Adler locks down No. 2 position at CAMPO

The Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization’s Transportation Policy Board added a brand-new title to Mayor Steve Adler’s business card on Monday evening. With a unanimous vote, the board tapped Adler to serve a two-year term as its vice chair. He replaces Bastrop County Commissioner Clara Beckett, who had served in the role since 2014. A CAMPO committee had previously recommended returning Beckett for another term. On Monday, Chair Will Conley announced that Beckett was out sick but had stressed to him that she would be comfortable with any decision made by the board. Burnet County Judge James Oakley then motioned to accept committee’s recommendation and scored a second from Travis County Commissioner Gerald Daugherty. However, before the board could vote, Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt offered a substitute motion in Adler’s favor. Chair Will Conley asked Adler how he felt about the idea, to which the mayor simply said, “I’d be honored to serve.” Ahead of taking a vote on Eckhardt’s substitute motion, Conley praised the CAMPO region’s diversity but also underscored the virtues of unity in the face of “spirited discussions” with state leadership. Declaring himself “more than comfortable” with Adler taking the vice chair role, Conley added, “I, of course, am a non-voting member of this organization at this point in time, but that does not mean I cannot share my opinion.” The board then unanimously voted to select Adler to serve as its vice chair, a role that the board’s bylaws enshrine as the preferred – though not required – successor to the chair.