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When he sits in the middle of the dais in the Farmers Branch City Council chambers, Mayor Terry Lynne commands the room.
It’s one of the most visible aspects of his position as mayor.
While he focuses on the agenda and task at hand, he also sees a picture bigger than what is happening just in Farmers Branch.
As mayor, he’s learned about issues he wasn’t aware of, even as a city councilmember. Flood control, sewage and electricity delivery are now part of his knowledge base.
“It’s truly been an eye-opening and educational experience. Fortunately, I like learning,” he said.
As part of his regular schedule, Lynne attends many public meetings with leaders of other cities, the Dallas County Commissioners, including government and quasi-governmental agencies as well as private business owners and developers.
His list of organizational meetings is long. Transportation is high on the list. There are multiple regional transportation commissions and councils, which Lynne attends to make sure the voice of Farmers Branch residents is heard, he said, as well as to keep abreast of the plans of the different organizations.
“I go to transportation meetings and learn about the $11 billion TXDot [Texas Department of Transportation] is spending in North Texas,” he said. “DART [Dallas Area Rapid Transit] is another big one we’re working on right now.”
In the last few months, a majority of DART member cities, including Farmers Branch, voted to cut funding.
A proposed cut of .25 of one cent of sales tax would save the city $5 million to $6 million per year that could be used for roads and infrastructure, Lynne said.
“We’ve paid in almost $400 million over the last 40 years to DART, and we’re a small city," he said.
Camelot Landfill is what keeps Lynne awake at night though. The city was granted the permit to operate the landfill by the Texas Department of Health in 1979 and began operation on 350 acres of land in unincorporated Denton County in 1980. The City of Lewisville annexed the area in 1987.
The landfill, which has been expanded since 1987, has an estimated 22 years remaining.
“TCEQ [Texas Commission on Environmental Quality] says we have to have a fund for the closure and post-closure management,” Lynne said. "That is $40 million, in 2024 dollars, in a dedicated account if it were to close today."
After it closes, residents will need to pay for trash service, which could cost $35-$40 per month.
“Later is going to be here before you know it,” Lynne said.
Last year, the city council passed an ordinance requiring residents pay $5 per month, or $2.50 per month for seniors, to start that fund. The amount will increase every five years for the next 20 years according to the ordinance. It will allow the city to collect about $500,000 per year for the next five years.
“This is a liability that faces every single resident of the city, not businesses,” Lynne said. Businesses are already required to pay for trash collection.
Lynne said being elected mayor has enlightened him about the concerns of residents of Farmers Branch, as well.
“I didn’t realize people were having so many issues that were bothering them,” he said.
He said he finds it fulfilling when he can help frustrated constituents, though he can’t always fix the problem.
“You have to have flexibility and compassion,” he said, as well as a thick skin. He said there’s nothing like running for office to find out who doesn’t like you.
On the other hand, he would prefer people to offer to help fix specific problems instead of just complaining.
Lynne said it’s important to him that city council works toward common goals, and his expectation of how his time as mayor would be differs from what has happened.
“I came into the office with the hope and expectation that our council was cohesive and that we were all working toward common goals and wanted to see the city grow and prosper,” he said.
The division and challenges the council has faced this year has tested him. He’s publicly apologized to City Councilmember Omar Roman several times for how he handled the bond proposition for Squire Park in February.
“I’ve learned it’s not about what Terry Lynne wants. It’s about how can I help,” he said.
Although, he said that what he wants for the city should be the same things most residents want as well: Business growth because businesses pay 74 percent of taxes in the city and redevelopment to make the city attractive for newer, younger families.
“That is something I want, but that benefits the entire city,” he said.
That’s a goal that he shares with others who don’t agree with him on other issues or even on how to accomplish the same goal.
Nanci Wier Williams, who campaigned for Jaime Rivas, who ran for mayor against Lynne, is not a proponent of the recent tax cuts, and spent quite a bit of time with Mayor Lynne at the Aug. 27 town hall to discuss the budget.
“He listened even with me saying I was against all of the tax cut, and here’s why,” she said.
She said there are quite a few amenities in the city that she doesn’t use, but still wants to attract and support young adults and families and “make them want to stay here. Even though I’m a senior, it’s important to me to have a really vibrant community.”
When she returned home, she said she emailed the entire city council with her thoughts, and Lynne replied.
“I was pleased that he responded, because my councilman did not,” she said.
Lynne said he reminds residents that he doesn’t have a vote on council.
“I just have the benefit of being able to give my opinion and hope my fellow councilmembers will listen and understand,” he said. “You’re not going to win every vote, but you have to be mature enough” to move on.
“The people who voted differently from me are not my enemies,” he said. “They’re my neighbors.”
Despite six years of experience as a city councilmember before running for mayor, Lynne said he was surprised at how much time the position takes. He said he works at city business for 45-50 hours a week, a figure former Mayor Bill Glancy said sounded appropriate.
“Time is the one thing I don’t have enough of,” Lynne said.
Glancy said he thinks many people have a misperception that the mayor’s job is just about running meetings, but the responsibilities go far beyond that.
“[Mayor Lynne]’s a marketing person and has that skill set. What’s very important in the mayor’s job is you go to all these different meetings … and look out for the city’s interest,” he said. “Terry does put in the time and does go to the meetings and puts in the viewpoint of Farmers Branch.”
He also said that it’s common for developers and other big businesses to want to meet the mayor before they invest in an area. There’s a lot of competition between cities for different businesses.
Glancy said he thinks mayors and councilmembers need experience on city boards and on council before they advance in position.
He said cities run very different from private businesses in that staff doesn’t scrutinize dollars and pennies as closely, so he thinks it is helpful for councilmembers to have business knowledge.
He said working with staff also takes an adjustment and that different staffs can have different agendas, and it can take time for councils to learn how to work with the city staff and with each other.
Despite the friction displayed on council this year, Glancy was hopeful.
“I really think we have the nucleus of a pretty good council if they’d work together,” he said.
Lynne owns his own advertising and media agency, Time-Out Sports, and described himself as semi-retired with a handful of loyal customers.
“I’m trying to be as retired as I can, but they just will not let me go,” he said.
