The Amarillo Pioneer

20/03/2024

After breaking the news last night, we have new details in our story on the Herring Hotel bankruptcy filing:

This is an updated version of a story previously published on March 19th, 2024 Herring Hotel Development Company LLC, which owns the historic Herring Hotel in downtown Amarillo, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on March 5th, court documents reveal. Days later, the historic building was the subject

18/03/2024

Read our in-depth breakdown of the 108th District Court results:

After the dust settled following the March 5th Primary, all party nomination races on local ballots had been decided, except for one: The Republican Party primary election for 108th District Court Judge was sent to a runoff between Sam Brown Silverman and Tim Pirtle. The fact that the race went to

11/03/2024

It was a close race among all four candidates, but two contenders emerged from the pack to claim their spots in the 108th District Court runoff on Tuesday.

Sam Brown Silverman and Tim Pirtle appear to be headed to a runoff in Potter County’s 108th District Court Judge election, according to election night results. Pirtle earned the most votes of any candidate with 2,524 (28.74%) casting their ballot for him. Silverman came in second with 2,291 (26.09...

08/03/2024

During their meeting on Tuesday, Amarillo City Council will consider naming Floyd Hartman Interim City Manager

The City of Amarillo will likely have a new Interim City Manager, as Amarillo City Council is set to vote on appointing Assistant City Manager Floyd Hartman to the role on Tuesday. The item, which is included as a part of the regular meeting agenda for the upcoming March 12th meeting, follows Andre

06/03/2024

BREAKING:

According to a press release, Andrew Freeman has stepped down from his role as Interim City Manager and has returned to his previous position as Deputy City Manager. This move follows a tense City Council meeting that came in the wake of a quickly rescinded shakeup of high-level staff by Freeman.

29/02/2024

Breaking:

The Potter County Elections Office released the following press release following an article from The Amarillo Pioneer regarding the mail-in ballot roster: “Potter County, Texas – February 29, 2024  The Potter County Elections Office regrets to inform the public that an error occurred i

27/02/2024

BREAKING: President Trump endorses Caroline Fairly and John Smithee in the Amarillo-area Texas House races.

Former President Donald Trump issued endorsements on Monday night for two candidates running for Texas House seats in Amarillo. For District 86, which includes Randall County, Trump endorsed incumbent State Rep. John Smithee for re-election. Trump picked Smithee over his challenger, Canyon resident

21/02/2024

BREAKING:
Following an executive session meeting yesterday, the city has rescinded a leadership shakeup implemented by Interim City Manager Andrew Freeman.

Update 4:24 pm: An earlier version of this story included language from a now-recalled version of a city press release. The following story now includes language from the most recent version of the release: The City of Amarillo announced today that a recent shakeup of senior-level city staff have

20/02/2024

Amarillo City Council will hold a specially called executive session meeting tomorrow. The topic of discussion: Interim City Manager Andrew Freeman's employment.

Amarillo City Council is set to hold a specially called executive session meeting on Tuesday to “discuss the appointment, employment, evaluation, reassignment, duties, discipline, or dismissal” of Interim City Manager Andrew Freeman. The meeting follows a recent major shakeup of city leadership ...

10/02/2024

Former Sheriff Joel Richardson penned this letter to the editor explaining why he is supporting Sheriff Chris Forbis for re-election. Read it here:

The following Letter to the Editor was written by Joel W. Richardson: During the month of January 2024 Roger Short, a candidate running for Sheriff of Randall County, has posted on Facebook and has spoken in various interviews a pledge to create more educational programs should he be elected Sheri

02/02/2024

Our forum is starting soon! Can't make it? Don't worry! You can watch live here:

Learn more about primary candidates for Texas State House District 86 & 87, as well as candidates for Randall County Sheriff, 108th District Court Judge, and...

22/12/2023

A shouting match erupted between Potter County GOP Chairman Dan Rogers and County Commissioner H.R. Kelly during Thursday night's ballot draw, caused by the method Rogers used to have the candidates determine their ballot order. The disagreement came after Kelly drew the bottom ballot spot for his 2024 re-election bid against antique store owner Chip Hunt.

Tensions about paper ballots hit a new high during the Potter County Republican Party ballot order drawing on Thursday evening. For most of the night, operations proceeded smoothly, with candidates, proxies, and volunteers drawing from decks of cards to determine their place on the ballot, with hig

20/12/2023

Three of the candidates for the 108th District Court have confirmed their attendance for our candidate forum on February 1st. We hope to see you there too!

Thursday, February 1 | 6:30pm.

18/12/2023

The votes are in and Tom Scherlen has been selected as the 2024 Amarillo Pioneer of the Year by the readers of our publication.

