AUSTIN, Texas — At a forum held Monday night by Central Austin neighborhood associations, the public got to hear from nearly each of the candidates vying to be Austin's next mayor.
Jeffery Bowen, Doug Greco, Carmen Llanes Pulido and Kathie Tovo are all running to unseat Incumbent Mayor Kirk Watson, who is running for reelection to a second consecutive term and third overall.
Some of the biggest issues discussed at the forum were affordability, land use and homelessness.
Watson was the only candidate not in attendance at Monday's forum. His team told KVUE that he was invited to the forum but politely declined as he was unable to make it work with his schedule.
Jeffery Bowen
Bowen made the decision to run for mayor on the final day candidates could declare. He has served on the Austin Neighborhoods Council for the last ten years.
"I just got fed up and kind of tired and said, 'You're either part of the solution or you're just going to sit on the sidelines,'" Bowen said regarding his candidacy.
Bowen has expressed frustrations, saying that the city has become more unaffordable over the last 35 years he's lived in Austin with his wife. He also expressed frustration at the way the city spends its money.
"They honestly seem to have no regards to spending," Bowen said. "Really when you talk about, it's not just police, it's the emergency - it's the complete emergency package, whether it's the contract, but it's making sure that there's proper staffing for not only police, but fire, for EMS, also for their equipment, the training that they need to have."
Kathie Tovo
Tovo served as Mayor Pro Tem on the Austin City Council, serving three terms as a council member from 2012-2023.
Tovo says she is running because of complaints she says she's heard from folks about their frustrations with current leadership.
"I've heard from lots of folks throughout the community that they're very unhappy with ... with really the level of openness and transparency at City Hall," Tovo said.
Tovo readily admits affordability is on everyone's mind as she knocks on doors throughout the city, with suggestions on creating more affordable housing.
"We should be building on city-owned lands," Tovo said. "This is something I championed as a councilmember and a few of those projects haven't yet moved forward. And so, you know, I'm anxious to get back in there and see some progress on that. It's been a long time that the community has been calling on the city to use its lands to really generate value for Austin residents."
Carmen Llanes Pulido
Carmen Llanes Pulido was born and raised in Austin, with experience as a community organizer and working as the Executive Director of Go Austin/Vamos Austin (GAVA).
Llanes Pulio says she was inspired to run for Mayor after being encouraged by community members from all sides of the political spectrum who wanted "accountable community leadership."
"Austin is at a crossroads right now. We have rapidly become unaffordable to most of the people who call this place home," Llanes Pulido said.
When it comes to preserving affordable housing, Llanes Pulido says she is not talking about creating policies that increase speculation, redevelopment and tearing down existing affordable units, but rather protecting tenants, their homeowners and the public process to negotiate new development.
"That's how we've gotten hundreds of new units of affordable, truly affordable housing in East Austin, Central Austin and many places around the city," Llanes Pulido said. "There are actually successful models to look at that we can do more of and we can produce deeply affordable housing."
Doug Greco
Doug Greco served as the Executive Director of Central Texas Interfaith for 12 years and also has experience as a high school teacher at what is now known as Eastside Early College High School.
"Austin needs a mayor that's willing to stand up to Greg Abbott and state leaders when our local decisions and civil rights are under attack," Greco said.
Greco says he is running for mayor because it's "time to turn the page," considering income inequality continues to increase, with hopes to invest in workforce education, living wage jobs and affordable housing.
When it comes to the affordability crisis, Greco says he wants to make the city work for families that live here and not private equity investors.
"40% of our homes are bought by institutional investors," Greco said. "That's private equity firms, Wall Street firms, investments firms like BlackRock. And that is driving up most experts say, that is the biggest driver of our affordability crisis."
Residents like Kevin Heyburn and Pamela Bell, who serve as the Presidents of the Hyde Park Neighborhood Association and the North University Neighborhood Association, are also listening when it comes to the issues the candidates are bringing up.
"We in the Central Austin neighborhoods are being just attacked on every side with Project Connect, I-35, we have the University of Texas and we have West Campus wanting to look for more ways to expand student housing," Bell said. "We have a neighborhood plan and our concern is that our neighborhood plan, which outlines the quality of life and what it will take, is being ignored."
While the candidates and constituents acknowledge the challenges when fighting for Austin's biggest issues, Heyburn believes it is a battle worth showing up for.
"We're living in a city that's diverse and creative and fun," Heyburn said. "A city where you can make a good living and find a place to live is why people have come to Austin and I think that's what we need to all continue to pursue."