Salado Village Voice presents questions and answers with the six candidates for a two-year term as the Village of Salado Mayor. They appear on the ballot as the following: Greg Windham, Michael Hudgens, Joann Purser, Jeff Ingrum, Zach Hurst and Stephen “Po” Powitzy. Question 1: One of the first things you will do as an Mayor is hire a new City Manager for the Village. What are the qualities and qualifications you are looking at in hiring that position? What is the salary range you are willing to pay for a qualified candidate? (100 words) Question 2: As a newly elected Mayor, you will inherit a $900,000+ Escrow payment due to a developer. How can the Village pay this debt and maintain its budget and other obligations? (100 words) Question 3: As newly elected Mayor, you will have to review and plan for the FY 2026-27 budget. What are your priorities in adopting a budget? (100 words)

Greg Windham

Question 1: I’m seeking a City Manager with proven experience in small-town, rapid growth governance, strong financial management skills, and the ability to plan responsibly . They need to be accessible, transparent, and able to work with all layers of government and our citizens. Just as important, they should understand how to preserve Salado’s character while managing change.
This role is critical, so we need someone with a track record of success, not a learning curve.
On salary, we should be competitive with similar Texas communities—likely in the range of $100–120k —to attract a high-quality candidate who can deliver results.
Question 2: This obligation will need to be handled with discipline and transparency. With my real estate background, I understand development agreements, and the first step is to find the agreement , fully review the terms, timing, and any flexibility. Then we look at options—reserves, phased payments, or restructuring—to meet the obligation without disrupting core services. If we owe, and I’m obligated to see a document that says we do, then we pay it.
Protect public safety and infrastructure first—those are non-negotiable.
I’d watch spending, delay non-essential projects, and seek ways to increase revenue through promotional means.
The goal is to meet our obligation responsibly while maintaining financial stability.”
Question 3: My priorities in adopting a budget are straightforward: protect essential services, plan responsibly for growth, spend taxpayer dollars wisely, and promote the town.
First, we must fund the basics—public safety, infrastructure, and reliable city services. If those aren’t right, nothing else works.
Second, we plan for growth by making sure infrastructure keeps pace and we avoid costly mistakes down the road.
Third, I believe in fiscal discipline and transparency—living within our means and being careful with debt.
And finally, we should promote Salado—supporting local businesses, events, and tourism revenue without raising the burden on residents.”
Protect. Plan. Promote.

Michael Hudgens

Question 1: I would not hire a city manager.
Question 2: I would legally hold the prior city government responsible for the illegal act of using escrow money to pay another entity.
Question 3: I would look at prospective city tax revenue to seeing a budget.

Joann Purser

Question 1: Obviously, the most important decision facing our community is hiring a city manager that handles the day-to-day operations and making sure that our Charter policies and budgetary constraints are a priority. Ideally, we are wanting someone with the proper credentials and prior municipal government experience. We need to find someone that has proven leadership and team management skills with the ability to prepare and manage and forecast a budget that provides the services and needs of our Community. Ideally, a salary structure of $95,000-$130,000 would probably be palatable but based on market studies we will probably be in the range of $125,000-$160,000 with the complete package to include insurance benefits vacation and other compensation
Question 2: The village is already in the process of and have taken steps for the obligation. There is going to have to be a portion of the budget dedicated to the repayment of the escrow funds that were commingled into the general fund and a structure given to us by the future city manager to escrow funds without restriction of services. Obviously, we must not cut police and administration and we are going to have to make sure that non-essential project spending is limited.
Question 3: We are going to have to make sure that there is a repayment schedule that is transparent and demonstrate to the taxpayers in a very public display showing how their tax dollars are being paid to the $945,000 fund that needs to be repaid. We are going to have to make sure that our Royal Street improvement project is let for bid and we are going to have to consider some sort of wastewater treatment plant expansion while the Salado Creek discharge permits are being considered by the TCEQ. One other item we might want to consider is prioritizing some of the crossings to improve public safety during flooding events regarding South Ridge and Chisholm Trail.
Another budgetary concern would be competitive pay for the police department and paying attention to our General fund reserve level. Also, at some point, we are going to have to consider a Fire dept that is not solely volunteer.

