The Woodlands Township Director Gordy Bunch addressed the community and township board of directors during the public comment portion of Thursday's meeting to address remarks made regarding Confederate statues moving to The Woodlands.

During a meeting of the Texas Patriots PAC this week, Bunch said statues of Confederate leaders being removed by municipalities could be relocated to The Woodlands in an attempt to preserve history. The remarks were published in a subsequent article in the Houston Chronicle.

Bunch read from a prepared statement on Thursday night:

"I want to provide context that the only interest that I would ever have in such divisive statues is if they could be used for education purposes in a museum setting where we could educate current and future generations regarding the failures of our past and our history. I do not condone or accept racism, hate groups, neo-Nazis, KKK or any divisive group. I’m not looking to celebrate the Confederacy; I’m not looking to divide our community. I believe that there is no support for relocation of these statues, whether in a museum or otherwise, and I can commit that there is zero chance now that these items will ever set foot into our community."

Bunch said he also wanted to continue the township's commitment to diversity:

"I stand behind our Proclamation on Diversity and Inclusiveness, in no way shape or form, wanted to convey that our community was a safe haven for the Confederacy. I do not believe that. I do not have that in my heart and I apologize and I do deserve the feedback that was given to me, given the nature of the article and the lack of context. I do accept responsibility for those statements. I hope that I have clarified what my intentions were and I want to also reiterate that there is no official offer to any entity to transfer statues, relics or plaques to our community. This was not a fully vetted idea. This was not ever on a Board Agenda. I was in a meeting where there was discussion regarding whether removal of plaques, statues and artifacts that ranged a number of different issues, not just Confederate issues and in the desire to try to populate, or have options to populate a museum, I made those comments, which now I see were divisive and hurtful and I apologize again for that," Bunch said.

A number of residents spoke during the public comment portion of the meeting, calling for a more tangible commitment to diversity, such as a day of celebration or a physical proclamation of inclusivity. Additionally, township Director John McMullan posted to his Facebook page yesterday evening, reiterating no such statues would be brought to the township:

"We were shocked to learn of the suggestion that Confederate statues and plaques from the State Capitol and elsewhere be brought to The Woodlands. Whether made in jest or in seriousness, let us be clear—there are no circumstances under which we will support bringing these monuments to our community. We will fight any such proposal. You have our word. The Woodlands did not exist during the Civil War, or even much later when these monuments were erected. The Woodlands was founded in 1974 as an inclusive community—“a place that welcomes everyone from everywhere to grow and thrive”—and statues celebrating those who fought to preserve the institution of slavery are antithetical to our inclusive values," McMullan wrote.