Roger Estlack

Farmers, chefs and foodies are all invited to an “Alternative Crop Tour” near Clarendon that will allow participants to “see how your food is grown” on Sept. 24 by the Potter County Extension Service.

This free crop tour won’t feature traditional crops such as sorghum, wheat and cotton, said Megan Eikner, AgriLife Extension agriculture and natural resources agent for Potter County.

“We are going to be talking about marigolds for seed production, watermelons, cantaloupes, food corn, squash and more,” Eikner said. “We’ve had a growing interest expressed in alternative crop production, as well as detailed understanding for the general public about the safety of the food we eat.”

The program will be located five miles north of Clarendon. Participants can meet at the field, located at the old Hitchin’ Post north of Clarendon on Texas Highway 70, at 9 a.m., or in Amarillo at the Flying J Travel Center at 8 a.m. to caravan to the farm.

Rides will be available with an RSVP by Sept. 16. Lunch will also be provided with an RSVP to the AgriLife Extension office for Potter County at 806-373-0713.

“On the tour, participants will get a chance to ask producers about chemicals they use and get the truth behind applications affecting your food sources,” Eikner said. “We’ll also cover the Food Modernization Act that protects public health.”

For more information see the AgriLife Extension, Potter County Facebook page.

The Clarendon Chamber of Commerce will hold its next Business After Hours and its third Totally Locally $500 drawing at Saye’s Tack Store next Thursday, September 12.

The come-and-go event will be held from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. and will provide Chamber members and prospective members an opportunity to learn more about what’s happening in the local business community. Refreshments will be served.

In addition to learning more about Saye’s, one of the highlights of the September After Hours will be the Chamber’s third Totally Locally drawing. Shoppers can sign up for the drawing at eleven local stores, and one will win $500 in Clarendon Cash at the After Hours.

Donley County Com-missioners will consider adopting a $2.79 million budget for fiscal year 2020 during their regular meeting next Monday, September 9.

A public budget hearing held before the vote will start at 9 a.m.

County Judge John Howard said the proposed budget is unusual because of one particular line item.

“The salient feature of this year’s budget is that we need money for a capital murder trial,” Howard said.
The trial would be that of Jarvis Fierro, who stands accused of murdering James Fierro and Candice Garrett earlier this year.

Howard said recent capital murder trial costs in other counties have ranged from $123,000 to $941,000, and he says Donley County’s proposed budget is about $81,000 for that expense.
Some state funds may be available to assist the county with the burden of paying for the trial.

“We can ask the governor for permission to apply for a grant as funds are available, called a County Essentials Grant,” Howard said.

In addition to the prosecutor’s costs in the trial, the county is also obligated to pay for the defense of the accused. The county already pays into a regional public defender fund out of Lubbock, which costs about $2,000 per year and is providing for two defense attorneys from Wichita Falls. That only pays for the lawyers and not expert witnesses or other costs.

An indigent defense grant might also provide relief for those defense costs, Howard said, but the county must first spend the money before it can apply for assistance.

Outside of the capital murder trial, the judge said regular indigent defense expenses are rising. The county has already exceeded its $40,000 indigent defense budget for the current year by about $14,000. Commissioners have increased that budget line to $60,000 in the new year.

The 2020 budget will be supported by a total tax rate of $0.65970 per $100 valuation, which is about four cents lower than the current tax rate. Howard said the rate is lower than both the rollback rate or the effective rate and therefore does not require holding public hearings on that.

County employees will receive a $50 per month cost of living raise, and Howard notes that the county has been able to lift county salaries for full time positions by about $4,900 over the last six years.

Health insurance premiums for full time employees are going up about $45 per month, and the county will cover that cost.

The county will receive its third of ten annual payments from the wind farm in the next fiscal year, an amount of $200,000. Unlike the previous two years when the county put half of that money into reserves, all of the payment will go to help cover expenses in fiscal 2020. Howard hopes when the trial is completed, the county can resume putting money into savings in 2021.

The county budget also includes the fourth year of a five-year grant for the sheriff’s department’s highway safety officer. The county will pay 60 percent of the expense for that officer in 2020.

Howard said overall he believes the county in this new budget is doing well to live within its means while meeting the needs of the people and its employees.

Clarendon ISD teachers will received a pay raise and local taxpayers could see relief on their property taxes thanks to House Bill 3, according to Superintendent Mike Norrell.

The Clarendon ISD Board of Trustees approved a new compressed tax rate Monday night, mandated by HB 3. The new rate of $1.0683 per $100 valuation will replace the school’s old rate of $1.17.

Norrell also said that the starting teachers will see their base salary go up by more than $3,000 in the new budget. Teachers with more experience will receive larger increases on the new pay scale set forth by the Texas Education Agency.

The state also set up increases for certified nurses, librarians, and counselors. Norrell said Clarendon ISD instructional aides will see increases of $1,000 per step on the pay scale and maintenance and cafeteria workers will get a five percent raise.

Clarendon’s $5.803 million general school budget is up 9.82 percent due mostly to payroll increases, the superintendent said. In fact, Norrell notes that about 75 percent of the school budget is payroll.
State funding to Clarendon ISD is up about eight percent or $300,000, but Norrell worries that the state might not continue to fund the raises they have put in place.

“My fear is that after this biennium, the state will cut back on their contributions and it will fall back on the district,” Norrell said.

The new budget is built on an average daily attendance of 415 students. Enrollment at Clarendon ISD this week is 443.

A Clarendon man will spend ten years in prison following the death of his daughter last October.

During a meeting of the 100th District Court here Monday, Christopher Bryon Myers, age 38, entered a guilty plea to the charge of second degree felony offense of injury to a child. Myers was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in the Institutional Division of the TDCJ.

