News

Primary runoff elections as well as the Clarendon school board election have been postponed to help mitigate the spread of the COVID-19 virus, and two other local elections may also be postponed.

Governor Greg Abbott last week issued a proclamation postponing the runoff primary election until July 14, 2020. The runoff election was originally scheduled for May 26.

Abbott also took action to allow local governments to move their elections scheduled for May 2, 2020, to the next general election on November 3, 2020. Clarendon CISD’s Board of Trustees voted in favor of that move during a called meeting on Monday night. School trustees felt that some senior citizens might not vote during a May election this year due to the COVID-19 virus.

The Howardwick City Council and the Clarendon College Board of Regents were also scheduled to consider moving their elections this week.

The postponement of elections serves to help fulfill the Governor’s recent executive orders mandating certain obligation for Texans that are aimed at slowing the spread of COVID-19, including the encouragement of social distancing.

Holding elections in May would cause the congregation of large gatherings of people in confined spaces and cause numerous election workers to come into close proximity with others, the governor’s office said. This would threaten the health and safety of many Texans.
Early voting for the runoff primary election will begin July 6.

Clarendon school trustees in a called meeting Monday night approved a resolution that ensures all district employees will continue to be paid even in the event of an emergency school closing.

In the current situation, the school is not technically closed even though students are not on campus. Monday’s move would make sure that all district employees can count on their paycheck even if a “shelter in place order” or other emergency action was taken.

The measure covers all employees – contract or non-contract on salary or paid hourly, according to school officials.

Donley County Judge John Howard has issued a Declaration of a Local State of Disaster due to the public health emergency presented by the spread of COVID-19.

No cases of the virus have yet been reported in Donley County, but two confirmed cases were reported in Amarillo Thursday evening.

In addition to opening up state and federal resources, the declaration grants the county broad authority to close businesses, quarantine people, and prohibit public meetings, but Judge Howard says he is not going to use that authority at this time, hoping instead that people will voluntarily take the precautions needed to slow the spread of the disease.

Earlier in the week, the judge had said he did not think churches needed to suspend services, but he said that advice was now “out the window” with the confirmation of cases in nearby Amarillo.

Howard’s order is in effect on its own for seven days, but the county commissioners will meet Monday to consider ratifying that order and putting it in place for up to 60 days.

The City of Clarendon also issued a Local Disaster Declaration in an emergency meeting Thursday night in the face of the COVID-19 threat.

The declaration, which will have to be renewed every seven days, will help the city access state and federal resources as the world continues to grapple with the pandemic.

The city council also approved a Coronavirus Action Plan and triggered Phase 2 with the confirmed cases COVID-19 in Amarillo. Those Phase 2 rules includes the following:

• The City will reimburse customers the $3 convenience fee when they pay city bills by credit card.
• The City will discontinue utility disconnects.
• The City will waive late fees.
• The City will not accept cash payments.
• The City will provide signage at City Hall and Library to inform customers of potential closure.

Also on Thursday, Gov. Greg Abbott issued an executive order to contain the spread of COVID-19 that includes closing restaurants and bars to dine-in business, closing gyms, closing schools, limiting social gatherings to 10 people, and banning people from visiting nursing homes except for critical care.

Complete coverage of Abbott’s action can be found here: https://bit.ly/3906SVL

As of Thursday afternoon the Enterprise also has the following list of local closures and postponements:

• The Mulkey Theatre has suspended movies scheduled for this week and next week.
• The Clarendon Visitor Center is closed to the public, but the office is still staffed and providing information.
• The Donley County Senior Citizens Center is still delivering meals and to-go meals are available from the center, but the dining room is closed.
• The Hedley Senior Citizens Center is open today but will switch to to-go meals Friday.
• The First Assembly of God in Clarendon has suspended all services until at least April 5.
• The Presbyterian Church in Clarendon has canceled services through the end of March.
• The Nazarene Church in Clarendon has canceled its service for this coming Sunday.
• The Donley County Sheriff’s Office has suspended visitation until further notice
• The Clarendon Housing Authority office is not open to the public but we are here to answer calls, take care of work-orders and take money at the door.
• The Clarendon Church of Christ has suspended services with plans to resume services on April 5.
• The Clarendon First United Methodist Church services are canceled until further notice.

