Category Archives: local news

local news

City needs careful search for new manager

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My head is still spinning over the news that former Princeton City Manager Mike Mashburn quit after less than two years on the job in the fastest-growing city in the United States of America.

I am trying to process the enormous task that awaits the City Council as it ponders who to hire to manage that explosive growth. Frankly, this is where the council is going to earn its keep … which doesn’t involve money because the council basically serves for zero pay.

Mashburn seemed to be in way over his head as Princeton’s chief municipal officer. The city is growing at a 30% annual clip, totaling today more than 45,000 residents — give or take. It falls on the city manager to ensure the city can provide services to those new residents who are flocking here because of the relatively inexpensive cost of housing.

Princeton by definition has become a classic bedroom community, with the vast majority of its growth coming with new homes being built. The city has added little commercial development compared to what has occurred with its residential explosion.

What kind of individual should the council hire? Here’s an idea. The city needs to find someone with proven skill at managing a city on the go, such as Princeton. There might be a newly retired city manager out there looking for a challenge. My goodness, Princeton’s enormous growth rate should present anyone with a significant task of managing its constant change.

Or … there might be a younger person lurking who has a bold vision for what he or she wants in this city. He or she might have a doable plan that guides Princeton from a city known primarily for its hideous traffic along its main drag to a place full of entertainment opportunities. I have lost count of the times people have asked me, “How do you cope with that traffic?” I answer: It’s simple; I just stay home during rush hour. But if I have to plunge into the belly of that traffic beast, I always budget longer travel time knowing I will suffer through plenty of “stop time” on U.S. 380 or on any of the many side roads that thousands of others take to “avoid the traffic.”

I am left to wish the council good luck as it seeks to make this next key hiring decision. Oh, and one request must come with it: Conduct this search openly, telling us where you stand, where you are looking and what precisely you need in the next person who will manage the city I call home.

local news

Let’s get this one right

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Well, kids … the Mike Mashburn era at Princeton City Hall has come to an end with the resignation of the city manager after being on the job for just shy of two years.

The search now is on for the next chief municipal administrator. I am going to use this blog to insist loudly and clearly that the City Council must conduct the search in the open and avoid the underhanded appearance associated with Mashburn’s hiring. The council makes one hiring decision. It is the man or woman who will implement council policy. They had better get this next one right.

Mashburn came to Princeton from Farmers Branch, where he served as an assistant manager; his field of expertise is in parks and recreation, and I presume he carried out his duties well in Farmers Branch. However, he seemed to lack any general municipal administrative experience.

I happened to be present at the City Council meeting when the council met Mashburn for the first time, went into executive session and then returned to open session to hire him. The vote was unanimous. Frankly, it was an astonishing turn of events. Then-Mayor Brianna Chacon had met with Mashburn privately before presenting him to the council. She contended it was all done with full transparency. My view? No … it wasn’t.

Here’s an idea for the council to consider as it starts to collect data on prospective city manager candidates. Why not follow the lead of other cities and pare the list down to, oh, three or four finalists? Then the council can invite the finalists to Princeton to meet the public and also to visit at length with each of them to assess their respective strengths and/or look for possible weaknesses.

Fort Worth did something like that when it chose its current police chief. It settled on former Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia, but only after showing the public all of the finalists.

The Princeton city manager is going to make something in excess of a quarter-million bucks. He or she will inherit a job in a city that is in the midst of a growth explosion. We all have a stake in the quality of the person chosen for this job. It shouldn’t fall on one person to make that call all alone.

City officials moved into our new municipal center a while back pledging to conduct business in the open and in full public view. Let’s ensure the next city manager gets chosen in a manner that keeps that promise.

local news

City falls short on building ban goals

All righty, kids, where does the city of Princeton, Texas, stand in its effort to prepare for the deluge of new residents wanting to call this North Texas city home?

The city council voted recently to rescind a building moratorium it had declared a year or so ago. The council decided to stop issuing building permits for new homes and apartments because it needed to shore up its infrastructure to prepare for the ongoing tidal wave of new residents.

Did the city succeed? Uhhh … no. Not even close. The Princeton Herald reports that the 2025 Legislature enacted laws aimed at preventing future building bans. So the city was left with no choice but to start issuing building permits.

What about the infrastructure, you know, the streets, sewer, water and emergency services personnel the city said it needs to shore up? A few streets have been improved. Near as I can tell the water and sewer systems are as they were when the ban took effect. Police and fire? I hear that Police Chief Jim Waters asked for seven new officers; he got two. The fire department is equally short staffed.

As a taxpaying resident of this rapidly growing community, I am asking: What the hell is going on at City Hall? City Manager Mike Mashburn walked into something of a bee’s nest when he took the job held for all those years by former Manager Derek Borg. There’s now an active recall movement afoot against at least one incumbent city council member and I understand that Mayor Eugene Escobar has signed on in support of one of the recall efforts. What in the world … ?

