Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District fills vacant Position 7 seat

Updated 4:54 p.m.

Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District appointed a new member to fill board of directors Position 7, a seat left vacant after the winner of the Nov. 8 election was deemed ineligible to serve, according to discussion at its March 6 board meeting.

After reviewing six resumes submitted for the position, the board appointed Garry Dent to the seat by unanimous vote.

Community Impact previously reported the board seat was left vacant after John Yoars, who won the Nov. 8 general election, was deemed ineligible to serve because he was an elected member of a municipal utility board. Yoars resigned from that post in January, and The Woodlands Water Agency asked the LSGCD board to consider appointing Yoars to the position. The board responded publicly that it would consider applicants for the position, and there was no set deadline for the appointment to be made.

During discussion, members of the LSGCD board discussed the qualities they felt the Dent had that qualified him for the position.

"We spent significant time researching and we narrowed it down to one ... mainly because of that person's experiences, attributes and background," President Jim Spigener said at the meeting.

Board members said the applicants were all qualified for the position.

“We felt like Gary gave us more of what we were looking for,” said Board Vice President Stuart Traylor.

Spigener said Dent’s work as a geologist as well as previous work running a water company were attributes the board felt qualified him for the position.

The position will be up for election again in 2024, officials said at the meeting.

Editor's note: The story was updated to correct the spelling of a name.