News

The public now has until September 27 to complete a survey for the Texas Department of Transportation to provide feedback on the feasibility of upgrading US 287 to interstate highway standards.

The original deadline for the survey was September 16, but the state has approved more time to allow the public to give feedback on this issue.

Members of the public are also encouraged to leave comments about specific locations along the corridor on an interactive map. Both the survey and the interactive map will be available through Sept. 16 on https://www.txdot.gov/projects/projects-studies/statewide/us287-corridor-interstate-feasibility-study.html.

Guided by groups representing northwest, central, and southeast segments of the corridor, this study focuses on safety, movement of people and goods, connectivity with other key corridors in Texas, and new technology, and other priorities.

For more information, contact Ginger Wilson at 940-937-7288.

Donley County Judge John Howard addressed the county’s plans for recently acquired property near the Courthouse Square as the featured program at the Clarendon Lions Club Tuesday.

The county acquired a quarter of a block at the southwest corner of Third and Jefferson across the street west of the county jail about a year ago. Recent demolition of the houses on that property caused a stir on social media which resulted in misinformation being generated.

To set the record straight, he said, the county is not and will not be building a new jail. Howard said the current jail, the original part of which was built in 1981, meets the county’s needs and is “a fortress.” There is no way, Howard said, the county could afford to build a new jail and meet the modern state standards that would be required to do so.

The judge did say, however, that the county is considering construction of a new facility that would house the Donley County Sheriff’s Office and serve as an Emergency Operations Center.

“About ten years ago, I asked the commissioners, “Where are we? What do we have? And where are we going?” Howard said. “We wanted to look to the future and think about what our needs are for years to come.”

Since that time, the county has built a new justice of the peace office in Hedley, a new county barn in Hedley, added on to the county barn in Clarendon, and renovated the Courthouse Annex. Repairs also have been made and proposed facelifts have been discussed for county-owned buildings on the east side of Sully Street north of City Hall.

All of these improvements were made without borrowing money, and the county tax rate is lower than it was ten years ago, Howard said.

Howard said the jail doesn’t have much space for the sheriff’s office, and he noted that dispatchers also serve as jailers, doing two jobs at once. Giving more space to the jailer/dispatchers would require taking in office space used by the sheriff and deputies.

The judge said one that would be good for the county to have is an Emergency Operations Center.

“You don’t have to have it but it would be nice,” he said. “Any event that results in prolonged destruction – like a tornado – or a loss of power or a toxic spill on US 287 or the railroad is going to require more response than what Donley County can provide on its own, and where do you house that?”

Howard said an Emergency Operations Center could be co-located with a new sheriff’s office and could include redundancies in power and communications to remain active during disasters and have workstations available for other emergency officials who would respond from outside the county.

Howard said everything is just the planning and discussion stages right now, but when the county saw an opportunity to purchase property near the jail it moved to buy that in the marketplace. Only one of the homes was occupied, and that renter was given a year’s notice that the county was not going to be in the rental business and that the HUD agreement for that residence would not be renewed.

The properties were purchased for $139,000, and the county paid Grant Construction $24,690 to demolish the houses.

Howard said Commissioner Dan Sawyer is planning to donate gravel to create a parking area, and a carport was left standing for the county’s use.

The Blocker Apartments to the south of the property was not acquired by the county.

The county has no immediate plan to build an Emergency Operations Center, and Howard said Sheriff Butch Blackburn doesn’t have much interest in a new office. Howard federal grant funds could possibly be acquired to help build such a facility. To pursue that option requires working with US Rep. Ronny Jackson’s office and would require the county to get an architect involved and get cost estimates.

Blackburn said he’s not against the idea if there’s grant money to pay for it; but if there’s no grant money, he’s not in favor of asking Donley County taxpayers to pay for it.

If everything were to move forward with a grant application, Howard said federal appropriations wouldn’t happen until fiscal year 2026 or 2027 at the earliest.

Biologists will soon begin conducting white-tailed deer spotlight surveys on rural roads in northern Donley County.

A western route will follow County Road 9 to County Road I, and the eastern survey route will be from County Road 20 to County Road O to County Road 23 to County Road P to County Road 24.

