This newspaper is the last issue of the year.
On our front page you’ll see our Year in Review digest, a time-honored tradition of newspapers to provide perspective for what we’ve all just been through.
But in gathering the retrospective, more news jumps out—the underreported stories of the past year.
Perhaps the biggest story on which this newspaper did very little reporting was Spur’s gradual decline—temporary, we hope—to a restaurant desert. In the past 18 months, bit by bit, four area eateries closed their doors: one in Dickens, one in Jayton and the only two in Spur.
No cafes in Spur is what everyone has been talking about all year long. Thank goodness for the Spur Senior Center, which serves a hot, sit-down lunch for all, five days a week most weeks.
Even the cafes that have managed to stay open have dealth with a shortage of staff, and at times have had to reduce hours due to the inability to find workers.
But instead of just wringing their hands, resourceful residents of Spur have made lemonade out of lemons. Prepared-food purveyors have cropped up across the town in a variety of venues, and now, three budding entrepreneurs are reported to have begun the process of opening dining spots in Spur once more. The Texas Spur looks forward to reporting on ribbon cuttings and grand openings.
Another underreported story involves growth. Tiny houses. Yes, we know, that’s so 2015.
Month in, month out, more tiny-house residents have discovered Spur. Have you driven by the Freeman Addition neighborhood lately?
With those tiny houses come needed people. Our towns need dedicated residents—to work in restaurants, for one thing, but to volunteer to keep services and events functioning smoothly, so that the same people aren’t continually being called on. We need the fresh ideas and perspectives from newcomers who have lived in different places and seen different approaches work.
The Texas Spur hopes you’ll join us in welcoming tinyhouse arrivals and will help them find ways to become a part of their new community.
Finally, the last underreported story of the year is that the City of Spur recently invited residents to submit their ideas in writing to City Hall regarding what they’d like to see the city do in 2022.
The Texas Spur will be making our own list of goals for the city in 2022, and we encourage you to do the same.
Happy New Year.
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