City of Midland Mayor Lori Blong said that while she prefers a free market approach, the need to use economic incentives is essential for Midland to compete for developments like a downtown hotel, given the state's competitive landscape. Blong was a guest on a recent episode of the Best of Midland Podcast.
"I think there's a fundamental fiscal conservatism is the term that is going around," said Blong on a recent edition of the Best of Midland Podcast. "I consider myself to be a fiscal conservative, and all things being equal, I would love for it to be totally free market capitalism where everything succeeds or fails on the merits of its own, you know, product or whatever it's selling. I do prefer that. The reality in the state of Texas is that we have economic incentives.”
“If the city of Midland wants to have nice things, we are competing against other cities who are using incentives,” Blong said. “All things being equal, I, as a fiscal conservative, would probably choose not to have those incentives. But because they exist in the state of Texas, we will either participate and use the laws as they currently exist and use those mechanisms, or we will not have any of those things come to Midland. A downtown hotel in the state of Texas is not going to go to a community unless they have an incentive package."
Blong, mayor and member of the Midland City Council, also serves as the council liaison for Midland EDC, past president of Habitat for Humanity, a member of Congressman Pfluger’s Energy Task Force, and a board member of the Permian Basin Petroleum Association (PBPA).
Best of Midland Podcast is hosted by Ryan Shewchuk and Terra Avery. It is an extension of the broader Best of Midland program, which aims to support small, local businesses by showcasing them and the people behind them. Their website lists top businesses and upcoming live events happening in the area.
The podcast is available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.