Candidates for Friendswood City Council discuss tax plans, drainage

Tax plans, population growth and drainage were some of the topics discussed at a forum to hear from Friendswood City Council candidates running in the upcoming May 2 election.

What you need to know

The Friendswood Chamber of Commerce hosted the event April 13, which featured a Q&A panel between incumbent Sally Branson and challenger Shawna Talton, who are running for Position 2, and incumbent Joe Matrange and challenger Randy Hale, who are running for Position 5.

The debate

Candidates were asked their position on Gov. Greg Abbott’s tax plan, which would eliminate school property taxes for homeowners and lower appraisal caps from 10% to 3%, according to previous reporting by Community Impact.

Branson said the tax plan, particularly the parts pertaining to school property taxes, might be less harmful in more commercial communities like Webster, but would be harmful for residential communities like Friendswood.

“People move to Friendswood for our schools,” Branson said. “They stay here because it’s safe. That combination of the city and the school working hand in hand is why we have the awesome community that we have.”

Talton acknowledged that Friendswood doesn’t collect a lot of commercial-driven tax revenue and would support the growth of small businesses to increase commercial tax revenue.

“I think in theory, the governor has a good plan,” Talton said.

Click here to read Community Impact's Q&A for Position 2.

What else?

Friendswood’s population growth—projected to exceed 50,000—and some community members' desire to remain a bedroom community, were also discussed at the forum.

Talton said she would oppose the city pursuing incentives for big box retailers, such as the IKEA slated to come to Webster in 2026, in order to preserve Friendswood’s quiet, community feel.

“I think driving the city to 50,000 is a bad idea,” Talton said. “I think enticing that is a bad idea. We lose our small-town feel.”

Branson said the Friendswood City Center, a 106-acre development that will include retail shops, restaurants, a bowling alley, a boutique hotel, a fire station and a small hospital, would benefit the city.

"I think the Friendswood City Center is going to be a gem for Friendswood,” Branson said. “It is going to encompass all kinds of important things to our community.”

On the other hand

Forum moderator Glenn Freedman brought up the city’s financial record and pointed to a recent audit that revealed the city’s long-term debt had climbed to $191.3 million from $143.5 million in recent years, a 33% increase.

Matranga, who has served on City Council since 2023 and on Planning & Zoning Commission prior to that, said the debt taken out in the 2019 bond was necessary for drainage projects, referring to it as “seed money,” as the city was able to leverage the $40 million to cover $120 million in projects through partnerships with state and regional agencies.

“I think it’s a success story where we can take $40 million and turn that into $120 million,” Matranga said.

Hale, who has described himself as a “fiscal conservative” in his campaign, said he would exercise more scrutiny in evaluating projects where taxpayer money would be invested.

“Fiscal conservative means ... protecting tax dollars and making sure they're spent wisely and not on special interests or special projects that don't benefit the entire city of Friendswood,” Hale said at the forum.

Click here to read Community Impact's Q&A for Position 5.

Also of note

Candidates were also asked how the city should tackle flooding issues.

Branson discussed the possibility of phasing out the Galveston County Consolidated Drainage District and bringing those services under city control, potentially eliminating an additional layer of taxes for residents.

“We can take over or consume what is being done by the drainage district right now, we can reduce that tax and actually eliminate that tax at no additional tax to our citizens,” Branson said.

Matranga said that the area’s need to pursue bigger projects, which sometimes exceed the drainage district’s annual budget of $7 million, would require more collaboration between the city and the district.

“Flooding is not something the city of Friendswood alone can do,” Matranga said.

Hale said he would also support the city’s continued collaboration with other agencies, but said he had questions about how the city had spent money on capital improvement projects in the past.

“What I don’t want us to do is keep spending money on holes in the ground that don’t work,” Hale said. “We wrote a check for $8 million for seven-tenths of an inch of benefit.”

One more thing

Early voting will run from April 20-28.

To get to know the candidates on more local ballots, visit www.communityimpact.com/election.