Tag Archives: Amarillo City Hall

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Time to start establishing City Council ‘team’

I listened a bit Saturday night to some of the comments from the Amarillo City Council election victors.

Mayor-elect Ginger Nelson and Councilman-elect Eddy Sauer both talked about being members of a “team.” Sauer called himself a “team player” and vowed to work with his colleagues on the City Council to advance the city’s future — I presume in a positive direction.

Here’s a thought for the new mayor: Assemble your new colleagues right away and start setting some parameters.

As I understand it, Texas open meetings rules don’t prohibit council members- and mayors-elect from meeting as a body. Heck, they aren’t in power yet, so they can all get together and talk about city issues to their heart’s content.

Nelson, Sauer and council colleagues Elaine Hays, Freda Powell and Howard Smith now have a chance to bury the discord that occasionally flared up during the past two years.

The leader of this task ought to be the new mayor.

I’ll stipulate that I get that all five council members represent the same citywide constituency. The mayor’s extra stroke comes in the way he or she uses the office as a bully pulpit, not that I expect Mayor Nelson to become a City Council bully.

All five council members need to face among themselves some of the questions that bubbled up from the community. I refer to the suggestion among some that a high-powered local political action group — Amarillo Matters — “bought and paid for” the council.

They all have spoken about pushing the city’s economic engine forward. They all expressed their concern over some of the misdirection that occurred at times during the past two years. They all vowed in some form or another to correct all of that and to move forward as a single unit.

Do they all have to agree on every detail, on every bit of minutia that comes before them? Of course not. Indeed, I’ve witnessed my share of contrarians on previous city governing bodies; I keep thinking of the late Commissioners Jim Simms and Dianne Bosch, both of whom bucked the majority on occasion, but usually found a way to line up with the body when it made its decision.

The new council also no doubt will sit across a table with City Manager Jared Miller and perhaps lay out its expectation. May they understand that the current council acted in good faith by hiring Miller and gave him the authority to run the city administrative machinery. I am hopeful the new council won’t seek to change that arrangement simply because it can.

Yet another new day is about to dawn at Amarillo City Hall. I like the looks and the sounds of the new City Council.

Sure, take a breath. Get some sleep, y’all. It’s not too early, though, to get to work. Talk among yourselves. You have a lot of ground to cover … in a hurry.

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Mandate? There is none in this election result

For those of you who might take offense over a scolding because you didn’t bother to vote in Saturday’s municipal election in Amarillo …

… that’s too damn bad!

You’ve got it coming.

A little more than 15,000 registered cast ballots in the Amarillo City Council election. Roughly half of them voted early. The remainder waited — as I did — to vote on Saturday.

We’re going to hear some bitching and griping from Amarillo residents about the “power” of Amarillo Matters, a political action committee that backed a competent and qualified slate of candidates for the council; they all won by substantial margins.

If Amarillo Matters had all that stroke, packed all that punch, why didn’t more residents take a few minutes of time to cast their ballot? Why didn’t those who took umbrage at Amarillo Matters’ push to back its slate energize their own counter-movement?

Where was the turnout among those who supported Amarillo Matters and those who opposed the PAC?

The city has more than 100,000 residents registered to vote. The turnout for Saturday’s election fit the norm for Amarillo. Call it whatever you wish: abysmal, dismal, pitiful, pathetic, measly … whatever. Any of those descriptions will work. All of them would work, too!

The candidates who won will comprise an entirely new City Council. They will take office soon and embark on a mission to guide the city, to set government policy and then — I’ll presume — let the newly hired city manager, Jared Miller, implement those policies.

I do not want to hear any of them talk publicly about a “mandate.”

The way I see it, they got nothing of the sort based on the turnout. A majority of a tiny minority of registered voters cast their ballots in favor of the individuals who won.

Look at it this way, as well: That percentage of turnout declines even more dramatically when you factor in the residents who live here but who aren’t even registered to vote.

Did this group of business leaders — Amarillo Matters — exercise inordinate influence over the election results? No. If it did, then the city would have had to count a lot more ballots than it did.

