MADISONVILLE CITY COUNCIL CANDIDATES
Six candidates are vying for three open spots on the Madisonville City Council. Longtime staples Lois Brown and Russell Bailey have decided not to seek reelection, leaving a pair of open seats for the hopeful candidates along with another currently held by incumbent Chris McGilbra, who is hoping to retain his spot. Running alongside McGilbra are Auburn Rose, Randy Walker, Brandon Hutsen, Melissa Hinojosa and Terri Brown Davis.
CHRIS MCGILBRA (INCUMBENT)
Chris McGilbra is seeking reelection to Madisonville’s City Council, which he has served for four years. Along with his position, he has served on a number of subcommittees, including the Economic Development Committee and the Engineering Selection Committee.
“I wanted to run for city council to give back and make the community a better place,” said McGilbra on why he originally decided to serve. “As I’ve gotten older, I have wanted to try and help in any way I can and just give back. I grew up without a whole lot and people helped me out of the kindness of their hearts, and I thought I could do the same thing on city council in some form or fashion.”
Prior to his city service, McGilbra worked for the Texas Department of Corrections for 31 years, 15 of which he spent in security and the remaining years in the maintenance department, before retiring in 2018.
His committee work has included efforts to encourage others to move into the city to make it a safer and more cohesive place to live as well as attempting to procure grant money to earn the city funds without costing the taxpayer.
“It is a learning period,” said McGilbra on his time with the city. “When I first started, there was so much stuff coming at me so fast and it was kind of overwhelming. But I have my feet wet now and I understand a lot of the inner workings.
“When you are on the outside looking in, you might say we don’t do anything, but there are a lot of moving parts to the city. There is stuff being done, but Rome wasn’t built in a day. You aren’t going to make everybody happy, anyways, so you just do what is right for the community as a whole and not just a certain sect.”
McGilbra tabbed the coming growth to the area as one of the main challenges city officials will need to navigate in the coming years.
“Houston and Conroe are coming this way,” said McGilbra. “People are flooding into Texas from different states. The state is growing and people need a place to stay. We believe that, with the I-45 expansion, stuff will come this way and you cannot stop progress. It is coming and we need to prepare for it, which means we need to get our infrastructure built up and try to get places for housing and businesses to come into our city.
“We want to get ahead of everything and make the city a place where you want to be without just passing through and never looking back.”
While McGilbra has enjoyed his four years on the council, he desires more time in order to expand on the work he has started.
“I want the voters to know that I don’t think four years is enough to accomplish the goals that I want to accomplish as an individual for the city,” said McGilbra. “I bring a little bit of knowledge because I have seen some of the stuff that is going on and I want to pick up where I left off. I think my reelection would help more than hinder the city as a whole.”
AUBURN ROSE
Auburn Rose is attempting a run at the city council in the midst of a diverse career that includes serving our country in the Marine Corps from 1991-95, working for a private school from 2000-05 and Mid-South Electric Co-Op for over 15 years.
He also served on the City Zoning and Planning Committee for six years and served on the Madison County Fair Association Board. He is a member of First Baptist Church in Madisonville, where he has volunteered for 20 years.
“Don’t be the problem, be the solution,” said Rose on why he wanted to run for city council. “It is part of my responsibility since I do live in the city limits. What the city does impacts me, so instead of bringing problems, I want to bring solutions.”
Rose mentioned a lack of facilities for the area’s youth to spend time as an issue he has come across multiple times while speaking with city voters.
“What has been posed to me lately is that there is nowhere for our youth, our teenagers, to hang out as far as a local civic center,” said Rose. “The park is good, maybe we can utilize that more as far as a place for young people to go. But we also have to have resources and other things to make that happen.”
He also mentioned standard infrastructure issues germane to most similar cities. He believes he is the best person for his job based on his love for the city he calls home.
“If it is a benefit to Madisonville, then I will more than likely agree to it,” said Rose. “After doing the research, if it is a good fit for the city, I will agree to it. But I am not going to go along just to get along. I am not that guy.”
RANDY WALKER
Randy Walker is attempting a run at the Madisonville City Council after serving as a teacher and coach at Madisonville CISD for 40 years. He wore many hats in his time at MCISD, including physical education, wood shop and history teacher as well as coaching a multitude of sports, including football, basketball, track and golf.
“I have lived in Madisonville for 41 years,” said Walker. “My wife and I, this was our first teaching and coaching job. I retired after 40 years in the same place, which is kind of unheard of. Madisonville has been good to me and my family.”