 

Clarendon and Hedley school officials announced Wednesday evening that they will not allow students to return to classes next week following the spring break holiday as officials work to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Superintendents of both schools said classes would be suspended through March 27, and school personnel will be developing ways of delivering educational materials to students going forward. School work will be presented in the form of digital delivery or homework packets or other methods.

Extracurricular activities at both schools are still canceled at this time.

“With the rapidly changing landscape caused by the COVID-19 (Coronavirus), we are continuing to monitor and make adjustments as necessary in order to make educated decisions for the students and staff of CISD,” Clarendon CISD Superintendent Jarod Bellar said. “The health and safety of our students, staff, and community are our priority as we navigate this difficult time.”

“Please know that this decision does not come lightly,” Hedley Superintendent Garrett Bains said. “We recognize that this decision will cause significant difficulties for parents.”

Both schools also announced that they intend to continue food service for their students, likely through “grab and go” meals, and said more information about service would be released as it becomes available.

Donley County residents are being reminded that personal property tax rendition forms are due to the appraisal district office on or before April 1.

Almost everyone with personal property in the Donley Appraisal District has now been mailed rendition forms.  A “rendition” is a report to the appraisal district listing all the taxable property you owned or controlled on January 1 of this year. Please complete the listing of your taxable personal property and return the forms by April 1.  All personal property must be rendered each year even if there has been no change from the prior year.  You should include cars, pickups, trucks, RV’s, motorcycles, travel trailers, and airplanes.

Renditions must be signed, and you may, although it is not required, list an opinion of market value.  If you give your opinion of your property’s value and the appraisal district believes the value is higher, you will be notified in writing of the higher value and told how you can protest that value to the appraisal review board.

If you own a business, you should also render your business inventory held for resale, and other business related equipment that was owned or managed as of January 1.  Separate rendition forms have been mailed to business owners. Business owners not filing renditions by the April 1 deadline will be assessed a penalty of 15 percent.

Property owners needing more time to file their renditions may file a written request with the chief appraiser on or before April 1 to receive an extension to May 1.

File your rendition with the appraisal district office at 304 S. Kearney or mail to PO Box 1220, Clarendon, TX 79226.

Several local businesses and organizations have this week announced postponements or changes in plans for the weeks ahead.

The Sandell Drive-In Theatre was planning to open for its 2020 season the first weekend in April but announced last week on its Facebook page that it would postpone that opening until further notice.

The Mulkey Theatre is continuing with its movie this week, but the theatre will limit the number of people admitted to the show to 40.

The Saints’ Roost Museum board met this week and decided to close the museum until March 31 out of concern for the health of its volunteers.

The parishioners of St. Mary’s Catholic Church have postponed their Fish Fry nights scheduled for March 27 and April 3. The church hopes to reschedule those events at a later date.

The Friends of the Library has postponed its Trivia Night that was scheduled Friday, March 27. The group plans to host this event in the future, but no date has been set yet.

Clarendon and Hedley schools have no plans to cancel school as of Tuesday, but are feeling the first impact of the COVID-19 virus with the cancelation of UIL competitions and the upcoming STAAR testing.

With both schools on spring break this week, superintendents said Monday they are taking a “wait and see” approach before extending the break or otherwise canceling classes.

Many schools around the state are already taking measures to suspend classes amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but Clarendon Superintendent Jarod Bellar said no one in Region 16 had done so as of Monday.

“Right now we aren’t going to make a determination on that,” Bellar said about a possible school closure. “We’re here to educate kids and keep them safe, and there won’t be a break in that effort.”

Hedley Superintendent Garrett Bains said his school was also waiting on any determination to close the school.

“As of right now, we’re back to school on March 23,” Bains said. “We have zero cases [of COVID-19] in the Panhandle, and I want those days in our pocket for when we need them.”

Bains said he felt certain the virus would impact Region 16 schools in time.