If you’re upset at the results of the election — but didn’t bother to vote — I suggest with all due respect that you keep your trap shut.

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Voters clean house at Amarillo City Hall

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Amarillo voters have made a bit of history at the ballot box.

They have elected a female-majority City Council; that shouldn’t be a big deal, although I do recall there was a good bit of media and community chatter when Debra McCartt became the city’s first female mayor.

They also have booted out two incumbents, meaning that the city will have a brand new five-member governing council take office in a few weeks.

This is potentially a huge step forward for the city.

Mayor-elect Ginger Nelson will take office with a lengthy platform full of promises to do a lot of things. Many of the planks in that platform deal with economic development, wise expenditure of tax money, greater citizen involvement and (this is my favorite) beautification of rights-of-way along Interstates 40 and 27.

Council members-elect Elaine Hays in Place 1, Freda Powell in Place 2, Eddy Sauer in Place 3 and Howard Smith in Place 4 all are newcomers to city government — as is Nelson.

They all come to office with the backing of a political action committee, Amarillo Matters, that raised a good bit of money to get their message out. Yes, there was some blowback expressed on social media about the motives behind Amarillo Matters’ investment in the candidates who won.

I am not going to join that chorus of naysayers. I’m honestly optimistic about what this new City Council will bring to the community.

They all pledged in some form or another to restore a sense of cooperation among its members. Such a pledge doesn’t necessarily mean an absence of dissent or debate among council members, nor should it.

However, for the past two years residents have witnessed the occasional flareup of tempers and of at least one council member occasionally speaking out of turn, getting way ahead of the rest of the governing body. That council member didn’t seek a second term.

The City Council managed to force out a competent city manager, hire an interim manager and then make a mess of the search for a new permanent chief administrator — before settling finally on a solid choice in Jared Miller.

The city is in the midst of a significant downtown makeover. It has a lot of work to do on its streets. It is working with state transportation officials on improvements to our freeway interchange.

I welcome the new folks who’ll take their oaths of office.

I also applaud the city’s voters for deciding to make a bit of history. If only more of them would have voted to make this moment even more meaningful.

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Amarillo election produces some push back

This next weekend is going to produce a new Amarillo City Council majority, with at least three new members joining the five-member municipal governing panel.

However, in the run-up to this election I’ve been detecting a whiff of something about this campaign that sets it apart from recent municipal campaigns. It’s the presence of a well-financed political action committee, Amarillo Matters, that is backing an impressive slate of candidates seeking election to the council.

My mail box is getting nearly daily deliveries of circulars touting the virtues of the Amarillo Matters Five. Our southwest Amarillo neighborhood is sprouting lawn signs faster than the dandelions we see each spring. I’ve greeted three Amarillo Matters volunteers at my front door as they have handed out campaign material.

I happen to be acquainted with many of the principals involved with Amarillo Matters. They are successful men and women who have sought to make a positive difference in the city. However, social media have been chattering of late with some push back from individuals who question the motives behind Amarillo Matters. They can’t fathom why a PAC would spend a six-figure amount to elect a council whose members earn a paltry $10 per public meeting … plus some expense reimbursements.

There’s been the implication in some of these social media posts about possible payback, that Amarillo Matters’ members are looking for favorable treatment by the council.

I’m not going to jump onto that runaway bus.

I am no Pollyanna and I do retain a healthy skepticism about politics — even at the local level.

Truth be told, I am glad to see a healthy discussion taking place about the municipal election and about the stakes involved. Electing the governing City Council will produce far more tangible impact on voters than electing members of Congress or the presidency. I would argue, too, that even countywide elections have significantly less impact on those of us who live within a city’s corporate limits; we are governed in Amarillo by a city charter.

One of the better aspects of City Hall’s governance is that the council is elected every two years, which is the same length of time a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. That means council members could, if they choose, kick right back into re-election campaign mode right after the ballots are counted; that’s how it works in Congress, right?

Voters would do well to stay alert to any sign of favoritism or deal-making with certain PAC principals at City Hall. My guess is that the new City Council — whether it comprises some or all of the candidates endorsed by Amarillo Matters — will be leery of falling into that trap as well.

