Three candidates have thrown their name in the hat for the Republican nomination for Kendall County Precinct 2 commissioner.
Leon Brimhall has served as the justice of the peace in Precinct 2 for 12 years and has served as the development manager for the county. He previously served as the Precinct 2 commissioner before changing over to his justice seat. Brimhall formerly ran the Artworks gallery and frame shop in Boerne, and he has been a member of the JCPA, serving as the president of the Texas JCPA in 2008.
Garry Manitzas is a retired certified public accountant and internal auditor, working in the energy industry for about 25 years. He shifted his work life to being a full-time public servant once he took on his role as mayor and will continue to do so if elected county commissioner.
Andra Wisian shares two sons with her husband, Kirby. She is a former television journalist, travel video producer, corporate media producer and the current owner of a creative media company. Wisian also continues to be a rancher at the Red Angus operation. Wisian was appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott as the Kendall County representative for the Guadalupe-Blanco River Authority Board of Directors and previously served as the president of the Kendall County Youth Agriculture & Equestrian Center.
The Star asked each candidate the same questions in regard to serving as the Precinct 2 county commissioner. The following are their answers. Any editing was done because of space restrictions.
Q: Why did you decide to seek a spot on the Kendall County Commissioners Court?
• Brimhall: When this position became available, I was interested, and I believe I am qualified to serve again as county commissioner. I wish to continue serving Kendall County and Precinct 2.
• Manitzas: I want to continue my public service to my community. I served as the mayor of Fair Oaks Ranch for five years and one year on the city council before that. I see this as an opportunity to continue that public service and make a difference in the Hill Country community that we all love.
• Wisian: Nearly 30 years ago, my husband, Kirby, and I chose Kendall County as an ideal community to start a family. We liked the friendly people, the traditional way of life and the Hill Country beauty. As our county faces a challenging time, I want to play a key role as county commissioner to ensure we keep our quality of life.
Q: What are your qualifications?
• Brimhall: Having served in Kendall County government for more than 16 years as your JP, Precinct 2, assistant development manager and county commissioner, Precinct 2, I am confident all three jobs have given me a wealth of knowledge and experience that qualifies me to serve.
• Manitzas: I am the only candidate in the race who has a real world, proven track record of successfully managing growth and protecting the quality of life we value. In five years as mayor, I led a city of almost 11,000 residents from having no tools in place to manage growth to having a full set of tools to deal with explosive growth.
• Wisian: I bring a unique skill set to the job: communication proficiency, experience as a business owner and a manager of large projects and budgets. As a business owner and rancher, I understand business plans and watching the bottom line. I am experienced in completing projects on time and on budget. The GBRA has more than 200 employees and a $70 million budget.
Q: What are your personal strengths?
• Brimhall: I am a problem solver, independent thinker, capable of thinking “outside the box” to present common sense conservative solutions. I will serve with integrity, honesty, knowledge and experience. These are my personal strengths.
• Manitzas: I have a collaborative management style and listen well. My willingness to seek the counsel of others in areas where they have greater expertise has helped tremendously as I built my knowledge base in areas like the development process and dealing with environmental issues. My other area of strength has been my ability to identify talented residents in our community and bring them into volunteer roles in our city.
• Wisian: One key strength is finding and securing grant funding. I successfully landed a $500,000 Texas Parks & Wildlife grant for the Youth Ag & Equestrian Center. As the GBRA representative from Kendall County, I was asked by Commissioner Durden to help find grant money to pay for the removal of the old bridge at the James Kiehl River Bend Park. Funding has been identified and I am optimistic that it can be secured.
Q: What are the key issues facing Kendall County?
• Brimhall: Kendall County is facing these Issues: Water-quantity, traffic, growth and the proposed “Gateway.”
• Manitzas: Water availability and quality have always been high on the list and will continue to be so. If you have even a basic understanding of the scarcity and fragility of our groundwater sources of water, you will understand how risky it is to build over recharge areas and karst features. I am not a fan of using Eminent Domain and am happy I never had to use that tool during my five years as mayor. There may be circumstances where that tool has to be invoked, but it should be the tool of last resort.
• Wisian: There are three key issues. First, irresponsible growth is putting a strain on our natural resources, infrastructure, roads and schools. Second, the depletion and contamination of our water resources is worsening. Third, there is a real threat to our security from the unchecked drug and human traffickers coming across the border.
Q: What are the key budget/financial issues facing the county in the next couple/few years?