Myers was arrested in Donley County by DPS Texas Ranger Mike Smith on October 12, 2018. He was later indicted by the Donley County Grand Jury on January 17.

Law enforcement and emergency medical personnel responded to Myers’ residence at 718 S. Ellerbe on Friday, October 12, after a 911 call at 5:02 that morning reported a possible dead baby.

The infant was transported to Northwest Texas Hospital in Amarillo and placed on life support. Aries Renae Myers pronounced dead on Monday, October 15.

Officials at the time said the complaint against Myers alleged that the child’s death was due to blunt force trauma.

The Clarendon City Council approved rate increases for water, sewer, and trash services when it met last Thursday, August 22.

Officials said the cost of water and trash services charged to the city has gone up, and City Administrator David Dockery said the increase in the sewer charge will help the city’s application for a grant to improve the sewer system.

“We’ve been told if we didn’t raise our sewer rates, our application didn’t stand a chance,” Dockery said.

Dockery also noted that the utility increases are the first the city has implemented in several years, other than a $10 per month fee imposed three years ago for debt service.

Mayor Sandy Skelton noted the need for the city to maintain its financial position.

“Unfortunately, the city must raise utility rates on occasion so that expenses don’t exceed revenue,” the mayor said. “Effective October 1, garbage, water, and sewer rates will increase. Garbage rates will increase 5 percent due to higher rates charged by the Memphis Landfill (Clarendon transports all garbage to Memphis). Water rates will increase by 7.6 percent due to an increase charged to the City by Greenbelt Water Authority. Sewer rates will increase by 5.0 percent simply because rates have not been raised in the past 12 years.”

The mayor also reminded citizens that the council has worked to lower the tax burden it places on property owners in the city.

“Several months ago, the City Council voted to significantly decrease city property taxes and to eliminate the city’s portion of personal property taxes (vehicles, trailers, campers, RV’s, etc.),” Skelton said. “These reductions will be effective January 1, 2020, and will more than offset the increase in utility rates. All property owners will realize a sizable savings.”

In other city news, the council set September 12 at 6:30 p.m. as the date for a public hearing on its proposed budget for fiscal year 2020.

The council also gave final approval to the purchase of the Lowe office building.

“I am pleased that the City Council approved the purchase of the Lowe Building across the street from the Courthouse,” Skelton said. “The purchase solved two problems, the first being the very crowded conditions at the current City Hall. The second reason is that the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is requiring us to add a handicapped bathroom and make other improvements to the current facility in order to comply with the American Disabilities Act (ADA).

Skelton said the Lowe building was recently appraised at $330,000 by a certified appraiser.

“We were able to negotiate a sales price of $163,000 or $45 per square foot,” he said. “The City will not have to dip into reserves for the purchase as we should finish the current fiscal year at the end of September with revenue over expense by approximately $200,000.

Skelton said the building is in excellent condition and will provide adequate space for all employees and will accommodate numerous citizens for city council meetings and other gatherings. Employee parking will be in the rear of the building which will allow for citizens parking on Sully Street.

“In my opinion, this action made a lot of sense and was good use of public funds,” Skelton said.

Alderman also last week approved $15,015.19 from the airport maintenance fund to match a TxDOT RAMP grant for funding runway lighting improvements at the Smiley Johnson Municipal Airport. Those improvements will cost a total of $29,419.

In his administrator’s report, Dockery told the council that the city’s code compliance officer has completed training on junk vehicles and said the city will soon begin addressing the numerous junk vehicles around town. Aldermen also learned that Greg Price had resigned from the city and that Jacob Lindsey would be moving from part-time to full-time to take Price’s place.

Clarendon and Hedley schools both met state goals on standardized testing last spring and earned “grades” of B for the year, according to information released this month by the Texas Education Agency (TEA).

Clarendon ISD’s overall score improved from an 84 last year as a district to 88 this year with Clarendon High School making an 87, down one point; Clarendon Junior High making an 80, up five points; and Clarendon Elementary maintaining a 90.

“We’re just two points away from an A,” Superintendent Mike Norrell said. “Schools are about more than just accountability tests, but if this is the way the state is going to measure us, we’re going to work to make up those two points.”

Norrell went on to say that he proud of Clarendon’s students and staff.

“It’s students and staff that make the difference,” he said. “We’re going to continue to do the best to provide every child a quality education.”

Three components make up the state’s grading system: Student Achievement, which is mostly scores on the spring STAAR tests; School Progress, which involves how students are performing over time; and Closing the Gaps, which concerns how different ethnic and economic populations are performing.
Clarendon High School’s score was broken down as 87 for Student Performance, 84 for School Progress, and 86 for Closing the Gaps. CHS received two out of a possible seven distinctions for Academic Achievement in Social Studies, Top 25 percent for comparative academic growth when compared with similar schools around the state.

Clarendon Junior High’s scores were made up of 80 for Student Performance, 81 for School Progress, and 77 for Closing the Gaps.

Clarendon Elementary received an 88 for Student Achievement, 89 for School Progress, and 92 for Closing the Gap. The elementary school also received five out of a possible six distinctions. Those included Academic Achievements in Mathematics and English Language Arts / Reading; Top 25 Percent in Comparative Academic Growth; Post Secondary Readiness; and Top 25 Percent in Comparative Closing the Gaps.

Hedley received an overall score of 88 out of 100, down from a 92 last year. Hedley ISD operates as one campus, where the state recognizes Clarendon as being three campuses – elementary, junior high, and high school.

Hedley scored 89 out of 100 for Student Achievement, an 85 out of 100 for School Progress, and 87 out of 100 for Closing the Gaps. The school also earned three out of seven distinctions for Academic Achievements in Mathematics, Post-Secondary Readiness, and Top 25 Percent Comparative Closing the Gaps.