CITY OF KATY, Texas (Covering Katy News) — Paul Follis, Johnston Dietz and Michael Meihls were elected to the Katy City Council Saturday, according to unofficial results.
The council is expected to canvass and certify the results at a special meeting set for May 13 at Katy City Hall, at which time the winners will take their oaths of office.
Follis wins At-Large seat
Of 1,283 votes cast, Follis, a former interim Alief ISD police chief and Houston police captain, won 1,034 votes, or 81%. AJ Bailey, a graduate student, won 249 votes, or 19%.
Follis will succeed Chris Harris, who could not seek re-election under term limits.
Follis said he was happy and a little bit humbled by the win.
"I never would have expected to win by the margin I did," Follis said. "Last night was a very humbling experience for me."
As he prepares to enter office, Follis said he wanted to learn more about the status of the Katy Boardwalk project.
"I hate to use the word 'housecleaning,' but I'd like to ask some of the tough questions and find out what's going on with the Boardwalk," Follis said, adding that he did not feel there has been transparency on the issue.
"The boardwalk upsets a lot of people," Follis said. "They've been told, hey, we're going to get this nice big convention center hotel for 10 years straight."
Another priority is ensuring the first responders are ready for hurricane season, which begins June 1. He said he thought all the departments were staffed well and worked well together, but he wanted to speak with the chiefs and make sure that everyone was ready.
Dietz wins Ward A seat
Of 513 votes cast, Dietz, an operations manager at JDR Cable Systems, won 316 votes, or 62%. Richardson, an account manager with Fidium Fiber, won 197 votes, or 38%.
Dietz will succeed Janet Corte, who could not seek re-election under term limits.
Dietz complimented Richardson for running a clean campaign.
"You're nervous going into it, because he's a great guy, he's got great connections and he's done a lot for the city," Dietz said. "I felt like I had a tall hill to climb, but I felt the love from the city when I saw the votes come in. I'm super excited, and I'm ready to get going."
Dietz said he expects to get a better understanding of the projects now in the works at City Hall and what issues are coming up for review. He said he wants to have informed voting, and not rubber-stamp voting, during the transition.
"Once that's said and done, my priority is supporting small businesses and seeing what we could do to ease some of the permitting restrictions we have in the city," Dietz said.
Meihls wins Ward B seat
Of 776 votes cast, Meihls, a business owner, won 429 votes, or 55%. Sullivan, a graphic designer, won 262 votes, or 34%. Michael Payne, an IT manager, won 65 votes, or 6%. Roger Lowry, who is retired, won 20 votes, or 3%.
Meihls will succeed Rory Robertson, who could not seek re-election under term limits.
Meihls said he was glad he won, but glad the campaign was over, too. He said the relief that came from winning over 50% of the vote, and avoiding a runoff, meant he could now begin to get to work on council issues.
"We covered all kinds of bases on everything, but it was just a relief that we got, even with low turnout, we got enough people to come out and say, we're going to end this tonight," Meihls said. He complimented his opponents, particularly Sullivan, for a clean campaign.
"I was really proud of the campaign she ran," Meihls said.
Meihls said his wife, Lauren, was a saint through the campaign.
"I appreciate what she did, and everybody that came out and supported us, from yard signs to donations to stopping by and seeing us while we were sitting out there," Meihls said.
As he prepares to take office, Meihls said the biggest issue facing Ward B is the expansion of commercial development.
"I don't think we're going be able to keep every single thing at 100% residential, but that just means that we have to have good oversight and a good plan and make sure that if we do approve anything, it's cohesive with what's in the area rather than being just willy nilly," Meihls said. "In my neighborhood, we've been dealing with it since 2018."
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