AUSTIN — Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker sat down with The Texas Tribune co-founder Evan Smith for a discussion ranging from how one of the nation’s largest cities maintains its signature “vibe” to partisan politics.
During the Friday panel at the annual Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, Smith noted that Cowtown is about to be one of the largest 10 cities in the country but keeps its authenticity and vibe. Parker attributed that to the city’s focus, pointing to the opening of the highly regarded Bowie House hotel on Camp Bowie Boulevard.
“We worked for years with that developer to make sure it fit the fabric of the (Camp Bowie) bricks and the height was the way it needed to be,” Parker said. “These don’t just happen overnight. It takes a tremendous amount of focus. I give credit to our city staff. It’s intentionality.”
Other topics included Texas’ takeover of FWISD; Gov. Greg Abbott’s proposed property tax overhaul and its impact on cities’ ability to finance their growth; and how to improve maternal health, one of the mayor’s interests.
Here are takeaways from Parker’s discussion in Austin:
Fort Worth ISD takeover
Parker continued to advocate that Fort Worth schools Superintendent Karen Molinar should keep her job as the state takes control of the district. Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath plans to appoint a new superintendent in the spring along with a board of managers to step in for the district’s elected trustees.
“I want to see a superintendent lead this district that cares about our kids in Fort Worth,” Parker said. “Maybe there are other leaders that are capable of that same heart. I just don’t know who those people are. And so as this process continues, I want to see that same level of leadership from our board of managers.”
Smith pressed Parker, noting that the decision is solely Morath’s.
“He’s listening to my opinions and my feelings about our city (and) the people I put in front of him for different positions,” she said. “That’s all I can ask him to do right now.”
Smith asked whether the mayor was “good” with the state taking control of the district because one already-closed campus failed state ratings for five consecutive years.
“We have to be positive and look forward, because the reality is, kids in Fort Worth that are in first grade or fifth grade or eighth grade don’t get a chance to redo their fifth grade or eighth grade year because the adults can’t get their stuff together,” she said. “So it’s imperative that we really be positive and focus on what world-class education looks like in Fort Worth ISD. And that’s the path we’re on right now.”
Abbott’s property tax proposal
The governor, who announced he’s seeking reelection, is floating a major revamp of property taxes that include abolishing school district taxes and requiring a two-thirds voter supermajority for all local tax elections.
Parker declined to say whether she is for or against the entirety of Abbott’s proposal, but she raised several concerns.
Cities must first tackle voter education so residents understand how public dollars are spent, she said.
“In Fort Worth, a third of the average taxpayer’s bill goes to the city,” she said. “You have police officers, firefighters, streetlights, libraries, all the amenities of a well-run, high-quality city. Do you think there’s a good return on investment for those dollars? And without a doubt, people will say to me, ‘absolutely yes.’”
Texas city leaders need to convince Abbott that cities are well managed, Parker said.
“We have a lot of work to do, especially if the governor of Texas believes that cities aren’t well managed,” the mayor said. “The only increase in Fort Worth’s (new) budget is because we moved EMS services from MedStar into the city of Fort Worth. That was the right policy decision to make, but it also increased revenue needs in the city.”
Should cities need a supermajority approval for bond referendums, many cities will likely struggle to meet the long-term needs, she said. Fort Worth leaders are expected to bring forward a bond in May that includes funding for streets, public safety, libraries and other needs.
“You will see all infrastructure, growth and capital come to a halting stop because bond referendums, most propositions, do not pass by a two-thirds majority,” Parker said.
Impact of government shutdown
With Congress and President Donald Trump ending the government shutdown this week, Smith asked Parker about the shutdown’s impact locally.
Parker noted the ongoing recovery of full operations at DFW Airport and its largest tenant, Fort Worth-based American Airlines, and federal air traffic control.
In regard to the SNAP pause, the mayor stressed she’s all for having a debate about the efficacy of the food stamp program and why so many rely on it.
“Let’s have those discussions, but you don’t have that discussion by pulling the rug out from under American families and telling them on Nov. 1 you will not have benefits,” she said. “Because guess who has to fix the problem? It’s local communities. It’s philanthropies and food banks and churches that have all rallied together to make sure our Fort Worth residents have food on the table.”
Maternal health care
Smith touched on maternal health care, one of Parker’s top priorities over the years, noting that Fort Worth’s 76104 ZIP code has among the state’s highest infant mortality rate.
Parker pointed to her work with the Tarrant County Maternal & Infant Health Coalition she helped organize:
“Some of it’s very simple interventions, such as using the data and research work that Parkland (Hospital in Dallas) had undertaken, deploying iron supplements to mothers across Dallas County,” she said.
Now that work is happening across North Texas.
“One of the No. 1 causes of death after having a baby is hemorrhaging, and one of the best ways to intervene clinically is simply giving them an iron pill per day,” she said.
Asked whether she still supports Medicaid expansion in Texas, the mayor said she does, particularly as she works as a part-time chief of staff at Cook Children’s Medical Center.
“I have a renewed appreciation for the complexities of health care, especially in the pediatric realm,” she said. “And the reality is: When a mother or child or family or children do not have health care, they end up using your emergency rooms as a primary care option. And that’s not best for children. It’s not best for adults.”
Partisanship
Parker has decried the continued spread of partisan politics into state and local politics. Smith asked her Friday whether she is “dead in the water” in any partisan race.
“I don’t have to decide, because I’m not running for anything,” Parker told Smith.
Parker is Republican and a former staffer to the retired U.S. Rep. Kay Granger, R-Fort Worth, but mayor and City Council races are nonpartisan.
“I’m fortunate as a mayor, I do not have to run attached to a party,” she said. “And when I was elected in 2021 to be the mayor of Fort Worth, I needed and wanted to appeal to both sides of the aisle. That is a very liberating place to be in the state of politics in this country today. And I’ve been asked this numerous times, this is where I wanted to be, in local government, helping my city.”
Parker also addressed partisanship in City Hall.
“I think most people are out of step with both parties,” she said. “I think 80% of Americans are somewhere in the middle, and both sides have gone far left and far right, and it’s exhausting and polarizing, and this country’s got to come back together. I hope all of us can be well minded about what it looks like to rebuild the country, because what I have seen in my own council chamber, I’ve seen in Austin, I’ve seen in Washington, is totally toxic, and you’ll get nothing done.”
Scott Nishimura is a senior editor for the Documenters program at the Fort Worth Report. Reach him at scott.nishimura@fortworthreport.org.
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