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Aransas Pass mayoral candidates talk election campaign platforms

Incumbent Aransas Pass Mayor Ram Gomez said that infrastructure is one of the biggest problems he feels the city is facing.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — We are now less than two weeks away from election day in Aransas Pass, and two people are running for mayor.

3NEWS sat down with incumbent Mayor Ram Gomez and his opponent Jason Followell to see exactly where they stand on city issues.

Gomez told 3NEWS that infrastructure is one of the biggest problems he feels Aransas Pass is facing. Gomez owns both Bakery Café and R&A Construction Company, and said that if reelected, he would like to continue working on the city's infrastructure.  

"That's why we need to get the harbor developed. We need to be permit friendly to be able to get people to come into town to develop. Put new homes," he said.

Followell owns Texas Strong Fitness Center and spent 21 years as an environmental health and safety director. He thinks demolition costs of storm damaged buildings is keeping the city from moving forward.

"We can look at the grants to get it done, get it fixed," he said. "Though we could also do it as a community and help people and go to each house and tear them down ourselves. It could happen."

Gomez said that another issue that is plaguing Aransas Pass residents are rising taxes.

"The biggest complaint is that our tax rate is high. Our tax rate was 79 cents. I think we got it down to 77 which isn't very much, but it's a sign of it going down," he said. 

Followell is a native of the city who said that rising taxes have gotten well out of hand.

"I've talked to some vets and they bought houses back in the 70's and they've already paid what their house was worth three times in taxes. It shouldn't be that way. So we have problems there," he said.

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