Tag Archives: Amarillo City Hall

local news

Status quo gets thumped at Amarillo City Hall

Change is a-comin’ to Amarillo City Hall.

Mayor Paul Harpole was re-elected tonight, but by a narrower margin to which he’d been accustomed.

Elisha Demerson defeated incumbent Ellen Green in the race for City Council’s Place 1. This result disappoints me. I’ve said it before, but Green was my “favorite” council member. She spoke candidly, bluntly and truthfully on a whole array of key issues.

Brian Eades will return to his Place 2 council seat. Good call there.

Randy Burkett won election to Place 3, defeating incumbent Lilia Escajeda and several others, while avoiding a runoff. More on him in a moment.

Mark Nair and Steve Rogers appear headed for a runoff in Place 4, the seat vacated by incumbent Ron Boyd, who was appointed to the council upon the death of Jim Simms; Boyd chose not to seek election.

I’ve had to ask myself during this campaign: What in the world is so wrong with the city that got folks seemingly so angry? The city appears to be in good financial shape. Its infrastructure is under renovation at many levels: street repair, utility line installation and repair, highway construction.

I’m one who believes in the concept that’s been presented for the city’s downtown revitalization. That concept is moving forward, although perhaps more slowly than some of us would like. The demise of Wallace Bajjali, the former master downtown developer, doesn’t appear to have put the city in a huge financial bind.

And yet …

Change is on its way.

***

Which brings me to perhaps the most stunning development of tonight’s election: Burkett’s thumping of the field that included an incumbent who, as near as I could tell, didn’t do anything to offend anyone.

It was revealed late in the campaign that Burkett had put some commentary on his personal Facebook page that some folks found offensive. I’m one of them who took serious issue with some of the political bitterness that Burkett expressed. Some of it seemed to border on racist content. He denied any racist intent and said he’s not a racist.

I also heard a couple of his TV spots in which he uttered two clichés: It’s time for a change and it’s time to run city government “like a business.”

What the bleep does it mean to run a government “like a business”?

Successful businesses are run by chief executive officers who make command decisions. Yes, they might consult with employees, but then again, they might not. They are responsible for the success of a business and take the hickey when things go badly.

A number of residents out here who think the city should put some key decisions to a vote. Is that how you run a business, by asking employees to vote on every big decision you make?

Burkett called for change. It looks as though we’re about to get it with three non-incumbents set to take office.

To what end, and for what purpose, remains a mystery.

 

environmental news, local news

Rain, rain, rain … and there's still a drought

Those of us who live on the Texas Tundra are enjoying the rain that’s pelting these parts.

We had more than an inch of it today, according to the National Weather Service office at Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport.

This means we’re more than 2 inches over normal precipitation for the year to date.

Great news? Absolutely!

Is it a drought-buster? Hardly.

Can we predict what the weather will do for the rest of the year? We cannot predict for the rest of the week.

I stopped by Amarillo City Hall about a week ago and noticed the city’s “Every Drop Counts” water-use monitor over the first-floor elevator. The water use goal for that day was 48 million gallons; the actual use that day was 19 million gallons. Folks who normally water their lawns time of year didn’t turn the sprinklers on to irrigate their grass.

I reckon tomorrow’s water-use meter will register similar figures.

That, too, is great news.

I prefer to stay in water-conservation mode, no matter how much rain we get.

You see, it’s going to take a literal deluge to eradicate the drought threat that continues to draw down the water flowing through the Ogallala Aquifer, which gives our region its life.

The recent rainfall — and the prospect of more of it in the days and weeks ahead — gives City Hall, the water conservation districts, the counties and even the state a chance to remind us of what some of us sometimes forget when we get any significant moisture.

It’s that the drought hasn’t let up. The Texas drought remains a serious threat to our way of life — and even our lives.

 

local news, political news

Candidates shell out big dough for a volunteer job

You’ve got to hand it to the 16 men and women running for five spots on the Amarillo City Council.

They’ve raised and spent a lot of money to obtain what, in effect, is a volunteer job.

Campaign filing reports released Friday show the candidates have raised more than $281,000 in campaign cash for the council. The tab is continuing to climb and the final campaign expense list won’t be released until after the May 9 election.

Think about this for a moment.

These individuals are running for a spot on the council that pays 10 bucks per meeting. The council meets once a week on the third floor of City Hall. So, it’s $40 for most months; $50 for those months that have five Tuesdays in them. They get reimbursed for expenses incurred while doing city business. If they travel, say, to a Texas Municipal League meeting, the city will pay them back for travel expenses.

A couple of dynamics have popped up in the waning days of the campaign.