Walker is a graduate of Southern Arkansas University and was inspired to run for city council after retiring last year because of his love for the city and his willingness to see it thrive moving forward.
“I have seen Madisonville grow and would like it to continue to grow,” said Walker. “I have seen a lot of changes and a lot of the people I have taught and coached here know that I am a fair person. I like to do the right thing and I think I have some input. I listen and make my own decisions. I listen to others because sometimes they have some information I’m not aware of.”
Walker believes the continued growth and managing it will be the most important challenge for the city moving forward.
“I feel like I am honest, would make a fair choice and would listen to people’s views other than mine in helping Madisonville grow forward,” said Walker.
While Walker has not done a large amount of campaigning, he is well-known in the community for his fierce dedication to MCISD for over four decades.
“I would be honored to hold the position and would do my very best,” said Walker. “Again, Madisonville has been good to my family and I would like to do something for the city in my spare time.
BRANDON HUTSEN
Brandon Hutsen is attempting to join the city council for the town he has called home for 13 years. He is originally from Splendora but moved to Madisonville with his wife and has served as a member of the Madisonville Fire Department for most of the time since.
“I like the small town feel that Madisonville has,” said Hutsen. “I want to keep it that way, but in that same instance it needs to grow a little bit as far as different businesses go. But it still needs to have that same small town feel.”
Hutsen worked his way through the fire academy to become a certified firefighter before joining the Madisonville ranks.
He pegged the city’s potential growth as one of the main challenges city officials will have to navigate in the coming years.
“I cannot say we will have to have better equipment, since we have really good equipment right now at the fire department, but we are going to need more equipment,” said Hutsen. “Especially if the loop comes through and they widen (Highway 21). Being on the fire department, with that experience, I think I can help and put more perspective into what is needed and what is not.”
He highlighted the importance of the coming growth while emphasizing the need to retain the aspects of Madisonville that citizens know and love.
“I think it is important for us to grow in the aspect of certain things, but have the same small town atmosphere,” said Hutsen. “I think it will help if I’m elected because I still want that. I am a public servant as far as the (fire department) goes, but I want to be able to help out in other departments, as well.”
Part of Hutsen’s campaign premise, which plays into his desire to maintain the city’s positive and small town feel, is to “Keep Madisonville Great”.
He also stressed the importance of all citizens exercising their civic duties come election day and casting their ballots, regardless of who they support.
MELISSA HINOJOSA
Melissa Hinojosa is attempting to add the title of Alderman to a lengthy resume uncommon for most individuals her age. At 26, she is the youngest candidate vying for a spot on the city council.
Hinojosa is currently pursuing a physics degree at Sam Houston State University while minoring in philosophy and mathematics. She then plans to continue her education by attending law school.
“Until then, the goal is to serve on the city council,” said Hinojosa, who currently works as a foreman for Monterey Mushrooms in Madisonville, where she oversees roughly 20 employees, and serves on Madisonville’s City Planning and Zoning Committee.
Before that, she was a real estate agent for Marvin Stanton at Madisonville Realty. “My first year (as a real
“My first year (as a real estate agent), a lot of people said you may only get one house, if that, maybe two,” said Hinojosa. “Luckily, I was able to get eight sales. It was fun being a real estate agent but I had to take a break from that being a full time STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) student.”
Hinojosa’s political ambitions, like many individuals in her age gap, were amplified during the 2016 election cycle.
“I think (2016) is when a lot of us really got into politics regardless of party,” said Hinojosa. “I then started to notice just how much of an impact local politics had on us. Federal laws and state laws obviously impact us, but local laws are our everyday policies.
“I realized I wanted to make a change in this world, and I still do; I want to make a meaningful impact. I believe we all want to change the world, but you cannot change the world unless you start at home. You have to start local.”
Hinojosa tabbed the city’s growth as one of the top challenges local officials will need to navigate in the coming years.
“We are growing,” said Hinojosa. “I’m sure, when we get our census back, we are going to see just how much we are growing and how much we are diversifying, as well. Our cities are growing fast and I believe that, at the age I am at right now, I do well in being able to listen and see both sides. We need someone who is able to adapt to that growth and use the change to grow well.
“Change can be good and change can be bad, but if we know how to use that, we can do very well and excel in whatever we are doing. I believe Madison County has the ability to be one of the best in Texas.”
Hinojosa believes she is the person for the job partly because of her approachability and her openness to new ideas, which she calls essential for a growing community.
She also encouraged all citizens to cast their ballots on election day, regardless of who they support.
