, even though it hasn't been 3 months since they were already awarded money. With all of the other hurting residents in need and the exorbitantly priced housing that has taken over Lewisville (which the city council helped approve via their zoning changes and the other under the table business deals in which I will not mention), I find this to be unacceptable. Favoritism has no place at the city council and in the mayor's office. Lastly, it has been made clear that a few of the council members, the mayor and those directors they influenced that the Parks and Recreation Director is the city's pride and joy to be idolized, worshipped and provided most of the city's budget, even though her track record proves otherwise. Contrary to Ms. Cade's claims that the parks department is inclusive, facts will show that this department has had a history of discrimination in hiring, favoring predominately young applicants (ageism). While I could go on about park's projects being over-budget, over-schedule and gold-plated, I will not belabor the obvious. Clearly, in Lewisville, incompetence is rewarded and regarded highly. How utterly dysfunctional.

It's one of my favorite Stevie Nick's songs. I hope they will be singing this song when l go see them! ❤ 🎤 🎹 🎵 🎶

What an incredible documentary! I taught in the LISD district for 6 years, knew these students and coaches and they are all special people. Great job and beautiful memories.

⅞hyfffgfthhfvcffftfffdffffffddrrrrrrrŕrrrrrreeeeeereeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeèèeeèeeeeeeeeèeeeeeeeeeeeewwwwwwww322eerrrrrŕrþtþty7😅😢😢😢😢😮😮😮😮😮😅😅😮😮😮😮😮😮😮😮😮😮😮😮😮😮😮😮😮😮ģggfdffffhdhgggggggggggggggggfffffrreeeesswwwwwwwwwweeeeeeeeeeeeesddswwweseeeeeeeeeeeeereeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeèddrryy0

Fantastic! Loved the video, music, and seeing familiar faces. Thumbs up, good job! Can't wait for the 2023 one.

While it was somewhat refreshing to see that council meeting time wasn't wasted with unnecessary dog and pony shows as it has been in past meetings (at least until the very end during the report segment), I found and continue to find that losing 40+ minutes of meeting audio to be unacceptable. Our tax dollars deserve better. Furthermore, I found it completely unprofessional and inappropriate for both Ms. Cade and Ms. Green to make snide sidebar remarks toward a Lewisville resident who commented on the gold plating issue that is occurring with these parks and recreation projects and with the department's director. What is even more inappropriate was that both the City Manager and the Mayor condoned these remarks and took a cavalier attitude towards them. In future council meetings/workshop sessions I would request to all city council members that if they have something to say to or regarding a Lewisville resident, they can have the professional courtesy of saying it directly to that resident in person and refrain from engaging in catty gossip and the maligning of them to the rest of the staff and council. We take these matters very seriously, including what city staff, council members and the mayor broadcast to each other regarding our integrity and professional credibility. Lastly, of the members on the Blue Ribbon Committee, how many of them are project managers or program managers and are qualified to prioritize projects proposed in a capital budget? Didn't think so........... This lends partial credence as to why these projects are funded carte blanche to crony city directors and why the prioritization is in complete misalignment as to long-term initiatives, city resident needs and value-add to the community.

A quick clarification to the candidates. Currently in Lewisville, not every resident has a voice at the table, regardless of what the Mayor, the City Council and the City Manager is influencing you three to believe. The only residents that are heard here are those who do not rock the boat, expose internal corruption, or those special interest who are cronies with the above city leadership. Please peel the onion back and take a look at the internal problems this city faces. Things aren't always as they appear on the surface, regardless of what they are telling you. I would be more than happy to meet with each of you to discuss the real story of what is happening in Lewisville. Having lived here in Lewisville for the greater part of 20+ years, I would like to think that my viewpoint and experiences are valid.

Did you see how they were holding the barge to the shore they had a single cable with a big cement block securing it not even attached to the ground. Plus the walkway isn't even parallel with the water, that old barge has seen it's days, don't blame the city for rightfully deeming it unsafe blame the piss poor management.