• Brimhall: Key budget/ financial issues are expansion of county offices, jail extension, justice center and the [Kendall] County Court at Law office. These are serious issues facing the county.
• Manitzas: Requests for budget expenditures that do not support one of the pillars of the strategic plan do not get funded. As commissioner, I will advocate for adequate funding for public safety because I believe that providing for public safety is the most fundamental responsibility of any governmental entity.
• Wisian: We have outgrown the courthouse and office space is being stretched. To provide more room, a justice center could be constructed to house the new County Court at Law, as well as court rooms, district and county clerk offices, the probation office, pretrial services, space for the DPS troopers who work out of our county and other criminal justice related offices.
Q: How does the county best handle/accommodate growth?
• Brimhall: The county can best handle growth by finding other sources of water, improve transportation issues, revamp the subdivision rules and regulations.
• Manitzas: In the near term, the primary opportunities are in working with developers to negotiate reasonable growth. Providing incentives for commercial growth may have value if you get something in return. I do not believe in just giving away tax money. I have a deep-seated belief that the state promotes growth through mechanisms like special utility districts but leaves the county holding the bag on resulting infrastructure needs.
• Wisian: All governmental entities – the county, the city of Boerne, BISD, and Fair Oaks Ranch – must do a better job of communicating and working together in strategically planning for growth. Additionally, we need to have conversations with landowners and explore, promote and incentivize land stewardship. For example, there are many conservation tools that could be used such as conservation easements, land trusts, conservation subdivisions, and landowner alliances.
Q: What is the most glaring weakness the county has at this time, and why do you think that?
• Brimhall: I believe the condition of the county roads, low-water crossings, bridges and right of ways and traffic congestion are the most glaring weaknesses we face. Striving to get ahead of the current problems facing the county, we must be proactive and not reactive.
• Manitzas: I think the lack of a cohesive strategic plan is probably the most fundamental weakness at this time. I will reserve the right to be corrected in this view, but, at this point, based on my review, I believe our county lacks this fundamental tool just like our city did five years ago.
• Wisian: All of us could do a better job of communicating in private and public life. That includes communication from commissioners to citizens. In the recent past, commissioners have come up with some very forward-thinking and amazing ideas, but few citizens heard of these great ideas. So, the court does need to implement timely and effective communication with citizens.
Q: What are the pressing needs in Precinct 2 and how do you best address them?
• Brimhall: Precinct 2 is the fastest growing precinct in the 2020 census and registered 5,000 more people than Precinct 1! Growth and roads are the most pressing needs to address. We must work with TxDOT to improve Highway 46E, FM 474, and FM 3351. We also need overall improvement of the county roads.
• Manitzas: In a recent candidate forum, I named transportation as the most pressing need, and I still believe that takes precedence over other issues. Precinct 2 has several major traffic arteries within its boundaries (Highway 46, FM 3351, FM 474) and a two-lane connector (Ammann Road) that is picking up huge amounts of traffic. Additionally, I believe the northern part of the Precinct is hampered by lack of access to the east. These are quality of life issues that need resolution.
• Wisian: In Precinct 2, I see the highest priority as Ammann Road. Ammann has become a thoroughfare between Boerne and Fair Oaks Ranch as well as a backway route to go to San Antonio through Comal County. At some point, Ammann needs major repair or rebuilding. Meanwhile, Ammann Road could use shoulders. Those may be able to be put in using existing right of way. And the repair on the sharp 90-degree curves where the road is crumbling would make the road safer.
Q: Why should people vote for you?
• Brimhall: The reason I know the Precinct 2 residents would vote for me is my in-depth county government experience; my prior role as assistant development manager, dealing with water wells, septic systems, subdivisions rules and regulations, divisions of lands, floodplain, FEMA and TECQ on pollution; my prior role as an employee of the county; and my current role as JP wherein I collaborate significantly with the judicial system, our sheriff’s office and as a magistrate at our county jail.
• Manitzas: The one-word answer to this is experience. I am the only candidate who has a proven, successful track record of governance. I have demonstrated my ability to manage growth responsibly and protect quality of life while providing very successfully for public safety, protecting natural resources and planning transportation.
• Wisian: As a servant leader, I have been a positive-minded person working on positive results for our community. I am not afraid to address complex issues and solve problems. I embrace the core values of integrity, respect, courage, commitment, excellence and selfless service. I will bring the fresh perspective of a non-politician to the table.
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