“Make sure you are going out and you are voting,” said Hinojosa. “Local elections have some of the lowest turnout rates and we need to change that. They are extremely important, whether that is city council, school board, anything. We all need to be informed on who is running and be more active.”
TERRI BROWN DAVIS
Terri Brown Davis, daughter of Alderman Lois Brown, is attempting to follow in her mother’s footsteps by joining Madisonville’s City Council and is hoping to bridge a communication gap in the process. She is a 1982 graduate of Madisonville High School and has worked in a number of capacities since.
Over the years, some of Davis’ positions include correctional officer while attending Sam Houston State University and numerous positions with the U.S. Postal Service. Along with earning a degree from the The Woodlands Paralegal Institute in 1989, she graduated from Manual and Theresa School of Hair Design with a cosmetology license before opening her own barber and beauty shop in Bryan with her husband. The couple also owned a restaurant in Navasota before opening Kountry Kravinz, a food truck in Madisonville.
“I have learned a lot from watching my mother serve as alderman,” said Davis. “I believe in being fair across the board. If elected, I will be the alderman that will listen to you, be available for you and fight for you.”
Since her mother is stepping down from the council, Davis is now eligible to run for a position herself. She has stated her campaign’s motto is “bridging the gap between the city and the people”.
“I have a passion for where I live,” said Davis. “I have always lived in the city limits and I have seen the good, the bad, the fair, and the unjust. There are a lot of things that the community complains about but they don’t understand the municipal side. There are a lot of things that go on with the municipal side where they don’t dig deep down to understand where the people are coming from.”
Davis believes there are improvements to be made on both sides from a communication standpoint.
“There are always going to be rules and regulations, but the people do not always understand why,” said Davis. “The people aren’t supposed to know every entity that the city goes through, but at the same time, if they knew a little bit, it would stop them from having so many complaints or not understanding.”
Davis highlighted a multitude of specific scenarios where she believed conflict could have been avoided if there was a better level of understanding between elected officials and the people. She believes she is a strong voice that can make a fair judgement and properly relay the decision to her potential constituents.
“I am not just going to vote ‘no’ or just vote ‘yes’ because that is what the majority is doing,” said Davis. “I have always been a leader, and I got that from my mother.”
Davis states she has a passion for justice, meaning her decisions are based on the rules set in place opposed to particular people or areas and is not afraid to go against the grain to do what is right. She also highlighted the importance of a council member making themselves seen and accessible to the community outside of the regularly scheduled meetings.
This ties into what she pinpointed as one of the main challenges for the city moving forward: community participation.
“People are slowly pulling away,” said Davis. “The older people are dying out and you have the new age coming in. They are more interested in being told ‘why’. You need someone there who can tell them why without changing what it is. At the same time, you need somebody who can reach the gap between the newer generation coming up.
“I wouldn’t go into city council thinking, ‘I’m going to change the city and make everything right’. You have to go in and make a difference where you can. I feel like I’m a person who can accept ‘no’ for an answer and I can give a ‘no’, I can accept ‘yes’ for an answer and I can give a ‘yes’. I am that person who can understand either way. Whether it’s a good or bad side, communication is key. I feel like I am able to communicate to anybody. If they don’t agree with what I said, at least they will walk away understanding why the policy says ‘no’, instead of just saying ‘no’ and closing the door.”
She also touched on the importance of managing the growth that is coming to Madisonville as well as bringing the whole community together for particular county-wide events, mainly the Madison County Fair.
“I would do everything in my power to make sure the city grows,” said Davis. “We got people moving in. Madisonville needs to be recognized as a small town that runs like a big city. When I say that I mean we should be proud of Madison County. Get the city folk involved. If they are involved, they understand better.
“I feel like the whole city needs to participate in the county fair. If elected, I would find a way to figure out how to have some sort of event going on not just for the people showing animals, people in Ag or getting scholarships.”
In a campaign fueled by the need for community involvement and transparency, Davis believes she can follow in her mother’s footsteps and bridge a divide between the city and its people.
Editor’s Note: Each of the candidates were asked roughly the same questions during the interview process for this story; the lone exception being that the incumbent was asked to describe what they felt their biggest accomplishments were in the time they have already served on the city council. The Meteor strives to be completely transparent and provide a fair platform for all individuals seeking public office.
Candidates also participated in a public forum hosted by the Madison County Republican and Democrat Parties at the Truman Kimbro Center in Madisonville April 13. Since not all candidates were able to attend, the content of this story is based solely on our own interview process. However, the forum can be viewed in its entirety on Facebook.