These routes stay on public roads and are run after dark and always in a state truck. Local law enforcement and game wardens are always notified for the safety of the surveyors and the surrounding public. Data gathered from these surveys allows the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department to set bag limits and season dates for white-tailed deer as well as monitor trends in the population.

All surveys should be completed by the end of October.

A Colorado man lost his life in a single vehicle accident near Ashtola Monday afternoon.

According to DPS Sergeant Cindy Barkley, the accident occurred about 4:10 p.m. on US 287, about seven miles northwest of Clarendon.

Samuel Houston, 30, of Basalt, Colo., was driving a 2011 Lincoln MKX SUV south on US 287 when, for an unknown reason, he lost control of the SUV.

The DPS reports said the vehicle traveled off the right edge of the roadway, entered the ditch, struck a road sign, traveled through a barbed wire fence, and rolled over at least two times.

Houston was not wearing a seat belt and, as a result, was ejected during the crash. He was later pronounced deceased on scene by Donley County Justice of the Peace Pat White.

The crash remains under investigation by the Department of Public Safety.

The Clarendon City Council approved its budget for fiscal year 2025 when they met in called session August 22.

The new budget of $2.87 million is just slightly bigger than the current budget of $2.8 million, according to City Administrator Brian Barboza. The new budget will take effect October 1.

Grant projects totaling more than $1.1 million will be a major focus in the new budget, Barboza said. The new budget includes about $135,000 for the city’s grant matches.

A Downtown Revitalization Project in the 200 block of Kearney Street will is a $500,000 project funded mostly by the Texas Department of Agriculture with the city providing about $98,800. Work will include replacement of sidewalks and installing ramping and lighting similar to what was done in the 100 block last year.

The other big project is a new wastewater lift station at Sully and Martindale funded by a federal Community Development Block Grant. The $500,000 project will include a match of $25,000 from the city.

A Texas Department of Transportation RAMP grant will fund most of a $111,000 project to maintain the runway and continue to improve runway lights and other projects at the Smiley Johnson Municipal Airport. The city will provide about $11,000 for that project.

Other takeaways from the new budget include a three percent pay increase for city employees, improvements to the city’s animal shelter, and street maintenance projects.

In other city business, the council selected AW Broadband as the city’s new internet provider. The six-month trail period will be implemented to test out a hybrid fiber and wireless service. The type of service will depend on the location of the service (i.e. City Hall, the recycling center, etc.).

Aldermen also approved an addition to the tenant lease agreements for hangers at the airport to address storage of household items in those facilities.

The public has until September 16 to complete a survey for the Texas Department of Transportation to provide feedback on the feasibility of upgrading US 287 to interstate highway standards.

The study is focused on almost the entire length of US 287 in Texas, a corridor that spans 671 miles from Port Arthur to Amarillo and plays a major role in moving people and goods through Texas.

The comprehensive study will evaluate transportation needs and identify potential multimodal solutions to help improve safety and connectivity. TxDOT is asking the public to participate in a survey to share their experiences traveling along the corridor, challenges for safety and mobility, and provide insights into priorities for US 287.

TxDOT corridor planning branch manager Lorena Echeverria de Misi said the study is an opportunity for TxDOT to hear from communities, businesses, and the broader public what this corridor should look like and how it can connect communities and foster economic opportunities for Texans for years to come.

Childress District TxDOT public information officer Ginger Wilson says she wants as many people as possible to complete the survey and give their thoughts on what changes to US 287 could mean.

“Question eight – the last question on the survey – is open ended, and we encourage people to respond there with their thoughts and opinions.”

Wilson also said that if the study ultimately determines that upgrading US 287 is feasible, it would likely be many years or even decades before any changes would be made to the highway.

Members of the public are also encouraged to leave comments about specific locations along the corridor on an interactive map. Both the survey and the interactive map will be available through Sept. 16 on https://www.txdot.gov/projects/projects-studies/statewide/us287-corridor-interstate-feasibility-study.html.

Guided by groups representing northwest, central, and southeast segments of the corridor, this study focuses on safety, movement of people and goods, connectivity with other key corridors in Texas, and new technology, and other priorities.

For more information, contact Ginger Wilson at 940-937-7288.