At least they’d better be.

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Gadflies have their place … but not always

I’ve known my share of gadflies in the communities where I have lived and worked.

You know what a gadfly is, yes? My trusty desk dictionary describes them as “persistent, irritating critics” and “one who provokes or goads”; the third definition describes a bug that bites livestock … which I guess is about as productive as the first two definitions.

Politics has its share of gadflies. Amarillo City Hall has had one among its City Council members for the past two years, but Randy Burkett has decided against seeking a second two-year term on the council.

Most of the candidates seeking spots on the new council are serious about public service. They are thoughtful and constructive in their approach to governance. I don’t claim to know all of them personally. I’ve met some of the candidates and I have a tiny bit of history with a couple of them.

But the city doesn’t need any gadflies sitting on the council, which is why I continue to support a particular slate of candidates and hope they get elected one week from today. Thus, I am hoping for a council that comprises Ginger Nelson as mayor, Elaine Hayes in Place 1, Freda Powell in Place 2, Eddy Sauer in Place 3 and Howard Smith in Place 4.

Political gadflies do perform a useful function in communities. They help officeholders stay focused on the issues. The tactic they employ is to gripe about what they consider to be wrong about certain public policy. Governing at every level — from City Hall, to the county courthouse, state capitol, the nation’s capitol and, yes, the presidency — require solutions. They require constructive — as well as critical — thinking.

That’s my hope for the next City Council. I want it to comprise individuals who are far more interested in pushing forward solutions than in looking exclusively for the things they believe need repair.

I want the council to comprise individuals with a demonstrated record of civic involvement.

Amarillo voters in 2015 experimented with significant “change” in city governing policy by electing three new guys to the council. One of them, Elisha Demerson, came to the job with prior governing experience, with service on the Potter County Commissioners Court. The other two were government novices.

But the council had a gadfly in its group. That would be Burkett. His presence on the council didn’t always work out. At least one of the challengers running this year qualifies as a gadfly. James Schenck, running for Place 2, keeps saying he knows what’s wrong with city government. I haven’t heard any solutions from him.

There need not be any more gadflies taking the oath of office after the ballots are counted next week. We need forward-thinking individuals who know how to govern as a unit.

I remain cautiously hopeful, moreover, in the collective wisdom of the city’s voters.

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Hoping for smooth City Council transition

We’ve all suffered from motion sickness while watching the new president of the United States take command of the federal government.

Will there be a similarly rough ride at Amarillo City Hall when the new City Council takes over after the May 6 election? Oh, I don’t expect it. Then again, I didn’t expect the outcome we got after the 2015 municipal election … let alone the outcome we witnessed just this past November when Donald J. Trump got elected president!

However, my hope springs eternal at many levels.

We’re going to get a new majority on the council. One of the incumbents who’s not seeking re-election, Place 3 Councilman Randy Burkett, has been a key player in the rocky ride we’ve been through at City Hall. That he’s leaving office after just one term bodes well for calmer times. He’s been a disappointment to many Amarillo residents, although I acknowledge that many others view him as a champion for their point of view — whatever it is.

With a new chief administrator on the job, City Manager Jared Miller, it also is my sincere hope that the new council will let him do the job he was hired to do.

It is to run the city, to ensure that each department functions well, to hold department heads accountable and to make sure the public’s money is being spent prudently and efficiently.

I look forward eventually to meeting the new manager. Since I’m now a former full-time journalist, I’m likely to have to pursue that opportunity myself. I pledge to do so.

As for the council, I am hoping for a more tranquil atmosphere than what we’ve witnessed for much of the past two years.

Voters got angry two years ago. The source of that anger continues to baffle me, given the city’s economic vitality and the tangible progress that has occurred on many fronts. But they were steamed enough to oust two incumbents; a third incumbent didn’t seek a new term, so voters selected a new majority two years ago.

One of the new guys, Mark Nair, then decided to ask for Jarret Atkinson’s resignation as city manager. It took Atkinson a few weeks, but he bailed.

