Dalton Gregory says he wants a second term in Denton City Council District 2 to tackle unfinished business on long-term planning, bike lanes and gas drilling codes.
Challenger Zoro Gomez Jr. says he wants to bring a fresh perspective to City Hall after what he describes as years of reckless spending and mistaken priorities.
The candidates agree on at least one thing: Age shouldn't be a factor in the race, despite their 41-year age gap and the fact that Gomez attracted regional media attention as an 18-year-old candidate.
Gomez, a college student, says people would be wrong to underestimate him because of his youth. Gregory, 59, a retired school principal, has said candidates should be judged on their ideas, not their age.
Voters in all four council districts will elect their district representative to the seven-member council May 14. Early voting starts May 2.
Gomez, a 2010 Denton High School graduate, said he doesn't want to wait until he's older to get involved.
"I see a lot of things that need to be changed," he said. "I don't want to sit back and complain. I want to take action."
Gomez said he would bring a different perspective as a political outsider and a minority. The council has no Hispanic members, even though Hispanics make up more than 23 percent of District 2 and 21 percent of the city, according to 2010 census figures presented during a recent council meeting.
Gomez has stepped up his attacks on Gregory at recent forums, accusing him of ignoring his district's needs, breaking promises from the 2009 campaign and "double dipping" by serving on the council while working as an adjunct professor at the University of North Texas. Gregory receives no pay as a council member but is reimbursed for certain city-related trips and meals.
Gomez also has criticized Gregory's votes last year to cut fire department overtime and pass a controversial new credit-check and bill-collection policy for city utility customers. He said Gregory sometimes displays a "complete lack of understanding" of agenda items during meetings, despite the incumbent's 20-year service record on city boards.
"I would think by then you'd at least understand what's going on," Gomez said.
If elected, Gomez said, he would fight for spending on basic infrastructure, including drainage improvements in flood-prone areas of his district. He's also campaigned for less overall spending and debt, without proposing specific cuts.
Asked for examples of wasteful city spending, Gomez pointed out contracts with outside consultants, but he could not identify a specific contract he would have opposed.
Gregory has accused Gomez of lobbing vague claims instead of addressing the issues. He released a statement Friday saying Gomez had resorted to "old political tricks" and "silly charges."
"When I learned that my opponent was 18 years old, I looked forward to hearing fresh ideas from his unique perspective," Gregory said in the statement. "So I was doubly disappointed when he has ignored issues and decided to build his campaign around groundless assaults on my integrity."
In an interview, Gregory said he's perplexed by Gomez's conflict-of-interest claim and his proposal to pay council members $10 a meeting. Gomez has argued that paying council members any amount would eliminate conflicts of interest, but he has struggled to explain why.
"I'm sure that [$10] would make a big difference," Gregory said sarcastically. "That probably amounts to half a cent an hour."
Gregory said he's running again to continue work on the city's ongoing bicycle and pedestrian plan, the second phase of an overhaul of gas drilling rules and unfinished business from the 1999 Denton Plan.
Over his two-year term, Gregory has emerged as the council's biggest advocate for bicycle and pedestrian accommodations. He led the city's recent effort to approve an ordinance requiring motorists to allow a safe distance when passing cyclists and pedestrians.
Gregory also has been the council's most vocal advocate for more gas drilling codes to protect residents' health and safety. However, in October 2009 he joined a 6-1 majority in approving a permit letting Fort Worth-based Range Production Co. drill inside the Rayzor Ranch development near homes, a city park and a hospital, despite heavy public opposition.
Gregory stands by the vote. He said the city would have faced expensive lawsuits if it denied someone the right to develop their minerals.
He also stands by his vote last November supporting the utility policy, which allowed the city to charge higher deposits to customers with poor credit or payment histories.
"Having a one-size-fits-all deposit policy doesn't seem at all reasonable," he said. "If there are people that have a great credit history, it seems ridiculous to tie up their money in a deposit when they don't pose a risk of defaulting on their payments."
Gregory said critics are wrong to depict the policy as an attack on the poor, because poor people don't necessarily have bad credit.
LOWELL BROWN can be reached at 940-566-6882. His e-mail address is lmbrown@dentonrc.com.
Zoro Gomez Jr.
ZORO GOMEZ JR.
Age: 18
Born: Paris, Texas
Education: 2010 graduate, Denton High School; student, North Central Texas College, Corinth
Experience: volunteer, city of Denton teen court program, 2008-2010; high school baseball umpire, Texas Association of Sports Officials, 2010-present
Dalton Gregory
DALTON GREGORY (I)
Age: 59
Born: Denton
Education: bachelor's degree in education, University of Texas at Austin; master's degree in education, Sam Houston State University
Experience: teacher, Austin school district, 1974-1977; site coordinator, Houston school district, 1977-1982; assistant principal, Strickland Middle School, 1982-1984; assistant principal, Lee Elementary School, 1984-1985; principal, Lee Elementary School, 1985-2000; principal, Wayne Stuart Ryan Elementary School, 2001-2008; adjunct professor, Department of Teacher Education and Administration, University of North Texas, 2008-present