Jeff Ingrum

Question 1: The role of City Manager in a town of 3,000 shouldn’t be to run the village while the Mayor
acts only as a figurehead. As a former CEO and CFO, my background allows me to handle the executive lifting necessary, in reducing our reliance on an expensive outside manager. If we hire someone, they must possess proven administrative leadership, strong financial stewardship, project management skills and align with our new 5-Year Business Plan. By leveraging my executive experience directly, we can keep the salary range lower than the typical $150,000, saving taxpayer dollars and redirecting those funds toward our existing debts.
Question 2: We must address this obligation responsibly without shifting burden to residents. I will implement zero-based budgeting to reassess every expense, eliminate redundancies, and prioritize essential services. We will identify efficiencies across departments and redirect savings toward this escrow payment. At the same time, we will pursue revenue diversification- expanding tourism-related income, strengthening partnerships with local businesses , pursuing grants, and evaluating appropriate user-based fees tied to growth and development outside village limits. With disciplined financial management and transparent decision-making, we can meet this obligation while maintaining core services and investing in Salado’s long-term stability and growth.
Question 3: My top priority, to move Salado from reactive, year-to-year budgeting to a disciplined five year financial plan. Historically, budgets have been driven by immediate needs rather than long-term strategy. I will lead a comprehensive review of current FY 25-26 baseline spending to identify opportunities to reset priorities and better align resources with future goals. Working closely with a new city manager, I will apply the fiscal discipline and strategic planning I developed as a CEO and CFO-focusing on transparency,accountability, and sustainable investments that support infrastructure, protecting Salado Creek, public safety and economic growth while preserving Salado’s character.

Zach Hurst

Question 1: If elected Mayor, I will seek a city manager with strong community involvement, excellent public relations skills, and proven experience in project management. The candidate should understand comprehensive planning, infrastructure development, and wastewater strategy, including state regulations affecting our creek. They should also prioritize oversight, ensuring proper monitoring, testing, and accountability to prevent further impact on the creek. They must be able to lead staff, manage budgets, and implement long-term plans aligned with the village’s needs. Effective communication and transparency are essential. The salary range would start at $125K and increase based on qualifications and experience.
Question 2: As Mayor, resolving this matter is very important to the village, which continues to work with the legal team and the Collins Family to do so.
Question 3: As Mayor, my priorities in adopting the FY 2026–2027 budget would be to balance community needs with responsible spending. I would prioritize sustaining current police department staffing while ensuring Village employee pay is competitive with surrounding markets to retain quality personnel. I would also evaluate the need for a code enforcement officer to support community standards. Additionally, I would support a comprehensive road improvement plan that benefits residents while avoiding unnecessary financial strain on taxpayers. Overall, my approach would emphasize fiscal responsibility, public safety, and long-term infrastructure improvements that serve the village effectively.

Stephen “Po” Powitzky

Question 1: In a City Manager I will look at Experience, Personal Philosophy, Particular Accomplishments/Results within the profession. The Salary should be competitive to comparable towns of our size, with an extra Financial incentive for achieving measurable goals / Accomplishments for our Village.
Question 2: We MUST have the Forensic Audit, along with the Revenue Recovery Audit to see the Big Picture for the Village. We will then, based on those audits, search all avenues for what the Federal, State, and County opportunities are, and proceed from there.
Question 3: We will attempt to balance the budget by making brutal, honest, and necessary cuts in spending. No payment shall be signed by the Mayor without the tough questions – (who and why?) We will then start looking for opportunities to fund the Village by possibly increasing usage fees, evaluating existing Village real estate holdings, if any, and promoting Salado more aggressively for its tourist attractions like music venues, historical sites, industry that is conducive to our small area (possibly educational), friendliness, sporting and hobby events, conventions, and festivals. The possibilities are endless if we choose correctly.