Editorial: City board can chart a new path

The Way Forward, Part 7

Three new City Aldermen being seated this week give Clarendon a chance to chart a path of progress for our community. But to do that the board must start out on the right foot with thoughtful decision-making for the good of the whole.

Citizens have had enough of petty arguments and personal animosity and are ready for a fresh start. Above all else, however, the people of this city want results, and there are a few steps the new board can take to help restore the faith of the people.

There will be several things that will come before the board in the next few weeks, and among these issues, no doubt, will be questions concerning the sale of alcohol in the city following last week’s election that turned Donley County wet for the first time in 111 years.

The city has some regulatory ability in this area, but there is some confusion in the public that the city must do something with regards to zoning. According to the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission web site, the city doesn’t have to do anything. State law does, however, allow the city to set a distance of 300 feet between schools and churches and establishments selling alcohol. The city may even expand that distance to 1,000 feet, but in any case the city can grant a variance to a property owner if it chooses.

But in a town with 17 churches (at last count), a zone of 1,000 feet would eliminate most commercial locations and even a zone of 300 feet could catch several existing businesses, restaurants, and/or land that could be ripe for development. Thoughtfulness is therefore warranted in this situation in order to make sure that economic opportunities are not dashed even before they have a chance to bloom. Whatever personal feelings some aldermen may have on this issue, they should respect that the people have spoken.

Exempting properties on most of the US 287 corridor and on Kearney Street between First and Fourth Streets would provide ample opportunities for businesses to expand or develop, and it would eliminate constant requests for variances from current or potential businesses. Again, prudence should prevail, and the goal should be one of growth. City leaders must take care not to enact rules so strict that no restaurant could serve a beer with a meal or that no downtown shop could ever offer a selection of Texas wines, for instance.

Voters largely approved the local option for two basic reasons – personal freedom and the possibility of economic growth, which leads to greater tax revenue. City aldermen should take care not to unduly thwart what the people have said they want.

The next big issue for Clarendon hasn’t changed much in 25 years – the streets. They are the chief source of irritation and complaint in this city, and recent water and sewer replacements have intensified the problem. For months, drivers have been intermittently blocked off from their usual routes, and with every rain lower Third Street and the intersecting Koogle Street have been covered with several inches of dirt and mud that have had to be removed by the state. To say that it has created a nightmare for the people who live on Third and the numerous people who drive this road would be a gross understatement.

For the city to restore the faith of its citizens and for any future bond issue to ever have a snowball’s chance of passing, this all has to have been worth it. And the only way for that to happen is for Third Street to be paved in such a manner that it becomes the absolute best street in town.

The current plan for the Third Street, crafted by former administrator Lambert Little, is to narrow the road to 30 feet, put some little concrete valley’s for the water, and tar and gravel it. This “poor boy” plan has got to go. Third Street connects our central business district with the public school and the college, and it needs to be done up right.

From Bronco Stadium at Allen Street all the way to the First Baptist Church on Bugbee Avenue, Third Street should be kept the same width as it is from Parks Street (near the Episcopal Church) to the stadium, and it should have curbs and gutters all the way to the top of the hill.

How do you pay for this extra work? Simple, abandon Little’s plan to seal coat streets on the college campus. Those are not city streets, they are the responsibility of the Clarendon College District, and we need to focus the city’s resources on the city’s infrastructure. (Why the college would allow the city to touch their streets is a mystery anyway.)

And finally, as a point of community healing, let’s get rid of the elevator on the front of City Hall and restore the building’s façade. The project is a lightning rod for criticism and serves no useful purpose at this time. Its removal could be a gesture of goodwill as our city attempts to focus on new opportunities.

In these and other areas, our Aldermen have their work cut out for them. They will have several hard decisions to make; but if they focus on progress and work together, they can move Clarendon forward.