When Grady Prestage was first elected to the Fort Bend County Commissioners Court in 1990, the county was still largely rural, dotted with farmland and small towns on Houston’s western edge.
Today, it is one of the fastest-growing and most diverse counties in the nation, home to nearly one million residents. Through it all, Prestage has remained a steady presence, navigating political shifts, rapid growth and evolving community needs with the pragmatism of an engineer and the heart of a public servant.
Growing up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Prestage was the son of two educators. Both parents held doctorate degrees and were professors at Southern University, from which he also received his bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering. His parents immersed him in political thought and activism from an early age, introducing him to noted leaders like Vernon Jordan and Jesse Jackson. Before joining politics, Prestage was a civil engineer and a partner in a marketing consulting firm.
“There wasn’t a day that we didn’t talk about politics,” Prestage said.
In college, he honed his leadership skills through student government, an experience that prepared him for the complexities of balancing budgets, building consensus and serving as a community representative.
A growing county
Prestage’s early years as commissioner coincided with a turning point for Fort Bend. What had long been considered a rural county began to urbanize rapidly as Houston’s sprawl pushed westward. When he got elected, the population was 225,000.
“Next year we’ll hit a million,” Prestage said. “It’s not an old, sleepy rural county anymore. It’s an urban county.”
That transformation required new infrastructure, which Prestage calls “a perfect storm for a developer.”
As a civil engineer by training, Prestage said he focused on building roads, drainage systems and mobility projects that could sustain growth. He was instrumental in developing the county’s toll road system and pushed for the creation of a countywide parks department in 1996.
Prioritizing the youth
Yet for all his focus on infrastructure, Prestage lights up the most when discussing projects that serve children and families. His first major initiative as commissioner was building a Boys and Girls Club, a project that faced heavy opposition but ultimately succeeded.
“It was so successful that it led to more. We’re on our fifth right now,” he said. “They have computers, sports, a game room, a library, arts and crafts. It’s a good, safe place for them. It’s the most rewarding thing for me.”
New Commissioner's Corner! Commissioner Prestage sits down with Roosevelt Weeks, Fort Bend County Libraries' new Director. Watch the interview to hear Weeks' vision for our libraries and community! Full video
— CommissionerPrestage (@gradyprestage) November 1, 2024
here: https://t.co/5DKTyaHwjD IZKkxlw #FortBend #CommissionersCorner| pic.twitter.com/pxKY9Dq9X1
Libraries and community centers are also among his proudest achievements. When he entered office, Fort Bend had just two libraries. Today it has 15, many of which Prestage helped champion.
“Civil engineers like to build,” he said with a smile. “But the best [achievements] for me are those involving kids and families.”
Challenges in governance
As Fort Bend has grown, so have its challenges. Prestage noted that public safety is one of the toughest issues facing the county today. State limits on property tax increases make it difficult to raise enough revenue to hire and retain deputies at competitive salaries.
Meanwhile, rapid population growth stretches law enforcement thin, particularly in unincorporated areas.
“We’re not a rural county anymore,” Prestage said. “We got urban challenges and need adequate law enforcement.”
Prestage has also been candid about the county’s unfinished work on equity. A disparity study revealed that minority—and women-owned businesses were underrepresented in county contracting and Prestage pushed for an MWBE program modeled after Harris County’s.
But political shifts and national backlash against DEI stalled the effort, despite having funding available.
“Right now we don’t have three votes to implement it,” he said, referring to Judge KP George’s switch to the Republican Party, which gave the Fort Bend County Commissioners Court Republicans a 3-2 majority. “Had we worked a little bit faster before things changed, we probably could have gotten it in. The whole anti-DEI stuff that came from Washington didn’t help at all.”
He is also opposed to the mid-decade redistricting effort driven by the new Republican majority on the Court.
“The process is gonna [going to] be hard, but it’s clear to me that they’re gonna vote on something,” Prestage said. “It’s gonna be difficult for them to draw more than two Republican precincts, just like it’ll be difficult to draw more than two Democratic precincts.”
Legacy
As the longest-serving commissioner in Fort Bend history, Prestage is mindful of the question of legacy. For him, it centers on transforming underserved communities like Fresno, where he champions new facilities, upgraded roads and expanded services.
“That would be a good legacy for me that I came in, saw something that wasn’t right and did everything I could to change it,” he said.
Prestage is also committed to mentoring younger leaders, encouraging them to “show up” and get involved. He takes pride in seeing students he once supported now return as business owners, pastors and community leaders.
“I see a lot of times a lot of young people out here who are doing a lot of things,” he added. “But right now, we are running the world. We are eager to pass the baton.”
After more than three decades on Commissioners Court, Prestage jokes that in 15 years he’ll be “sipping a margarita somewhere,” he acknowledges his work in Fort Bend is far from being over.
