The San Marcos City Council Place 2 seat is one of the positions on the city’s governing body. Place 2 represents residents in decisions on local ordinances, budgets and city policies, alongside five other council members and the mayor. Early voting will occur Oct. 20 through Oct. 31, and election day will take place on Nov. 4. Saul Gonzales is the current council member in Place 2 and is running for reelection against Josh Paselk, Brandon Oles, Christopher L. Polanco and Barbara Montana-Escobar.
Brandon Oles
Why did you decide to run for Place 2 in the City Council?
“I devoted eight years of my life to the Marine Corps. I’m a combat veteran, I did four years at Texas State and I am most importantly a man of God. I’m very proud of my faith, but at the corner of the foundation of my faith and my service to this country is a drive to serve. I want to serve, I want to give all that I am for the betterment of my people and right now, that is San Marcos, all of San Marcos.”
What would be your top priority if elected?
“I think we need to restore the faith of the people in city council. That is a foundation issue … it’s in writing on [the San Marcos Civics Club’s] Facebook now, that when I’m Place 2 I will be holding a quarterly town hall where I will invite all people from the city so that I can sit down and listen to their problems … taking the time to listen to the people, to restore their faith so that they can be like, ‘yes, we have a member on that city council who represents all of us, you know, that if he says he’s going to do this, he’s going to do it.’ That’s where we have to start.”
How will you address cost-of-living changes?
“Imagine, instead of these big old $300,000-600,000 house neighborhoods coming in, what if we had a neighborhood of tiny homes? What if we had a neighborhood of shipping container homes? … It’s the American dream to own your own property, to own your own house, a place that you’d call yours, not rent, but own … So we can give everyone that chance to own a home. Not only that, but we need to create them and put in the guidelines that developers aren’t allowed to purchase them.”
Christopher L. Polanco
Why did you decide to run for Place 2 in the City Council?
“Through the vocational rehab services, I got a spot in the Chris Cole Rehabilitation Center in Austin. While the services there are ostensibly for you to return to the workforce, I chose not to go that route; I chose to get involved in issues that I care about instead, specifically now with considering myself a full-blown socialist in issues affecting the working class and the poor.”
What would be your top priority if elected?
“Well, I’m really excited about the tenant’s rights to organize ordinance that’s come before the council. Housing affordability is a big thing, I think… I’d like to see a tenant’s bill of rights that could contain things like air conditioning must be an emergency repair. Another thing I’m very much interested in, of course, is people with disabilities, particularly things like para-transit services.”
How will you address cost-of-living changes?
“Big one there is going to be housing. We need to find a way to bring down the cost. I’m in favor of things like rent freezes, more caps on rent increases, [finding] a way to keep apartment complexes from using that software that allows them all to kind of collaborate on their rental rates… We also need to make sure we keep our power cost from skyrocketing, and a big way to do that is to not let these data centers come in.”
Barbara Montana-Escobar
Why did you decide to run for Place 2 in the City Council?
“I have a history of serving the community already. I have a non-profit, called [San Marcos] Head to Toe… I worked with the parent liaison at Rodriguez Elementary for four years here in San Marcos, and now I’m at the San Marcos Housing Authority. So, I love being the hands and feet, I love seeing where there’s a need, and I love providing the solution. I’ve done a lot of back-end work right 12 years, now it’s time to step it up a notch and see how we can change things in a bigger scale.”
What would be your top priority if elected?
“Affordable Housing. Our locals are not able to stay here; they can’t afford [housing], they’re getting pushed out. Texas State students who do come and finish graduating college and want to stay here can’t afford to stay here. Elderly can’t afford to stay here.”
How will you address cost-of-living changes?
“If we can get more businesses in here, that would help us alleviate some of the property taxes that are going on right now, with the housing. If we can help home-owners who are renting out their houses, to you know, students right, and help them not have their property taxes so heightened, then obviously their rent wouldn’t have to be high as well.”
Saul Gonzales
Gonzales did not respond to multiple requests for an interview.
Josh Paselk
Paselk was unavailable to comment.
