Frisco City Council candidates talk affordable housing, growth Frisco City Council candidate forum Vijay Karthik, candidate for Frisco City Council Place 5, speaks during a candidate forum at Islamic Center of Frisco on Friday, March 27, 2026, in Frisco.As Frisco nears build-out with about 13% of its land left undeveloped, city leaders will make crucial decisions about how to manage the traffic and attract companies while maintaining affordability and quality of life for existing residents. Ahead of the May 2 election, a forum for City Council candidates at the Islamic Center of Frisco on Friday focused squarely on these issues. In Frisco, council members serve three-year terms so every year two of six seats on the council are up for election. This year, Place 5 council member Laura Rummel seeks reelection and is challenged by former Procter & Gamble executive Vijay Karthik and Sreekanth Reddy, a technology professional. Laura Rummel, incumbent Frisco City Council member for Place 5 who is running for reelection, listens during a candidate forum at Islamic Center of Frisco on Friday, March 27, 2026, in Frisco.The race for Place 6 is open because incumbent Brian Livingston is term-limited. Brittany Colberg, chair of the city’s planning and zoning commission, nurse Sai Krishnarajanagar, retired urban planner Jerry Spencer and chiropractor Matt Chalmers are vying for the seat. Chalmers wasn’t present at the Islamic Center forum becauseChalmers’ campaign is focused on improving health in the city, according to his website. In a video on the site, he proposes a citywide sporting and fitness event to bring high schoolers and their families closer and raise sales tax revenue for the city. Chalmers did not respond to voicemails and emails with the questions posed to candidates at the Islamic Center of Frisco forum.Candidates were asked to discuss how they would balance the rising cost of housing in Frisco and managing growth in the city if elected.Rummel touted the council’s efforts to reduce property taxes for residents by increasing the homestead tax exemption to 20%. Rummel said while the council would not subsidize residential developers, it has had conversations with them about increasing the supply of town homes in Frisco. “That's a first time buyer opportunity, not just for … our young people, but also they're great options for our seniors,” Rummel said. Vijay Karthik, candidate for Frisco City Council Place 5, talks before a candidate forum at Islamic Center of Frisco on Friday, March 27, 2026, in Frisco.Karthik agreed and said the city should focus on “missing middle housing” rather than apartments or large single-family homes. He said he would focus on attracting big companies to Frsico if elected, to pay off the city’s debt. Reddy emphasized “intentional growth.” He said he supports increasing the commercial tax base to give residents property tax relief but said the city should make sure it has the infrastructure to support big corporations before inviting them to Frisco.Colberg, who works as an escrow officer, said the city needs to be “strategic and picky” about what developments it gives incentives to. She said she would “challenge” developers to produce high-quality affordable housing for teachers and first-responders in Frisco. Sai Krishnarajanagar, candidate for Frisco City Council Place 6, talks before a candidate forum at Islamic Center of Frisco on Friday, March 27, 2026, in Frisco.Krishnarajanagar, who has previously run for council five times, said he supports increasing the commercial tax in the city to offset what residents pay and focusing on attracting employers to Frisco so that young people in the city don’t have to leave to find high-paying jobs. “Why don't we create a workforce pipeline in the city, bringing a teaching hospital a couple more universities,” Krishnarajanagar said. Spencer said if elected, he would work to diversify the economy of Frisco and disagreed with leaders’ decision to market it as ‘Sports City USA.’“We have gone overboard with the tourism and sports part of the local economy,” Spencer said. Spencer said housing affordability in Frisco was driven by inadequate supply and he would “build, build, build” if elected. Jerry Spencer, candidate for Frisco City Council Place 6, speaks during a candidate forum at Islamic Center of Frisco on Friday, March 27, 2026, in Frisco.At its March 3 meeting, the City Council approved a special-use permit that would allow a developer to build warehouses on more than 50% of a site along State Highway 121. An online petition from residents of Richwoods and other East Frisco neighborhoods opposing the project received more than 2000 signatures and the issue is a hot topic among those plugged into local politics. City council members defended their vote, saying it allows them to set conditions for the development including a double row of trees along the edge of the project. At the forum, Rummel, who voted for the project, said the City Council cannot override existing zoning so she and other council members made efforts to get “concessions” from the developer.“We made sure that there was an entire football field away from the neighborhood … and that facility,” Rummel said. Karthik acknowledged that City Council members cannot override zoning. He said he wanted to protect residents’ interests by changing the public input process such that the “burden of proof” was on developers to show that their project would not impact area residents negatively. Generally, developers are required to host meetings with area residents when proposing a project nearby, but often residents unfamiliar with zoning procedures may not be aware of when and how they can raise concerns to city officials. Sreekanth Reddy, candidate for Frisco City Council Place 5, visits with an attendee before a candidate forum at Islamic Center of Frisco on Friday, March 27, 2026, in Frisco.Reddy said the city and developer should have made greater efforts to give area residents a heads up about the project, saying only some HOA board members were aware of it.Krishnarajanagar slammed the City Council for approving the permit despite residents’ opposition to the project. “Is that the way that residents are considered … tossing their in the garbage?” Krishnarajanagar said. Brittany Colberg, candidate for Frisco City Council Place 6, visits with an attendee before a candidate forum at Islamic Center of Frisco on Friday, March 27, 2026, in Frisco.Colberg said she would make information about zoning processes more accessible if elected. “I would love to encourage more proactive communication with our residents … to help block out the misinformation out there,” Colberg said.Spencer said the city had done “a good job” when it comes to zoning processes in place.Agriculture leaders call for preservation of 'best part of our country' at Fort Worth event