City Councilmember Elizabeth Abraham wants to continue representing Murphy residents, which is why she is running for a second term. 

The proposed residential development on adjacent land outside of Murphy will negatively impact Maxwell Creek and nearby residents, said Abraham. She wants a seat at the dais to be the voice of residents as the city movies forward in discussions. 

Abraham said that along with her service on city council and previous experience with the Planning and Zoning Commission and Board of Adjustments, her background in finance, real estate and sales gives her leadership qualities needed to work well with the rest of council.

With the city experiencing rapid growth at a record pace, Abraham said the city must continue to strike a balance between maintaining a “small town” feel and advancing business and residential progress in the short and long term. 

“The city needs to ensure that we attract and provide incentives for a variety of new businesses, replacements for businesses that exit and identify the best use for remaining public land,” Abraham said.

Other issues facing the area include traffic flow and congestion, connecting trails and updating parks and green spaces, ensuring infrastructure is updated, budgeting city tax dollars wisely and continuing to monitor and respond to development adjacent to Murphy city limits.

“I would like to focus on increasing the transparency and dialogue between the city and its residents,” Abraham said, “by having residents respond via an online survey to gain feedback on city initiatives and programs to gauge where we might make changes or improvements.”

Abraham said she would also like to introduce “Know Murphy Better” videos to promote citizen education of city government activities and advertise city-sponsored events. 

“There is so much talent in Murphy that is untapped and could be used to help the city move forward,” Abraham said. “The biggest obstacle for a resident is understanding how their city government works and where he or she can make a difference.”