The city then brought in an interim manager, Terry Childers, who took no time at all to demonstrate his ability to turn a simple mistake into a full-blown controversy; I refer to the episode in which Childers misplaced his briefcase, called the emergency dispatch center and bullied a dispatcher over the phone. It didn’t get any better for Childers, who eventually quit after muttering into a hot mic that a constituent is a “stupid son of a b****.”

There was open bickering between council members. There were instances of a council member — Burkett — speaking out of turn regarding negotiations to lure a baseball franchise to Amarillo. Mayor Paul Harpole walked out of an executive session because of a supposed lack of trust in council members.

We’re getting a new bunch this time around. May the new majority offer a semblance of tranquility for a municipal government that likely has exhausted its motion-sickness remedies.

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Negativity rearing its head down the stretch

Amarillo’s municipal election campaign never figured to be one conducted entirely with sweetness and warm-and-fuzzy expressions of grand visions for the city’s future.

There’s been some negativity expressed of late.

Moreover, I’ve heard a bit of grumbling from some residents who dislike what they’re hearing.

Let’s hold on.

What I’m hearing so far hasn’t been of a destructive nature. It has challenged — in a couple of instances — assertions made by a couple of incumbents; both councilmen, Elisha Demerson and Mark Nair, have responded to the challenges.

Amarillo Matters enters the fray

The political action committee formed to help shape the discussion has decided to weigh in. It has endorsed a slate of candidates, calling for an entirely new City Council to be elected on May 6.

There’s been some push back against some of the recommended candidates. Again, it’s nothing to cause extreme angst and anxiety, although I’ve learned over the past two-plus decades living in Amarillo that the community often doesn’t respond well to any sort of negativity when it involves our friends, neighbors, fellow church attendees and parents of children who attend school together.

My hope is that this election produces a voter turnout that far exceeds the norm for our municipal campaigns. The way I see it, voters respond to negativity. It’s not an indictment, per se, of this community; I merely am stating what I believe to be an obvious trait among red-blooded American voters.

I still like the slate of candidates that Amarillo Matters recommends. I continue to endorse their general outlook and the approach they bring to City Hall governance.

As for some of the negative stuff that’s starting to get a bit of traction, that’s, too, is the longstanding nature of American politics — even at the local level.

Even in Amarillo, Texas.

Early voting begins today. Per my usual practice, I intend to wait for Election Day to cast my ballot. One never knows what could erupt down the stretch.

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Happy Trails, Part 10

This retirement life allows my wife and me to spend more time holding hands while walking through our southwest Amarillo neighborhood.

While we do this activity with Toby the Puppy, I am free to look at my surroundings and entertain strange thoughts.

This one popped into my noggin this morning.

We live on a “place.” The street that t’s into our street is a “drive.” It originates from another right-of-way labeled a “lane.”

They all do the same thing: They convey motor vehicle, non-motorized vehicle and pedestrian traffic.

What’s the difference among them?

I looked the terms up in the dictionary I keep on my desk. I found the term “lane” and saw that it refers to a narrow roadway. “Drive” has many applications, most of them are verbs. There’s no street reference to “place.” Get this: The “lane” one block north of our house is the same width as the “place” where we live. Go figure.

I noticed long ago, too, that Amarillo labels its major east-west thoroughfares as “avenue,” while those that run north-south are “streets.” My hometown of Portland, Ore., does something similar. Hmm. Streets and avenues do the same thing, too.

Boulevards are different. They usually refer to broad streets with medians. I’m aware of only one “boulevard” in Amarillo. It does have a median west of the major commercial area through which it passes.

I know I could solve all this curiosity with a phone call or two to City Hall. What fun is that?

I’ll entertain any suggestions or ideas.

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Hoping downtown momentum keeps moving forward

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If I have one long-term hope for the outcome of next month’s Amarillo municipal election, it rests within the downtown business and entertainment district.

The city is going to welcome a new majority to its City Council. Three incumbents aren’t seeking new terms; two incumbents are running for re-election. Indeed, there well might be an entirely new council seated when all the ballots are counted.

