In 2024, Lubbock at the time saw two city councilmen vying for the position of mayor — each with a unique platform but both with a drive to make Lubbock better.
In the end, those two pushed the election into a run-off, with the citizens giving local businessman Mark McBrayer the mandate to lead the city for the next two years.
In doing so, McBrayer said he has ambitious goals he wants to accomplish during his term as mayor, with one being securing the economic development and future of Lubbock.
Throughout the years, Lubbock has held a relationship with Texas Tech as the economic driver, which is why the city did things a certain way. However, McBrayer said it’s time for Lubbock to start thinking about itself and the future it wants.
“One of my concerns as a mayor is to make sure that our civic-minded people and private money is investing in Lubbock and Lubbock’s future,” McBrayer said. “There’s only so much a city can do as far as government is concerned.”
He also hopes to make Lubbock Lake 7 a community gem, with completion set for the next seven years.
While these goals might seem far away, McBrayer has achieved several significant milestones for the city, and these accomplishments have also faced some challenges.
McBrayer gets crash course in Texas civics as state legislature is in session.
While McBrayer was not a stranger to city government — having previously served as the councilman for District 3 — he said there was a little learning curve he had to adjust to — the Texas State Legislature.
“Learning how we as a city deal with the legislature and legislative issues,” McBrayer said. “How many of them affect us as a city that we have to stay on top of and communicate to our representatives, how this will affect us negatively, or if we want some bill passed.”
Some of the bills the city advocated for during the 89th Session were ones that would protect sensitive city infrastructure and information, hindering bad actors from attacking and exploiting the city.
Another of those bills was to help provide funding for the Lubbock Civic Center projects. However, the city also advocated to state lawmakers against bills that would harm the city and its quality of life.
“The legislature gets to decide what a city can really do or not do,” McBrayer said. “A lot of limits they want to put on cities, I’m favorable towards being the kind of conservative person that I am, but there’s some other things that I think go too far.”
The city advocated against Senate Bill 15, also known as the Tiny Lots bill, which prevents cities from stopping construction on residential lots that are at least 3,000 square feet. SB 15 cleared both chambers on Sunday, June 1, and the governor signed it into law June 20, effective Sept. 1.
While dealing with state politics in Austin is one aspect of his job, McBrayer has a bigger responsibility back home.
McBrayer sees wins, receives critiques from the community as mayor
Already halfway through his term, McBrayer has overseen the completion of several key city projects while also aiding the city in taking up the mantle of the late Don Caldwell and keeping the tradition of Lubbock’s 4th on Broadway going.
Another project McBrayer said he has worked on for several years is the much-anticipated Lubbock Lake 7, which has signed the closing documents on a portion of the land.
“We purchased the V8 Ranch, which would be about 85% of the land we need for that lake,” McBrayer said. “We still got about 15% more to purchase — we’re in the process of working on that.”
McBrayer said the estimated timeline for the dam’s completion is 2032, which will help secure Lubbock’s water for the next 100 years.
But through his achievements, just like many mayors before him, McBrayer has also taken some heat from the public for things he has voted for — or rather — against.
Just in the past year, the mayor and the city council were put under scrutiny for two things, the first being to reallocate tens of thousands of dollars from the First Friday Art Trail’s host, the Louise Hopkins Underwood Center for the Arts, after the council accused LHUCA of hosting drag shows during the month of June last year.
After public pressure, the council ultimately restored $5,000 of the $30,000 of reallocated money.
The second was when the Tech Terrace Neighborhood Association fought the rezoning of a portion of its neighborhood to prevent the construction of a high-density student housing complex. In both situations, McBrayer did not side with the citizens’ wishes.
McBrayer said that while he knew it was an unpopular decision at the time, he felt he had the personal responsibility to find a balance between citizens’ differing opinions, noting he’s only one vote out of seven.
“Balance is the key word,” McBrayer said. “People who know me know that I try to look at all sides of an issue and come to the right balance of when I make a decision.”
But in the end, McBrayer said he uses his position to get the best result he can get for the city and its citizens.
But whatever the future may hold for Lubbock, McBrayer said it’s bright, as Lubbock is different from other Texas cities.
“I want people to feel like the attitude, the personality of Lubbock is an open, friendly city where we work together, well with each other and we respect each other,” McBrayer said. “Lubbock is a young city. I want us to be very much focused on our future.”
Editor’s note: For other stories about individual Lubbock councilmembers published online this week, visit lubbockonline.com .
Mateo Rosiles is the Government & Public Policy reporter for the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Got a news tip for him? Email him: mrosiles@lubbockonline.com.
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Who is Mark McBrayer? Lubbock mayor reflects on goals, achievements 1 year on the job
Reporting by Mateo Rosiles, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal / Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
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