“I bet we won’t make it to May,” he said. “It will touch every county eventually.”

Bellar said all UIL academic and athletic events have been suspended across the state effective March 13 and lasting until at least March 29.

Monday afternoon, the UIL also postponed all rehearsals, practices, and workouts conducted outside of the school day until March 29 as well.

Also on Monday, Gov. Greg Abbott waived STAAR testing requirements for this school year.

Bellar said the state is leaving promotions and end of course exams to the discretion of local schools, but that Clarendon will continue to work to make sure students are where they need to be.

Bains said his students may still take the test but that he had not yet made a determination on that.

“I think it’s worth looking at,” Bains said. “It’s an indicator, and we can tell if we’re moving forward the way we need to.”

Both Clarendon and Hedley schools say they are staying in close contact with the state and with Dr. John Howard locally. Hedley is going through a cleaning process while kids are on spring break, and Bellar said Clarendon School Nurse Debbie Thompson met with custodial staff before the break to talk about how the school can take extra precautions to combat the spread of germs.

Clarendon College is extending spring break, moving most classes online, and canceling spring sports in extraordinary measures to help mitigate the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

In an emergency meeting of the Board of Regents Thursday night, college officials discussed the pandemic in terms of the safety of students, staff, and the communities CC serves.

Interim President Tex Buckhaults said the meeting was prompted by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, which had asked colleges and universities to report their plans for dealing with the outbreak. Buckhaults then presented regents with options ranging from compressing the spring schedule and finishing the semester earlier to not allowing students to return from spring break.

Dr. John Howard addressed the board in his capacity as the Donley County Judge and Emergency Management Director as well as a medical doctor. Howard said there were 23 confirmed cases in Texas of COVID-19, commonly called the Coronavirus, as of Thursday with another 100 people being tested in the state. He said the number of confirmed cases would grow by next week, when Clarendon College will be off for spring break.

“The effort now is to mitigate the spread,” Howard said. “It is spreading now and spreads rapidly. This is a novel virus. There is no immunity.”

Howard said the local community is isolated in its rural setting from the virus that is mostly in metropolitan areas currently, but travelers will be bringing the disease to Clarendon on US 287. He and college officials also discussed that college students who do not currently have the virus may be exposed when they disperse for spring break and then return to campus.

Most people who get COVID-19 may not even know it, Howard said, but it is very dangerous to people with compromised health and threatens to overwhelm the healthcare system if the spread is not mitigated.

“Our concern is not that young people will get this and get sick,” he said. “Our concern is that young people will take it home to grandma on dialysis or uncle with COPD.”

The virus can incubate for two to 14 days before symptoms occur, Howard said, during which time, the person may spread the disease.

“The Spanish flu killed at least 20 million people in 1918,” Howard said. “That was influenza, and we don’t want to see that happen again.”

Following the unanimous decision of the board, Clarendon College students will be on spring break from March 16-27. Students living in the dorms will be told to take their personal belongings home with them. Students who have already left for spring break will be allowed to return for their possessions.

During the break, college faculty and personnel will work to move as many classes as possible online. Some vocational programs may be too hands-on to be moved to online. College personnel urged regents to make the decision to go online sooner rather than later due to the difficulty of moving a class online and training some faculty who have not taught online before.

The college also canceled all spring sporting events. Athletic Director Mark James told the board that baseball and softball students will retain a year of eligibility under the circumstances. Most other sports are finished for the year, although the college rodeo team still had events planned and the men’s basketball team was scheduled to make their first appearance in the NJCAA national tournament next week. Earlier in the day, the NJCAA had postponed that tournament due to concerns about the spread of COVID-19.

Other college related events that have been cancelled are spring graduation ceremonies in May and the spring invitational judging contest scheduled for April 4. The contest regularly doubles the population of Clarendon for the day it’s held. Judging coach Johnny Triechel, however, said restrictions at other universities and school districts may have caused Clarendon’s event to be called off anyway.

The Enterprise will have more information about CC’s decision and other local impacts of the COVID-19 virus in next week’s issue.