This Week

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) Childress District is notifying motorists of a temporary detour on US 287 in Memphis on next Tuesday, May 20, to accommodate railroad crossing replacement by BNSF Railway.

Lane closures will begin Monday, May 19, at 6 a.m. with the closing of both northbound lanes.

Traffic will be switched to the two southbound lanes as north/south single lanes to maintain traffic flow. On Tuesday, the two southbound lanes will be closed with traffic being switched to the two northbound lanes as north/south single lanes.

When the roadway is ready for installation of the new rails for the crossing, a complete shutdown of US 287 between Second Street and Harrison Street will be necessary to install the rails.

The full detour is expected to be in place approximately four to six hours. Crews will utilize message boards and flaggers to alert the traveling public of the work and detour.

To safely reroute traffic, the following detour will be in place for installation of the rail across the roadway:

Northbound US 287 traffic in Hall County will be detoured via FM 1619, four miles south of Memphis, to FM 3032 to SH 256, returning to US 287 in Memphis.

Southbound US 287 traffic will be redirected through Memphis using 2nd Street to Davis Street, rejoining US 287 thereafter.

Motorists should anticipate delays both days. TxDOT encourages drivers to plan ahead, obey posted signs, and exercise caution in the area. This temporary detour is necessary to ensure the safety of both workers and the traveling public while improving the condition of the railroad crossing.

Donley County cities each saw increases in sales tax revenues this month with Comptroller Glenn Hegar delivered May allocations last week.

Clarendon’s May revenue was up 4.81 percent to $54,827.98 compared to the same period last year. The city is now running 4.8 percent ahead for the calendar year-to-date with revenue of $226,482.61.

Hedley was up 5.62 percent with revenue of $1,779.43 and is now up 24.78 percent for the year at $7,473.62.

Howardwick’s revenue was up 66.05 percent this period, totaling $2,204.74, compared to $1,327.72 for May 2024. The lakeside city is now up 32.55 percent for the calendar year-to-date at $10,111.48. Howardwick City Hall says extended hours at the local convenience store there, recent big events at the country club, and the start of the city’s mowing service season likely contributed to the increase in sales taxes.

Donley County Assistance District #1 in the corporate boundaries of Howardwick received $1,352.31 this month, bringing its total this calendar year so far to $6,235.22. The district began collecting taxes in October.

These allocations are based on sales made in March by businesses that report tax monthly and sales made in January, February and March by quarterly filers.

Statewide, Hegar delivered $1.3 billion in local sales tax allocations for May, 4.5 percent more than in May 2024.

Rural voters approve new county assistance district

The Clarendon City Council and the Clarendon CISD Board of Trustees will have some new faces and a new sales tax will be levied in rural areas of Donley County following last Saturday’s elections.

Mayor Jacob Fangman faced no opposition and received 215 votes. Challenger Brittney Wolf and incumbent Alderman Ashlee Estlack were elected to full terms on the city council with 122 votes and 116 votes respectively. Aldermen Eulaine McIntosh narrowly lost her reelection bid with 114 votes. Other candidates vying for the two full terms were Jeremy Jeffers with 71 votes and Richard Dzamko with 20.

Also in the city election, Tom Thompson and Chelsi Shadle were the top choices of voters to fill two unexpired terms. Thompson had 128 votes, Shadle had 113, and Ralph Graves at 108.

In the race for three positions on the Clarendon school board, incumbents Robin Ellis and Donny Howard won reelection with 230 and 215 votes respectively, and Jeff Robertson received 215 votes to secure the third seat over Ginnie Siefkas, who got 39 votes.

Voters outside the cities of Clarendon, Hedley, and Howardwick approved the creation of Donley County Assistance District #2 by a vote of 48 to 30.
The district will levy a 2.0 percent sales tax to help fund county law enforcement expenses.

Turnout was low for the 2025 election. In the City of Clarendon, for example, only 21.1 percent of registered voters cast ballots with City Hall reporting 258 ballots cast out of 1,221 registered voters.

The project to replace the US 287 bridge between Kearney and Gorst Streets will begin May 19, according to information released this week by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) Childress District.

The $4.4 million project will replace a bridge on US 287 over Clarendon’s main drainage ditch, which has been in place since at least the 1930s and is possibly closer to 100 years old.

Project engineer Louis McDowell confirmed Tuesday that contractors will set up advance warning signs on May 19. Access to certain city streets will be closed June 3. Access to Kearney Street will be closed on the north and south sides of the highway, and Jefferson and Gorst streets will be closed on the south side of US 287.

The project will be led by general contractor Hodges and Sons and is expected to take approximately 19 months to complete, weather pending. TxDOT says the new bridge structure will improve drainage and help alleviate flooding along this corridor.

The project will unfold in three phases with the first phase beginning on the south side of US 287. Due to the location of the bridge, intersections within the work zone will be closed to ensure the safety of motorists and workers. During the project, the traffic signal at US 287 and Kearney Street will not be functional due to the closure of that intersection.

Drivers are reminded to use caution when traveling through the work zone. Reduce your speed, avoid distractions in your vehicle and watch for slow moving equipment and crews.

Two Howardwick residents were sentenced in separate cases when the District Court met in Panhandle on April 7.

District Attorney Luke Inman, along with Assistant District Attorney Harley Caudle, prosecuted the cases for the State of Texas, with the Honorable Judge Dale Rabe presiding.

Joseph Ray Casselberry, 43, from Howardwick, was sentenced to six months in the Donley County Jail for the Class A misdemeanor offense of assault causing bodily injury that took place in Donley County on May 24, 2022.

Casselberry was originally placed on probation for the offense on June 8, 2023. On December 12, 2024, the State filed its motion requesting the Court to adjudicate Casselberry’s probation, alleging eight violations of his conditions of probation. Casselberry pleaded true to the allegations. Casselberry was also ordered to pay a $2,000 fine and $340 court costs.

Thomas Barnum Caswell, 68, from Howardwick, was convicted for the Class C misdemeanor offense of assault that took place in Donley County on August 7, 2024.

Caswell was arrested by Donley County Sheriff’s Deputy Wesley Christopher. Caswell was indicted by the Donley County Grand Jury on October 7, 2024. Caswell was also ordered to pay a $500 fine and $290 court costs upfront.