Bellaire Resident Jane McNeel Files For City Council Position One

Bellaire resident Jane McNeel has filed for the May 14 special city council election.

McNeel is a project administrator at Rice University, overseeing a research group for more than 15 years. She currently serves as the treasurer of the Friends of the Bellaire Library and has served in that position for the last seven years.

“That library is my heart,” she said.

McNeel has also volunteered for the Bellaire Home Tour, the Bellaire Women’s Civic Club and Habitat for Humanity.

“I want the opportunity to represent the citizens of Bellaire,” she said. “I’ll represent their best interests as best I can.”

McNeel has lived in Bellaire since 1956. Her and her husband, Gary, purchased their first home together in the city. They have two children who were both raised in Bellaire and attended Bellaire High School. McNeel’s grandchildren are now the third generation to live in Bellaire.

“We settled in Bellaire and didn’t leave,” she said. “I’ve always loved that city.”

McNeel said she’s concerned with the city’s financial situation and fiscal responsibility. She said she’s concerned about high traffic on residential roads, the condition of streets and sidewalks and the general operation of the city.

“My real focus is that we really need to be careful about how we spend money,” she said.

McNeel also said she’s interested in the development of the Teas Nursery property into Evelyn’s Park and how it will be funded.

“I felt that this was the time for me to run,” she said. “I’ve got the time, the experience and certainly the desire. I feel like I really need to do this right now.”

Some of the skills that McNeel thinks she can bring to a council position are maturity and being fiscally conservative. McNeel said she knows a lot about Bellaire and is in touch with a lot of people.

She said she wants residents to be able to tell her what their concerns are.

“I’ll do my best to help them,” McNeel said.

McNeel told InstantNewsBellaire that she’s not going to solicit or accept any campaign contributions.

“I want to be able to represent people equally,” she said. “That’s the way I operate.”