6 in the running for Houston council

HOUSTON — Six people have signed up to run for Houston City Council, leaving just one uncontested race in the Valley’s smallest city.

Virgie Thompson, currently serving on the council and as mayor, did not draw a challenger by the time the filing period ended on Friday. But incumbent Ruth Blanchard drew two challengers and Alma Hartley has one.

SEAT B

Ruth Blanchard

Blanchard did not return a call seeking comment by press time. She is a veteran of the council, having served a number of terms with some breaks in between. Blanchard has worked on various city committees and been active in Rotary Club and the Lions.

Ken Champ

Called seeking his input, Champ declined to speak for this story, saying he was new to the politics game and wasn’t sure if now is the right time to start discussing his run.

He is in the septic pumping business and was last in the news in October 2009 when he was listed as owner of a company, Royal Flush, that ran afoul of then-mayor Roger Purcell with buried septic storage tanks allegedly too close to wetlands and in a residential area.

Purcell at the time touted the case as a victory for the city when the tanks were dug up.

Gina Jorgesen

Jorgensen is an insurance agent who says she was motivated to run for office when she watched with dismay as the city council squabbled amongst itself.

“Can’t we all just get along?” she asked. “It’s embarrassing to tell people where you live.”

She said that as she talked to her friends and neighbors about the goings on at city hall, she kept thinking about a piece of advice her father gave her.

“I had that little voice of my dad, ‘Honey you can be part of the solution,’” she said.

But having taken the plunge, she’s starting to feel some trepidation.

“It’s like, holy buckets, what have I gotten myself into?’” Jorgensen said.

SEAT C

Rosemary Burnett

Though she’s not on the council now, Burnett is a familiar face to a lot of Houstonians. She served on the council starting in 2001 when she filled out the term of her late husband.

Burnett owned the Houston Lodge for years and is now retired.

She lost the last race she ran. Councilman Paul Stout ended up taking that seat. At the time, she was filing in as mayor after Purcell resigned.

“I was too busy being the mayor to get out and run for office,” Burnett said.

She said she didn’t want to run this time, and in fact hadn’t planned to. But then her supporters talked her into it. She said there are a lot of things she would like to correct about how the council operates, but she held her cards close to her chest, saying she’d rather not say what those things could be.

One thing she will say, though, is that everyone who says she’s somehow in Purcell’s pocket is dead wrong. She doesn’t even talk to Purcell anymore.

“He’s moved on with his life and sometimes I think I’m crazy for not moving on with mine,” Burnett said.

That bickering is a lot of what kept her away and what makes her wonder if she’s not crazy for coming back. She said she would like to see Houston City Council settle down.

“I hope that some of the vindictiveness stops,” Burnett said.

Alma Hartley

A current stay-at-home mom and former emergency medical technician, Hartley was appointed to the council after Natasha Schachle resigned in May.

Hartley said she has enjoyed her time there and would like it to continue.

“I have found it to be not as difficult as everyone makes it out to be. It’s actually been a lot of fun,” Hartley said.

Plus, she joked, it’s an excuse to get out of the house.

In her short tenure, she said, the council has accomplished a lot.

“We managed to balance the budget for this coming fiscal year,” Hartley said. “We were able to give all the departments everything that they asked for.”

She hopes, if given another term, to work on developing raw land the city owns and has designated as a park into an actual park, perhaps a wheelchair-friendly place with playground equipment handicapped kids can use.

Contact Andrew Wellner at Andrew.wellner@frontiersman.com or 352-2270.