One of them is the negative campaign being waged by Place 1 incumbent Ellen Robertson Green and challenger Elisha Demerson, a former Potter County commissioner and judge. Another has to be the relative silence in most of the other races, even though the candidates have raised what seems like a lot of cash to spend.

I’ve had friends who are closer to this race than I have been tell me they think some of the incumbents are in trouble. Other friends, though, are suggesting that the turnout will be low — which is typical, sadly — and that the incumbents will skate back into office.

I’m not going to handicap this contest. My reporting job for NewsChannel10.com kind of takes me out of the local political prognostication business.

I will add this observation, however. If the candidates are going to spend nearly 300 grand collectively for an office that basically pays them nothing, then I suspect a serious commitment to public service from all of them — incumbents and challengers alike.

That speaks well for Amarillo.

local news

Tragedy hands Amarillo PD a PR gem

The Amarillo Police Department has been handed a solid-gold public relations opportunity that has been born out of a tragic incident on a city street.

James Sutton was killed Friday night near Caprock High School, apparently while drag-racing along 34th Avenue. He lost control of his vehicle and flipped it several times. The 24-year-old motorist was pronounced dead on the scene. Police say he was racing two other vehicle when his SUV struck a curb and flipped. APD is looking for the drivers of the other vehicles.

http://www.newschannel10.com/story/28896242/one-dead-after-wreck-near-school

A young man’s family is grieving over this senseless loss.

Senseless because the young man was doing something that has killed many other drivers over many years — perhaps since the invention of the automobile.

Street-racing is among any American city or town’s dirty little secrets. It’s underreported, yet it goes on virtually every night in cities across the country. Young drivers think they’re invincible to begin with, so they test their invincibility by challenging other young drivers to do something that is quite illegal, which is drive way past the posted speed limit recklessly, putting themselves and others in extreme danger.

Can there be a better tool to use in a campaign to dissuade young drivers from engaging in this kind of fearful behavior?

There now exists at Amarillo City Hall and in the city’s police department an opportunity to send a message throughout this city — and perhaps even far beyond the city — about the dangers of street racing.

Man, oh, man. It kills!

 

local news, State news

Red-light cams under the gun in Senate

1 Comment

Did I dream this or is it for real?

Wasn’t there a time when Republicans sang the virtues of local control and said that local government knew better than state or federal officials how to deal issues of local concern?

Apparently, most members of the Texas Senate Transportation Committee think the state knows best as it regards red-light cameras.

http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com/2015/04/texas-senate-committee-votes-to-approve-ban-on-redlight-cameras.html/

I believe the committee is mistaken.

The panel voted to ban cities and towns from deploying the devices to stop people from running red lights. Amarillo is one of those cities.

The author of the bill is state Sen. Bob Hall, R-Canton. “The public has expressed great opposition to the growing practice of unmanned, automatic-controlled traffic cameras,” Hall said.

Great opposition? Have there been massive protests? Have motorists marched on city halls across the state to demand removal of these devices?

Come on. Let’s get real.

Amarillo and a handful of other Texas cities have seen a need to crack down on a practice that puts the public in peril. So why not let cities deal with these issues the best way they can?

The full Texas Senate is going to get this bill. It’s full of Republicans who, I once thought, believed local control was the best control.

I think the words of my favorite Amarillo City Council member, Ellen Robertson Green, sums up the issue succinctly. She once told a protester at City Hall the best way to avoid being hassled by the camera is to “just don’t run the red light.”

Is that so difficult?

 

local news, national news

Strong mayor? Not for Amarillo

A friend and former colleague shared a story out of Sacramento, Calif., that he thought might pique my interest.

He’s right. It did.

The story concerns a ballot referendum that calls for a strong mayor form of government in California’s capital city.

It asks voters if they want the mayor to have appointment powers and to wield serious power over city government, which now runs on a council/city manager system.

http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/news-columns-blogs/city-beat/article3189903.html

My hometown of Portland, Ore., is run that way, with the mayor having the power to appoint city commissioners to oversee various city departments. Portland has no city manager; the mayor and the council do all the heavy lifting.

However, in my current hometown of Amarillo, we’ve got something quite different.

We have a council/manager government. What’s more, the council is a volunteer outfit, with five members — including the mayor — serving the city essentially for free. They get $10 every time they meet, which is weekly. The manager does all the grunt work. The only hire the council makes is, that’s right, the city manager, who then hires all the department heads.

I don’t know what would work for Sacramento. That’s the voters’ call.

Amarillo? It’s not in the cards.

***

Having said that, though, I have been entertaining second thoughts about whether the city should retain its at-large system of electing all council members.