All the while, the city continues to struggle with providing the infrastructure it said was necessary when it enacted a building ban on new single-family homes and apartment complexes.

Seems to me someone needs to take a firm hold of the municipal rudder and start steering this ship toward serious stability.

local news

On a roll heading for ’26

You know, there are days when everything one touches turns to doo-doo and there are days when the stars align just right for you.

Today is one of those latter days for me. I now shall explain.

A few weeks ago I was involved in a minor accident that damaged the driver’s side of my Maverick pickup. The damage wasn’t huge, but it was still costly to repair. I picked my vehicle up and drove it home after a couple of weeks in the Princeton, Texas, body shop.

Then a strange event occurred a couple of days later. The driver’s side door suddenly was sprung. I couldn’t open or close it without scraping the edge of the door against the front fender. I had to reconfigure the interior of the truck to enable me to enter and exit the vehicle through the passenger door … a royal pain in the patootie. I called the body shop to tell them what happened. No sweat, they said. Bring it in and we’ll examine it and let you know the extent of the repair, they said.

I delivered the Mav to the body shop today at 8:40 a.m. At 9:15 the young lady, Devin, emerged to inform me “the door isn’t sticking any longer. Come back and take a look at it.” I did and met the mechanic who performed what I consider to be something of a miracle repair job. Poncho me told the wind might have caught the door and sprung it.

What? That’s it? Yep, he said. It’s all good, he added. It took 35 minutes. Period.

If that’s the case, then the damage to the truck wasn’t necessarily a result of faulty repair. That was Poncho’s best guess. However, Poncho fixed the problem without charging me anything for it.

Some days it is good to wake up on the right side of the bed. Today is one of those days.

crime news, local news

Museum always breathtaking

DALLAS — It doesn’t matter how many times I have come to this exhibit — or how many times I will see it in the future — every visit fills me with awe about one of this country’s most profound tragedies.

I came here this week with a dear friend to tour the Sixth Floor Museum, which commemorates the assassination of President John F. Kennedy on Nov. 22, 1963. Sixty-two years have passed since that horrifying day and I continue to be struck by how that single senseless act sent a great city’s emotional psyche spiraling into the sewer.

I saw for the first time on this visit a copy of the Dallas Morning News editorial page published on the day of JFK’s visit. The editorial referred to the city’s “partisan cleavage” that would disappear hopefully that day as it welcomed the 35th president of the United States. Indeed, there had been fear that right-wing activists might protest the president’s visit, accusing him of being “soft” on the Soviet Union.

Well, it turned out the world was looking in the wrong direction. Lee Harvey Oswald turned out to be an avowed Marxist who two days later met his own end when a night club owner, Jack Ruby, shot him in the gut as he was being transferred from the city jail to the county lockup.

I continue to be struck by the quietness of the large crowd of museum-goers who were milling around the sixth floor, looking at the artifacts, reading the text on the walls explaining JFK’s legacy, his record, his accomplishments and even where he fell short during the 1,000 days of his presidency. I found myself whispering information into the ear of my friend; I didn’t want to make any sort of unwanted noise. I felt as though we were in a church sanctuary.

I likely won’t ever buy into the notion that John Kennedy should rank among the nation’s great presidents. One thousand days doesn’t give anyone much of a chance to carve out a lasting legislative legacy. He had some success and he fell short a time or two during his time in office.

He did bring a huge wellspring of hope to a nation that needed it in the moment. That hope was blown to bits by the gunman aiming his rifle from the sixth floor of a building that reportedly was destined to be torn down.

I’ll be back again someday. I cannot get enough of that exhibit.

local news

Speak the language!

The time has come for me to vent against one of my several pet peeves, so here goes.

It is essential for major companies to hire individuals who interact with the American public to ensure those employees can communicate effectively with the public they are serving. In other words, employees should be able to speak English!

I live in a North Texas community that is chock full of families who speak English as a second language. It is quite common for me to walk through the only major grocery store in our community and never hear English spoken by people I pass while shopping for food. Hey, no problem with that, man.

It’s different, though, when I need assistance from an employee at that store and I ask him or her for, oh, where can I find a can of mushrooms. I occasionally get that blank stare from the employee who doesn’t understand a word I just said. I have to look for an English-speaking employee or, if there’s no one available, find the item myself. Maybe I have time to look for it. Maybe I’m on a tight deadline and need the help right away.

I returned recently from a brief trip to Roanoke. Va., where I stayed at a fairly nice mid-priced hotel. They serve breakfast at this hotel. I dished up some scrambled eggs, got a bisquit and some fruit. I sat down, took a bie of the eggs … and they were cold. I summoned the hotel staffer working the kitchen to tell him my eggs were cold. He looked at me, nodded his head — and smiled! I might as well have been speaking Martian to the guy.