This year, we asked our readers to name the person who has had the greatest impact on our city over the past year. From a pool of reader-submitted nominations, 13 finalists were selected to advance to the final vote. And from that group, Amarillo Pioneer readers submitted a record number of votes in

07/12/2023

During a "Meet the City Manger's Office" even last night, Interim City Manager Andrew Freeman announced a series of community listening sessions set to begin next month.

Interim City Manager Andrew Freeman announced a series of community listening sessions set to begin next month. The meetings are being advertised as a chance to gather “input, concerns, and suggestions” from members of the public. “If we're not listening to the community, we're only hearing wh...

05/12/2023

It's official: Jesse Quackenbush is running against Caroline Fairly and Cindi Bulla in the race for Texas House District 87.

Amarillo attorney Jesse Quackenbush is officially on the ballot, seeking the Republican nomination for Texas House District 87. According to the Republican Party of Texas, Quackenbush filed his ballot application on Tuesday. This will be the Amarillo attorney’s second bid for the Texas Legislature

24/11/2023

Samuel Brown Silverman is planning to file for the ballot to join Joe Marr Wilson in the race for the 108th District Court bench.

Attorney Samuel Brown Silverman has confirmed that he will soon be filing his application to join the race to replace Judge Doug Woodburn in the 108th District Court. Silverman, a criminal law and intellectual property lawyer, announced his candidacy over the summer for Woodburn’s position, origin...

23/11/2023

In one of our featured columns this Thanksgiving, we present the story of a little kitten from a parking lot on 6th Street that healed a broken heart.

By Thomas Warren III, Editor-in-Chief Back before my wife and I got married in 2022, she was attending school at the University of Oklahoma. She had a little apartment right near the campus in Norman and I would drive out there to see her, spend the night at a nearby hotel, then come back home. It

23/11/2023

Former President Donald Trump’s son will be the keynote speaker for next year’s Amarillo Lincoln-Reagan Dinner.

Amarillo Republicans will be bringing a major political star to the Panhandle next year for the 2024 Amarillo Lincoln-Reagan Dinner. According to event organizers, Eric Trump will be the keynote speaker for next year’s dinner. Trump, a New York business executive, is the son of former President Do...

12/11/2023

Amarillo Pioneer of the Year voting is still ongoing! Help us select the person who we will recognize next year for having the biggest impact on our city. Vote here!

https://forms.gle/4ERabzDBJ6M9HrD88

12/11/2023

During the upcoming regular meeting of Amarillo City Council, the council will consider abandoning two public alleyways. However, only one of those alleyways actually exists.

During the upcoming regular meeting of Amarillo City Council, the council will consider abandoning two public alleyways. However, only one of those alleyways actually exists. The first alleyway, located just south of St. Stephen United Methodist Church on Western, is a fairly typical alleyway aband

08/11/2023

Hereford voters approved a measure on Tuesday night to allow the Hereford Economic Development Corporation and the City of Hereford to combine funds and build a $6.5 million baseball complex.

Voters in Hereford backed a measure on Tuesday night to construct a new baseball and softball complex. According to unofficial election results, Hereford voters backed the measure to build the new facility, with 64 percent voting in favor. The item picked up its largest share of support on Election

02/11/2023

BREAKING: The City of Amarillo is asking the state's highest Court to let it off the hook for Alex Fairly's legal fees in the Civic Center lawsuit.

The City of Amarillo is asking the state’s highest court to invalidate the portion of the civic center funding lawsuit requiring the city to reimburse businessman Alex Fairly’s legal fees. In a petition filed with The Supreme Court of Texas on Wednesday, it appears that the city is not challengi...

28/10/2023

ICYMI: Former Mayor Ginger Nelson was present during the groundbreaking for Amarillo's Buc-ee's.

Former Mayor of Amarillo Ginger Nelson made a return to the spotlight earlier today at the groundbreaking for the Amarillo Buc-ee’s location. Nelson, who was first elected mayor in 2017 and left office in May after not seeking a fourth term, voted in 2022 to approve an approximately $4.5 million i...

23/10/2023

For House District 87, we have two announced candidates -- Caroline Fairly and Cindi Bulla -- and one unannounced candidate who has filed a campaign treasurer appointment, Jesse Quackenbush.

If the election were held today, who would have your vote?

23/10/2023

Voting tomorrow? We have recommendations on five of the proposed Texas constitutional amendments, including an analysis of how one amendment could impact the tax freeze for seniors.

Beginning Monday, voters across Texas will begin voting to decide 14 proposed amendments to our state’s constitution. These amendments range in scope from issues concerning taxes to state parks to teacher retirement – and most would carry a tremendous price tag for Texans. After carefully resear...

21/10/2023

Amarillo Pioneer of the Year voting has been in full swing for about a week and five nominees have pulled out in front. But it's still anyone's race.

Check out the top five leaders (in random order) below, and cast your vote for Pioneer of the Year here: https://forms.gle/LbnohGbFUM1sFmka6