Juxtaposed to this is the momentum that continues to build with downtown’s major makeover. Many projects already are underway. Abandoned storefronts have been fenced off with construction crews now working to rehab them into new entities.

That five-star hotel is nearing completion across the street from the Civic Center, next to the parking garage that’s also under construction. There have been hiccups along the way, but the progress is unmistakable.

And, oh yes! We have that multipurpose event venue that still must be built. The MPEV doesn’t yet have a major tenant, such as a minor-league baseball franchise. The Local Government Corporation is negotiating that deal and my sincere hope is that the LGC brings a franchise transfer to fruition, gets the required signatures and then approves plans for a new ballpark.

This is where the new City Council comes in.

A new majority cannot be allowed to muck up the progress that’s already underway.

I remain highly encouraged at some of the rhetoric I’m hearing from many of the contenders. They seem to understand that with all the work that’s been done already that there realistically can be no turning back.

The current council did well in hiring a city manager to take control of the administrative reins at City Hall. Jared Miller’s major selling point seems to have been his emphasis on economic development while serving as San Marcos city manager. He must bring that desire and stated expertise to bear as he leaves his imprint on Amarillo.

The city manager, though, has five bosses with direct supervisory authority. They sit on the City Council. My hope is that the new council will deliver the chief administrator a vote of confidence and then let him do his job.

I long have believed that a vibrant downtown in any city can reverberate far beyond the central district’s borders. I sense such a citywide revival can occur in Amarillo.

Let’s hold out hope that a new City Council majority gets it.

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Amarillo Matters shucks the gloves

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Amarillo Matters came into being as a pro-business political action committee with the aim of developing a “vision for a strong Amarillo built upon the first principles of free enterprise, economic growth, fiscal responsibility and traditional family values.”

I support Amarillo Matters’ overall agenda. I like and respect many of the men and women who are active in the organization.

Then something arrived in the mail today that gives me some concern. It’s not enough to turn me against Amarillo Matters, but it does make me wonder whether this outfit is as high-minded as its campaign rhetoric would suggest. It has driven its campaign buggy onto the low road.

It has endorsed a wholly new slate for Amarillo City Council. I strongly support some of the candidates Amarillo Matters is backing: Ginger Nelson for mayor; Freda Powell for Place 2 and Eddy Sauer for Place 3 all deserve to be elected. I also have lined up behind Elaine Hayes for Place 1 and Howard Smith for Place 4, both of whom are running against incumbents who are seeking re-election.

Here is where my concern rests with the Amarillo Matters flier the postal carrier dropped into my mail box today. It uses some curious language to describe Elisha Demerson, the Place 1 incumbent councilman. It calls him a “long-time Democrat officeholder and politician.”

For starters, I seriously dislike the term “Democrat” when used as an adjective. It’s the kind of language adopted two decades ago by far-right Republicans who sought to demonize in a subtle fashion their Democratic opponents. Demerson wasn’t a “Democrat politician”; he was a pol who belonged to the Democratic Party. Do you get it?

Second of all, Demerson has been out of elected partisan politics for two-plus decades. The last political post he held before being elected two years ago to the City Council was as Potter County judge, a countywide elected office.

Therefore, I challenge the assertion that Demerson is a “long-time” pol. Good grief! He had been sitting on the sidelines since leaving his county office.

Thirdly, the City Council is a non-partisan governing body. Its members do not run as Democrats or Republicans. Partisan affiliation should not inform council members as they deliberate municipal policy.

I recall in the 1990s when a mayoral candidate, Mary Alice Brittain, sought to rally all the city’s “good Republicans” to vote for her over incumbent Kel Seliger. I called her down then, citing the non-partisan nature of the city ballot. She lost badly to Seliger — and hasn’t been seen or heard from since.

I don’t mind that Amarillo Matters has weighed in on this campaign. It’s the prerogative of every individual — and, yes, any PAC — to make their voices heard.

Amarillo Matters does bring a valuable perspective to this campaign. I welcome it and I support generally the ideas it seeks to promote.

But not at any cost.