Mayor Lori Blong has officially filed for re-election, launching her campaign for a second term as mayor of Midland. In a statement released this week, Blong pointed to a series of accomplishments from her first term and promised to continue pushing forward on infrastructure, public safety, and economic growth.
“The last few years have shown what we can tackle when we refuse to kick hard problems down the road,” Blong said.
Her campaign announcement highlighted a broad slate of achievements under her leadership, including:
- Firefighter Retirement Fund: Addressed a 20-year deficit with a $54.5 million cash infusion, securing long-term retirement stability without issuing a pension bond.
- Economic Development: Brought Costco to Midland, home to the largest warehouse in Texas and over 100 full-time jobs.
- Public Safety: Cut violent crime by more than 10% through community policing and strengthened recruitment.
- Permitting Reform: Reduced permit wait times from months to days for residential and commercial projects.
- Road Maintenance: Oversaw the filling of a record 25,637 potholes last year, with 20,000+ projected for this year.
- Infrastructure Investment: Directed more than $200 million toward roads and drainage since 2017, including final completion of 2017 bond projects.
- Transparency and Planning: Rolled out the Vision Midland Story Map, aligning infrastructure planning with growth.
- Downtown and Airpark Development: Advanced key projects, including the Omni Hotel.
- Water Security: Secured TCEQ approval for a Bed & Banks permit, enabling future water reuse from treated supply.
Blong also emphasized the importance of continuing collaboration with state leaders, including Senators Charles Perry and Kevin Sparks, and the Texas Water Development Board, to deliver long-term water infrastructure that “will serve Midland families for the next hundred years.”
“Serving this city is an honor,” she said. “I’d be grateful for your support as we finish what we started and keep Midland moving forward; smart, steady, and strong.”
