Ruben Barajas

Extremely important to maintain the infrastructure already in place.

I was in Santa Maria today and like the rest of Cameron County Precinct 4, drainage is a big issue that has been ignored by current officials in this community.

I’ve been asked several times “What is the first step in addressing our drainage problems?” And my answer and professional opinion remains the same… “Maintenance”.

Routine maintenance to our existing ditches and pipes will at least let our system perform at its peak design capacity. Lack of maintenance (ie. brush, silted pipes, overgrown trees, etc) causes backups in the drainage system and localized flooding in our streets, yards, and even in our homes during heavier rain events.

We should not wait for a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico to form, or for an election year to be upon us, before the decision is made to begin clearing ditches and removing blockages in our drainage system.

As your next County Commissioner, daily maintenance logs will be available to the public, and maintenance requests or work orders from the public will be addressed immediately.

Runoff Early Voting: May 16- 20
Runoff Election Day: May 24