Voters in three contested races in Dickens County—and their families— filled the Spur library Monday night to hear from their neighbors who are running for local office.
In a friendly atmosphere that kicked off with a hotdog supper provided by the Spur Area Chamber of Commerce, candidates spoke earnestly of what matters to them in running the small cities and small schools in a county whose total population numbers fewer than 2,000. Texas Spur publisher Kay Ellington moderated the discussion.
For Spur ISD school board, challengers Kayla Bateman and Samantha Hardin are on the ballot against incumbent Terri Wyatt. Andrew Adams and Casey Smith are running unopposed for seats on the school board.
For the post of City of Spur Texas mayor, two candidates will be on the ballot: Billy Spears, who withdrew from the race via a statement to The Texas live in. I would hope that I can relate (we live right outside the city limits, and can’t vote on mayor or council), and I wanted to reach out to people in my district.”
As for difficulties in attracting qualified teachers, “I don’t think it’s just the arts,” she said. “We have a hard time getting specialty teachers and coaches; we’re just far enough from Lubbock to make for a difficult commute. Public schools everywhere are not getting as much funding for the arts.”
One issue on the minds of the entire community is the anticipated effect of neighboring Patton Springs ISD shuttering its high school next fall.
The Spur school board is in agreement with the plan to enroll those students, said Wyatt. “We’ll welcome any students we can get.”
“It’s sad to see any school close,” said Hardin, who said she was offered a position at Patton when they needed more teachers. “But Spur is very welcoming. It’s definitely a great place for our kids … they’ll find the same supportive community.”
Bateman recalls when “it was a rivalry (between the cross-county schools) but we were happy to hang out with them; I don’t see there would be any issues.”
A final question submitted from the audience had to with an eternal concern at schools everywhere and drew sympathetic chuckles from the audience.
“How can we improve the cafeteria food?”
For Spur City Council, Tom Martin is running unopposed for the place vacated by Elaine Harris.
CITY OF SPUR MAYOR ELECTION
“I really want to do good for the town” On the City of Spur ballot this round will be multiple races: uncontested ones for council incumbents Rhea Melton and Don Wright, and a previously contested one foe a successor to longtime mayor Louise Jones. In the mayor’s race, candidate Billy Spears conceded to John Schmidt before voting began, but after ballots were already printed.
Schmidt, whose lengthier interview ran in The Texas Spur last week, introduced himself briefly at the end of Monday night’s forum.
After retiring in 2006 following four decades with General Dynamics in Fort Worth, the Spur High School graduate returned to the city he considers his hometown. “My wife moved back to Spur and bought the biggest money pit in town,” he said, referring to the historic home they were restoring up until Valene’s passing in 2020.
Finding himself in need of part-time retirement income, Schmidt took on responsibility of codes enforcement official for the city. That experience, as well as leadership as past master of the Spur Masonic Lodge, helped him gain insights into the challenges Spur continues to face.
“Everything I’ve done since I got back, I’ve done for the good of Spur,” said Schmidt. “It’s home and I’ll do the best I can.”
When asked about his decision to step up, the The 81-year-old candidate responded half-seriously, “My friends talked me into it.” But his wry take on events belies his true depth of appreciation for civic needs. “I really want to do good for the town,” he said.
Citing the open-door policy he observed during his career years, “When I’m there at the office, you can come in. We’ll also have an official web page for the city. And I’ll take questions until 10 p.m. at home” at a contact email and number he plans to provide.
A mayor really has no power, he acknowledges; “you work at the will of the council; you wait for what comes up.”
“You need backing, and you need money,” he said. While “grants are out there to improve water and sidewalks,” the city will also need enforcement of citations if the Dickens County Sheriff will not handle that responsibility. Schmidt touched on the recent decision for Texas Communities Group to write up citations and mentioned that Municipal Judge Jody Duggan might have authority to enforce some matters.
A question was posed regarding keeping the city’s current arrangement for law enforcement via the sheriff’s department, or reinstating a Spur police department, Schmidt replied that it would be up to city council to consider.
As for what the community can do to provide a welcoming place for an expanded Galaxy workforce, he said, “What it all boils down to is money. Country living like this (far from many needed services) is hard on folks. But he’s open to the cities of Spur and Dickens working together, exploring options to upgrade housing stock.
“It’s something that people are going to have to work at,” he said.