Look, I totally get that the United States of America is an increasingly pluralistic society. I welcome the world here. I do not believe we need to write a law declaring English to be the official language of this nation.

However, we’re still a nation where English is the predominent language. I want our business community to recognize that reality when they seek to do business.

local news

A brief post script …

ROANOKE, Va. — While I realize my recent tale of woe regarding my rented car is no great shakes in the real world, I thought I would share this brief post script with you.

The car I rented at Roanoke Regional Airport froze up on me. The battery was deader than Francisco Franco. I called the rental company and it sent a tow truck operator to me to jump-start the 2025 car that croaked. It started nicely. She said I should let it for a few minutes before returning it to the rental station.

I did and got a nice replacement vehicle for my trouble. I received the replacement car in time to attend the graveside service at the end of the funeral that drew me here in the first place.

Even better news is that the replacement is easier to enter and exit than the low-rider I got in the first place. This old man’s body just doesn’t bend like it did in the past.

Life is good … again!

local news

First time for anything

ROANOKE, Va. — I came to this wonderful city in the Blue Ridge Mountains with the noblest of intentions … to attend a funeral for the son of long time and dear friends of mine.

It all was going swimmingly. Not a glitch in sight. None expected. I have a nice hotel room near where my friends live. It is near the airport where I will depart Roanoke in a couple of days.

Then it happened …

I piled into my “low rider” rental vehicle. Pushed the start button. Nothing happened. Zero! The car is frozen. Nothing works. No dash lights. It’s stuck in “park.”

That saying about the “best-laid plans” is ringiing in my mind’s ear right now.

I’m going to miss the funeral. With a stroke of luck I might be able to attend the graveside service. I called the car rental company. They’re sending a tow-truck driver to haul the piece of mule dookey away. I’ll be able to get a replacement vehicle.

This is the first time this has ever happened to me. I’m going to chalk it up to one of life’s mysteries. I won’t make a big deal about it when I see my friends.

Just wanted to share it with you.

local news, political news

‘A proud husband and father … ‘

Here we go … again, with political candidates bragging to voters that they are faithful to the sacred vows they took when they married their wives.

We’re going to the polls soon in the greater Dallas/Fort Worth area and one of the candidates for a Texas Senate seat is offering that boast on his TV ads across the market. Former Southlake Mayor John Huffman talks about his budget-balancing record, his ability to keep taxes low … and, yes, that he’s faithful to his wife and devoted to their children.

It’s the last item that draws my attention with this brief rejoinder.

Since when does a man’s faithfulness to his family become grist for selling a political candidate? Look, I know what he’s trying to do. He’s trying to hold up his moral example as a selling point, which he sees as important given the propensity for men in public life to stray away from their vow to honor their spouse “for as long as they both shall live.” To my ears, it is an empty form of bravado. Do you recall how former Democratic vice-presidential nominee John Edwards professed his love for his late wife, only to be revealed that he was having an affair that produced a baby? The sleaze bag …

I won’t cast a vote in that Texas Senate race. For all I know, John Huffman is a good guy. He won the endorsement of the Dallas Morning News this past Sunday. It’s interesting that the DMN never mentioned his fidelity to his wife as a reason the paper is backing his candidacy.

Hmmm. I wonder why. Maybe it’s because the Morning News realizes what I have believed all along. Which is that candidates who brag about such matters are wasting their time on an issue that is far from being a big … deal.

local news

Future is in our hands

The future of our democratic republic well may lie in the hands of those of us who care enough to vote to preserve it. That’s my call, ladies and gents.

I now shall explain.

We have an election coming up in a little more than a year. We are going to elect a new House of Representatives and one-third of the Senate. A lot of incumbents who have swallowed the Donald Trump swill are on the November 2026 ballot in all 50 of our United States.

Now comes the question. Are we going to continue to stand silently by while both congressional chambers cede their constitutional power to an overreaching, overzealous, overheated POTUS who sounds and acts like a man intent on tossing aside the limited powers granted in the Constitution?

The correllary question is whether we’re going to use the power granted to us by the founders and vote out the gullible goons who comprise so much of today’s Republican Party. I hate saying this, but that has to include a man I had hoped would know better, my congressman, Keith Self.

Self is a retired U.S. Army combat infanty officer. A West Point grad. He’s a man who understands the value implied in the oath he took to defend the Constitution. Donald Trump does not honor the oath he took to honor the governing document, and yet Self — who I consider to be a good man — continues to stand with the numbskull masquerading as president.

The county is chock full of others just like Self. We need to rid ourselves of the men and women who follow the dictates of a charlatan blindly and with no regard to the sacred oath they took. After all, they end their recitation of the oath by declaring “so help me, God.”