Amarillo’s population is closing in on 200,000 residents; heck, it might even be there by now. With that population growth comes an increasingly diverse population. There’s a growing ethnic diversity, with residents of various ethnicities and races seeking City Hall’s attention on all manner of issues.

The argument here has been that each of the city council members represents the entire city. If someone has a concern, he or she can call any one of the five council members. But do they listen as intently to someone of, say, a different ethnic or racial background than they do one of their own? They all say they do, but not everyone believes what they hear.

The all-for-one approach, furthermore, reduces the mayor’s actual power. The city mayor’s main job, therefore, is just to preside over those weekly council meetings. Beyond that, the mayor has as much stroke as the other four council members.

One day — maybe soon — the winds of change will arrive at City Hall. It’s going to spark an interesting fight over whether to upset the norm that makes a lot of folks comfortable.

Continued growth, which the city fathers and mothers say they want, is going to change it.

Guaranteed.

 

local news

Loop might yet become a loop

I think I’m having a flashback.

Some years ago, I heard the arguments for and against rerouting Loop 335, aka Soncy Road, a bit farther west to create an actual loop around Amarillo’s western edge.

Then the discussion ended.

It’s being revived, as the Texas Department of Transportation is considering a costly and comprehensive reworking of the so-called loop into something that would create a traffic bypass around what’s become one of the busiest commercial corridors in the city.

http://amarillo.com/news/latest-news/2014-10-15/txdot-wants-redo-loop

It’s going to cost hundreds of millions of dollars. It’s going to be the result, presumably, of a lengthy round of public hearings in which the city and the state will receive comment from affected individuals.

Good luck with this one, ladies and gentlemen.

Loop 335, as one of the commenters noted in the online post attached to this blog, isn’t really a loop the way Loop 289 is in Lubbock. Loop 289 was built correctly the first time, with limited access roadway encircling the city. If you miss your appointed exit in Lubbock, all you have to do is stay on the loop, circle the city and exit the loop. It’ll take some time, but it’s a sure-fire way to get pointed back in the direction you want.

Here? Well, we don’t have that kind of thoroughfare.

It’s developed along Soncy. Head east where Loop 335 makes the turn south of the city and development begins to thin out when you get past Washington Street. The rest of the 40-some-mile-long loop is relatively vacant of the commercial development you see on Soncy.

I recall hearing that TxDOT wanted to create some limited-access roadway along the southern edge of the city. Maybe that will help.

Now there might be a connection with the westernmost route along Loop 335, if it gets extended.

I’m not holding my breath waiting for this improvement. Still, I wish everyone at TxDOT and City Hall well.

Uncategorized

Cloud forms over downtown

It’s always imperative to give defendants — be they criminal or civil — the presumption of innocence.

I’ll do so off the top in discussing briefly a lawsuit that’s been filed against a firm joined at the hip with downtown Amarillo’s effort to revive itself.

Still, the nature of the suit and its complexity is troubling in the extreme.

A lawsuit has been filed in Harris County that alleges that a financial services group funneled millions of dollars into a Ponzi scheme known as the Business Radio Network. Included in that group is a company named Wallace Bajjali — which happens to be the lead developer in a $113 million project to pump new life into Amarillo’s downtown business district.

Wallace Bajjali denies any wrongdoing. You’d expect that. The company based out of Sugarland, near Houston, has done plenty of due diligence in informing local government officials in Amarillo about the lawsuit, keeping everyone involved here abreast of matters.

I haven’t a clue as to whether the company has done anything wrong. All I know is what I’ve read in the past few hours about it.

However, this lawsuit just might have a negative impact on the city’s move forward in its effort to start construction on key projects downtown.

The entire project depends on private investment money, which Wallace Bajjali and city leader said made the project so appealing. No public money will be spent to build an athletic venue, a parking garage and a convention hotel.

Might there be some reluctance, given this lawsuit, among investors to move forward if they fear that Wallace Bajjali could actually lose this case?

The suit alleges that Wallace Bajjali got involved in BizRadio, which came under a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation. The investors have alleged all kinds of misdeeds, such as common law fraud and violations of the Texas Securities Act.

It’s a serious mess that might take some time — as in a lot of time — to get cleared up. Suppose it goes to trial and the court proceedings drag on and on.

Downtown got a break the other day when Potter County commissioners approved a tax abatement that clears the way for Coca-Cola to vacate its downtown distribution center to make room for the athletic venue.

Now this? I don’t feel good about what might lie ahead.

Uncategorized

More to come on Animal Shelter?

My gut’s been rumbling a bit the past few days.

I’m wondering if there’s another shoe about to drop at Amarillo City Hall regarding changes in the way it runs the Animal Control Shelter, you know, the one that’s been in the news of late.