As this is one of the most difficult commentaries for me to write, I originally was going to let my sidebar chat comments stand and let them illustrate that this council meeting was just more of the same status quo. However, given that this is the holiday season, I had hoped that both the mayor and the city's Sr. Level staff would have been transparent, honest and candid regarding the nature of this "Mayor's Challange" and how the nonprofits are connected with elected city officials. But before discussing that, I would like to point out three items during the "awards" and "appointment" stages that were either half-truths or were the direct result of cronyism. Yes, Mr. Rouse does laud all of the fleet vehicles that the city has procured. However, what Mr. Rouse is not saying is that many of those fleet vehicles are being underutilized by the city and many sit in the parking lots and seldom move. So, my question to Mr. rouse is why did the city spend taxpayer money on fleet vehicles that are either being not utilized or underutilized? Regarding Mr. Russell and his awards to two employees who quickly climbed the municipal ladder by moving from job to job with completely different requirements even though they didn't possess these requirements at the time, I'm sure both Mr. Russell and the city's HR Director would agree that external candidates applying to those positions who also didn't possess the required qualifications would receive rejection notices. Yet, these two internal employees were shoo-ins. Could you please explain the disconnect? Furthermore, it used to be standard practice that only residents could serve on committees, not elected officials. Residents who applied for committee roles were contacted by a councilmember and given a short oral test to ensure that the candidate was qualified. If he/she was, their name was brought before the council for a vote. NEVER did a committee candidate forego a qualification test/interview and slide right into a committee seat because they personally "wanted to" or because our mayor "vouched" for her. It is my understanding that Ms. Cade's background is in construction estimating and has been performing this function via her own business for the past 15-20 years. I have not seen or read any bonafide CV which lists Ms. Cade as having any experience with mental health issues. I submit that the two issues above are examples of how both city directors and the mayor are circumventing normal HR policy of hiring and committee promotion and are placing their cronies into these positions carte blanche. Further, it is evident that the HR Director has turned a blind eye to this system and has been negligent in correcting it. Regarding the mayor's claims that the area nonprofits are serving the impoverished and homeless of Lewisville well. This is simply not true. What he isn't saying is that the nonprofit "Journey to Dream" ONLY serves poor and homeless teens and youth and is age biased toward poor and homeless adults. Further, our mayor never mentions that neither CCA nor the Salvation Army helped that recent group of seniors from Garden Ridge. If they did, then that group of seniors wouldn't have had to get a lobbying group together to seek help from the mayor and the city. Lastly, what our mayor fails to say, in addition to the corruption and exploitation mentioned in the previous council meeting commentary, is that the Salvation Army has had and to my knowledge still has a separate nonprofit operating from within it. This "Love Thy Neighbor" nonprofit was started by some of the same corrupt volunteers mentioned prior and to this day, no one who donates to the kettle knows if the money is actually going to the Salvation Army Lewisville as advertised, or if it is going to the Love Thy Neighbor nonprofit operating within it. The truly saddening issue in this "Mayor's Challenge" is that none of the city's Sr. Directors or staff ever endeavors to help or provide a kind word to the impoverished and homeless residents of Lewisville. Many only give because the mayor "challenge" was really an implied directive. The rest of the 364 days of the year they walk by with their noses in the air or drive by with their new BMWs, Mercedes and Maseratis and gloat how they are making overly exorbitant salaries while those struggling in Lewisville starve. I say SHAME ON YOU!! I would challenge our mayor and all of the city directors to attend a 2-week workshop where they live impoverished and homeless during that period. The workshop would be taught by a Lewisville resident who has had experience being impoverished and homeless and will show them an accurate depiction of what these people endure, something that they won't learn from any consultant or "PIT Report". I guarantee that after 2 weeks of this harrowing experience, all of them will be whistling a different toon.

JWebby can eat you rock!! Im sure next year you will win

While my first reaction after watching this meeting was to let my chat comments above stand, I feel that many of the statements and endorsements the mayor made during his “proclamation” dog and pony show were in need of further discussion and clarification. I have expressed my concerns on multiple occasions prior regarding the favoritism and special treatment that the Parks Department and its Director receive from the mayor, especially regarding financial resource allocation and pet project approval. As such, I won’t expound further about their “proclamation” because I feel that it is just a continuation of the same old crony system. Regarding Municipal Court and the Municipal Court Judge, I have attended and observed many bench and jury trials via open court privilege, and I will agree that in years prior, the Municipal Court and the Municipal Court Judge both conducted themselves in a professional, fair and impartial manner. However, after a revolving door of Court Clerk hires and upon the arrival of the new mayor and the City Manager (who is an attorney herself), I have noticed a decline in both the integrity and the quality in which the court operates. While I still feel that the court and the Municipal Court Judge remain fair and impartial in hearing Lewisville court cases, it has lost its degree of ethics and credibility regarding how it handles internal city issues in conjunction with the City Attorney. Clearly, turning a blind eye to Title VII hiring discrimination, conflicts of interest, and slander of city residents by city Sr. leadership (some of which the Municipal Court Judge was a direct witness to) just to keep the status quo crony system intact and to save their jobs are issues which are concerning and not in alignment with the ethical behaviors that most legal bars set forth. I trust that the Lewisville Municipal Court and the Municipal Court Judge will not end up being as corrupt as the office of the City Attorney has become. Regarding the continued support and praise of two local nonprofits in Lewisville whom our mayor claims is helping people in need, I must say that I am confused. Years ago, I showed an extensive presentation to the Lewisville Block Grant Committee and to the Salvation Army Lewisville regarding the current state of poverty and homelessness in Lewisville. Our mayor, Mr. Gilmore, who served on the Lewisville City Council at the time didn’t even show up to see the presentation. Furthermore, I’m sure Mr. Gilmore will tell you all about how homeless and poverty-stricken people were leveraged and exploited by rich IT consultants who used “volunteerism” at The Salvation Army, CCA and The Rotary solely as a means to advance their own careers in corporate America. In fact, one of the women ended up being “CIO” for Texas Instruments, the other women ended up as “VP” at SAP. Interestingly, both our mayor and his political crony, Tan Parker, who was then State Representative at the time, turned a blind eye to what went on and made sure the staff at the city turned a blind eye as well. The result? Mr. Gilmore advanced from City Councilmember to Mayor, Mr. Parker advanced from State Representative to Senator, the “rich” volunteers got theirs in corporate America and 4 of the homeless people died. So, I am very confused as to why there is so much excitement and encouragement to ring bells for the Lewisville Salvation Army’s Kettle Program, when in years prior, there was a different agenda which still remains Lewisville’s best kept secret. I think it’s time for our mayor to stop telling half-truths and covering issues up. In my experience, both he, the city council and the city staff could care less about the lives of Lewisville’s homeless and poverty stricken.