Mending Hostile Feelings in Cypress

* It appears that the recall efforts of Cypress City Council members Cecilia L. Age, Gail H. Kerry and Walter K. Bowman are well under way. If these council members are successfully recalled, Cypress has the opportunity to elect council members who are in tune to the heartbeat of the city. The renaissance of the Cypress City Council will then be complete and the council will have a chance to mend the hostile feelings currently exhibited toward it.

We have followed the council business closely and are amazed by the arrogance shown by the targeted council members. The issues involving the warehouse shouldn’t even be an issue. The citizens’ quality of life is a priority. The council has never made a solid economic case for permitting the establishment of the warehouse.

The council’s action to engage in a 20-year contract with the Briggeman Disposal Co. is another example of arrogance. Is it in the best interest of citizens of Cypress to be bound to a 20-year agreement with rates ranked in the top five in the county? We don’t think so.

The population of Cypress has changed in the last 10 years. People are moving to Cypress because it’s a great place to live. In the past the council and the city administration were able to conduct business without accountability to the citizens. Well, it looks as if that is going to change.

SOEREN and CONNIE POULSEN

Cypress

* Mayor Cecilia L. Age and council members Gail H. Kerry and Walter K. Bowman are targets of a recall from a small group of citizens who are [anti-]growth and anti-business. They seem to think that Age, Kerry and Bowman have sat around for six years doing nothing for the citizens of Cypress. As a matter of legal record, I would like you to know the following:

* Who was it that worked hard to develop our business park and bring in such businesses as Fuji, Mitsubishi and the Woodfin Suites?

* Who was it that worked hard to bring in Veterans Park, the Cypress Golf Course and Grace Church?

* Who was it that made the Senior Center a reality and dedicated it in 1993?

* Who came up with Youth in Government Days, the Fire Task Force and the Fiscal Advisory Committee?

* Who cut back and restructured city government?

* Who refused to give raises for three years to city staff until the city was fiscally sound?

* Who was it that made Cypress fiscally sound by bringing in Mary Kay and Shaw for $2 million a year in city revenue so that Cypress should never need a utility tax?

It was Age, Kerry and Bowman who followed the direction of the citizens of Cypress to bring the dream of the business park to reality. Don’t let your dream be destroyed by a small group of anti-business, no-growth citizens.

CECILIA L. AGE

Mayor, Cypress

* As a council member, I have represented the citizens of Cypress for the past seven years. During that time, the economy has turned against everyone, including Cypress. Many people have lost their jobs. The federal and state governments have taken from cities and counties to balance their budgets. The county has filed bankruptcy. Still, the citizens of Cypress expect and deserve to live in a safe, friendly, people-oriented, well-maintained community.

Because of the determination of past councils and citizens, Cypress has a well-planned business park that has grown slowly with quality businesses. These businesses provide the much-needed tax base that has allowed Cypress to continue to offer well-groomed fields for youth sports, a new senior center for our older residents, well-maintained roads, additional police officers and many more amenities.

There has been clear direction from the City Council to avoid a utility tax. I believe this has helped attract quality business even during these difficult times. I hope [residents] will remember in the next few months the dedication, time and responsibility involved in making all this possible.

GAIL H. KERRY

City Council member, Cypress