The top two hands at Animal Control — Mike McGee and Shannon Barlow — have “retired” from public service. A Randall County grand jury heard evidence of alleged animal abuse at the shelter but then declined to indict anyone for criminal wrongdoing — a decision that caught many of us by surprise.

Is this the end of the story?

Something tells me “no.”

A lengthy newspaper article published this past Sunday told of how the city was a tad slow reacting to reports of abuse involving the euthanizing of animals at the shelter. Shelter staff had failed to weigh the animals prior to administering the lethal drugs, which is required by state law. Thus, they didn’t know how much of the drug to administer and it reportedly produced suffering by the animals as they died.

Still, the grand jury reported no “abuse” of the animals occurred? Someone will have to explain that one to me.

The city has a new interim director. Assistant City Manager Vicki Covey — who was charged with overseeing the animal control operations from her office — has been taken off that task. The city manager, Jarrett Atkinson, has been hit with yet another troubling case of lack of oversight on his watch.

I’ve spoken with a couple of former city council members about this matter. One of them thinks McGee and Barlow should have been canned on the spot when the allegations came to light; he disagreed with their being placed on “administrative leave.” The other ex-council member thinks the story has been overplayed in the media; I disagree quite vehemently with that assessment.

The care of animals means a lot to people, for better or worse. It’s part of many humans’ DNA to carry a soft spot in their hearts for defenseless animals who’ve been tossed aside by their caretakers.

If nothing else, the city ought to embark on a concentrated, proactive and aggressive campaign to educate pet owners about the need to neuter their animals. I know full well the message will be lost on many folks, but given the embarrassment caused by this scandal it’s worth the time, the effort — and the expense.

As for whether any more heads should roll at City Hall, well, I wouldn’t bet against it.

Uncategorized

SM3 leaves behind unique legacy

The news that swept across Amarillo today that Stanley Marsh 3 has died leaves me with very strange feelings at this moment.

I didn’t know Marsh well. I had made his acquaintance during the past 19-plus years I’ve lived in Amarillo. But like many of us here, I surely knew of him, his quirks, his “eccentricities,” his generosity, his art and his legal troubles.

Marsh’s death is huge at more levels than I can even count.

He’d been in failing health. The details of his death aren’t yet known as I write this essay.

Marsh’s legacy will be difficult — indeed, likely impossible — to replicate.

* Cadillac Ranch remains arguably the most unique roadside attraction in the United States of America. That’s Marsh’s creation. My sons love the place. One of them has declared it to be his “favorite place anywhere in the world.” Whenever he comes to visit, Cadillac Ranch is a must-see event. He has told me he believes the Cadillacs serve as antennae for an underground communication system Marsh uses to talk to beings in outer space. I laughed when he said that the first time; over time, I’ve come to believe just about anything associated with Marsh.

* Those yard signs sprinkled all over Amarillo, with the quirky sayings, poetry verses, witticisms, theories of life, whatever, also are part of Marsh’s legacy.

* The estate he shared with his wife, Wendy, just north of Amarillo Boulevard, is named Toad Hall. I’ve never been there, but I only can imagine how it looks.

* The “art projects” he developed across the Panhandle’s landscape also are part of his legacy. Perhaps you’ve seen the “floating mesa” off Boys Ranch Road. How about the dinosaur overlooking U.S. 60 near Miami?

* Stanley and Wendy Marsh also gave generously to West Texas A&M University and to Amarillo College. Wendy Marsh was appointed to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board by the late Gov. Ann Richards. Their commitment to higher ed was beyond question.

* And, yes, there is the legal trouble. In recent times, some individuals have leveled accusations of sexual abuse against Stanley Marsh. That’s all I am going to say about that at this time.

How do you sum up this man’s life? He was born into wealth. He married into it. He was well-educated and sought — usually through some highly unconventional means — to make a name for himself.

I’d say he succeeded.

The last time I saw Stanley Marsh 3 in the flesh was in 2006. I stood on the parking lot at Amarillo City Hall awaiting the remarks of Ku Klux Klansmen who had gathered there to make some kind of statement. Marsh and a large group of protestors came marching onto the lot, banging drums, blaring horns, clanging cymbals and other noise-makers to disrupt the Klansmen’s effort to be heard.

Marsh and I spoke briefly on that warm day. He said some nice things about the work I was doing at the time for the newspaper.

What should happen now to the art this man leaves behind? I do hope he’s taken care of it, particularly the Caddies out there west of the city.

Stanley Marsh 3’s journey on Earth has ended. Wherever he’s going, I’m certain it’s going to be quite a ride.