Fisher County Commissioners have called a special meeting for December 31, 2024, 9 a.m.
The only item of action listed on the meeting agenda is to appoint a sheriff.
Showing posts with label Commissioners. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Commissioners. Show all posts
Thursday, December 26, 2024
Sunday, December 22, 2024
Look another direction
In regard to politics, I've always thought it was better to cast the eye locally rather than nationally, because the votes count one for one in a county or city, making the power of a constituent stronger.
I am coming around to the idea that the closer view is no more enlightening or meaningful than that of an unknown horizon.
Fisher County is starting out the year with three appointed people in elected positions. The sheriff, the county treasurer and the county lawyer have been chosen by the commissioners, not by the voters.
The treasurer's change has not been announced officially. I'm reading between the lines. In the first commissioners meeting of December, the county judge, Ken Holt, said the signature card on the county accounts needed to be changed to Brandi Duniven, because "Jeanna is...". That's all. Fill in the blank.
It is a tragedy to lose Jeanna Parks as treasurer, if that is what's happening. I consider her to be the voice of basic, factual reason; steadfast; no hiding or dodging. Her numbers don't lie. They are posted with the commissioners court minutes. They are transparent. In Parks' case, that word is meaningful, not just thrown out there as a cover-your-ass blanket statement.
The special meeting called by the commissioners mid-December, with an agenda that indicated it was for precinct three funding to wrap up the year, seemed to really be about commissioners Gordon Pippin (precinct one) and Preston Martin (precinct three, final term) to have one last go at each other. There are other, more important issues that could have justified a meeting. More is not said, than is said, at these get-togethers.
So, Duniven, administrative assistant to the Fisher County Treasurer, will be taking over Parks' role, it looks like; Morgan Brooks, Sweetwater lawyer, and soon to be Nolan County Attorney, has been appointed to take over Michael Hall's spot as Fisher County Attorney; an unknown person will be taking over as Fisher County Sheriff in January, whether that person is Tom Pohlman, the currently appointed sheriff, or another individual chosen by the commissioners court.
This is the view of a citizen from the west side of the county, with no courthouse affiliations. This is what it looks like from the outside.
Monday, December 16, 2024
Things going on
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| - IREN, Childress Co., Texas - |
I drove up to the Childress area to check out the IREN bitcoin mining project going on there. First I drove through a new solar construction zone, mistaking it for the IREN site. There's a lot of building going on in that area, around a community called Kirkland, but Childress County has a lot of space, and these huge projects seem to take up a small portion of it when looking at all that sky.
Between Childress and Guthrie, Guthrie and Aspermont, there is restful landscape to lay the eye on from horizon to horizon. I stopped in Paducah, between Childress and Guthrie, and got a cheeseburger from the Dairy Maid. There's more fries comes with that order than I can eat. Reminds me of the old days (1970's).
There's some activity going on out by the Wetsel Substation, where IREN has bought property for the Fisher County bitcoin mining project. It's just north of where the Claytonville gas plant used to be.
So, while I was looking to the left, something else was happening on my right. In Sweetwater, a data storage facility has been installed on Sam Houston Street. Veribi has a much smaller operation than IREN. I don't even know if it's the same product. If you stop at the 1 1/2 acre site and listen, it sounds like a giant evaporative cooler.
My guess is that there are some lucrative government subsidies for this industry, much like that for the windmills and solar farms. Chances are they'll be popping up everywhere, big and small.
One other thing, the Dollar General in Roby has opened. That is massive progress in this county and brings a department store a few more miles closer to my house.
Tuesday, November 19, 2024
Elected sheriff declared ineligible
During the November 18 election canvass meeting, Fisher County Judge Ken Holt ruled Simon Wade ineligible to hold the office of sheriff, despite having won more than three times the votes as his opponent, Tom Pohlman.
Wade was appointed sheriff in July of 2023, after Sheriff Randy Ford resigned.
Wade ran, and won, in the March 2024 primary, in an uncontested race, but he resigned from office a few days later. He does not have a Texas Peace Officer License, which is required to be a sheriff.
Pohlman, who was serving as a deputy with the Fisher County Sheriff's Office, was then appointed sheriff by the commissioners court.
Timeline:
What's next? The Texas election code says that if the deceased, withdrawn, or ineligible candidate receives the vote required for election, the resulting vacancy shall be filled in the regular manner.
Does that mean another appointment? Or keep on keeping on with Pohlman? Will time tell? Does it matter? Maybe not, but it's an interesting study in election minutiae.
Info: Texas Election Code Chapter 145.005Thursday, November 7, 2024
Out west and around the county
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| - Trencher, west of Hobbs - |
The commissioners court is going to be interesting next week, in light of the outcome of the Fisher County election. Simon Wade, former sheriff, who resigned last March, won the race by an overwhelming margin. Tom Pohlman, a sheriff's department employee at the time of Wade's resignation, was appointed as sheriff after Wade's departure. There's an article in the Double Mountain Chronicle this week that explains the situation.
The commissioners court regular meeting is set for November 12. A special meeting to conduct the local canvass is slated for the following week, November 18.
Three and half inches or so of rain was measured in the Hobbs area last week. More rain is expected today and tomorrow, spurred by an upper level low coming through. Severe weather is predicted.
Sources:
Thursday, September 5, 2024
The week of meetings, Sept 2024
Next week is going to be busy with meetings. Here are dates, times and places of some of them:
Fisher County Commissioners Court, Monday, September 9, 9:00 a.m.
Clear Fork Groundwater Conservation District will meet at noon on September 9, at the USDA service center in Roby, located on Lyon Street, west.
Fisher County Appraisal District Board of Directors meeting, Tuesday, September 10, 7:00 a.m., at the CAD office across from the courthouse, north side.
The Fisher County Historical Commission meets on the first Tuesday of each month at 6:00 p.m. at the museum in Roby. That would be September 10, on Concho, just north of the red light.
Fisher County new grand jury, Wednesday, September 11, 9:00 a.m., Fisher County Courthouse.
Also next week, if going by the default schedule, Rotan and Roby City Councils will meet on the second Thursday of the month, September 12. Rotan meets at 7:00 a.m. at Rotan City Hall on west Sammy Baugh, and Roby meets at noon at Roby City Hall on Lyon Street, just west of the red light.
Monday, August 5, 2024
August 2024 public meetings
The Fisher County Appraisal District Board of Directors will meet August 13, 7:00 a.m., at the appraisal district office located at 107 East North First Street in Roby. They will discuss the 2025 budget, the 2025-2026 reappraisal plan and will swear in a new board director. The last known chairman of the board, Pete Garcia, died in March 2023.
Two agendas have been posted for the date. The notices, one for a public hearing at 7:00 a.m., and one for a public meeting at 7:05 a.m, can be found on the Fisher County Posted Notices page.
A public hearing notice and a proposed budget notice for the CAD were in the August 4 issue of the Double Mountain Chronicle.
The City of Rotan has posted a meeting notice for August 8, 7:00 a.m.
Fisher County Commissioners Court will meet August 12. The usual time is 9:00 a.m.
No agendas were posted for the city and county meetings.
A notice and a separate article in the DMC indicate there will be discussion regarding a reinvestment zone and the yearly budget at the commissioners meeting.
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