odessa texas politics

Let us get through this process, sir, Joven responded, before calling for a vote on Marreros dismissal. JUNIOR COLLEGE DISTRICTS", "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Ector County, TX", "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Midland County, TX", "Lonesome Onry and Mean: Roy Orbison and Odessa", "The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada (2005) - Filming locations", "Black Gold: Going Deeper: Facts and Stats", National Register of Historic Places Sites, cities with populations exceeding 100,000, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Odessa,_Texas&oldid=1159463971, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from April 2023, Articles with MusicBrainz area identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 4.0, Source: NOAA (normals 19812010, percent sunshine through 2009), This page was last edited on 10 June 2023, at 13:45. The only person to speak in favor of firing Rodriguez was Tisha Crows husband, Kris. This was, in and of itself, controversial as some questioned if it was the role of the local Republican Party to endorse local candidates in non-partisan races. I was told he didnt want to hire me because I was a crazy liberal, Hallmark said. Of the 35,216 households in 2010, 37.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.6% were married couples living together, 14.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.6% were not families. For his part, council member Vasquez found the timing of the T2 contract suspicious. Most rainfall occurs in late spring and summer; snowfall is rare. In early voting Matta led with 61.33% (333) of the votes with Michael K. Shelton Sr. trailing with 38.67% (210) of the votes. Democratic presidential candidate and Texas native Beto O'Rourke on Saturday reacted to news of a mass shooting between the cities of Midland and Odessa, Texas, with a terse call to action . After El Paso and Odessa shootings, even Texas GOP leaders appear ready According to the agenda for a council meeting Jan. 9, the City Council plans to again consider firing Brooks and Marrero. Odessa has the semiarid climate typical of West Texas. Odessa's main enclosed shopping mall, Music City Mall, includes an indoor skating rink. In June 1999, the Texas Tech Health Center opened as a clinic, providing increased access to primary and specialized health care for the Permian Basin. The November 3rd General Election had resulted in three races going into a Run-Off. Others are unsure of their future. The councils decision to fire the two workers was met by uproar from Odessa residents. [1] Federal officials The current members of the U.S. Senate from Texas are: To view a map of U.S. House districts in Texas and find your representative, click here . [22] Around the same time, a coal pollution mitigation plant had been announced for a site previously entered in the Futuregen bidding. I mean, she has got like a color-coordinated index for everything, so everybody knows their job. Clear 2 Table. This time the public was allowed to speak beforehand, but it didnt matter. Many spoke favorably of the two fired employees and said they were confused about why council members fired competent workers without an explanation. As a nonprofit newsroom, we rely on members to help keep our stories free and our events open to the public. [32], On December 14, 2022, the Odessa City Council voted to make Odessa a "sanctuary city for the unborn." People came into the City Council without doing their due diligence.. Hallmark, who had previously served on the boards of several other local nonprofits, couldnt wait to get to work. In 2009, a wind farm has been constructed in northern Ector County. According to an official with Texas DPS who testified to the panel on Thursday, an AMBER Alert can take 30 minutes to an hour to vet and . Helotes city, Texas; Odessa city, Texas. The average household size was 2.65, and the average family size was 3.21. We see so much of that under this mayors leadership and the leadership of some members of the council.. ), At the time he allegedly requested her resignation, there was little that Joven could do to remove Hallmark. But in November, Odessa elected two more right-wing council members, Texas STAAR test administrator Greg Connell and auto-dealership employee Chris Hanie, giving the Joven coalition a five-to-two majority. So that tells me that there had to be some kind of prior discussion among themselves. The only two right-wing council members who spoke to Texas Monthly, Swanner and Matta, denied discussing council business in private, which is illegal under Texas law. But even general housekeeping duties have become highly polarized along political lines in recent years, causing friction on even the most mundane issues. Odessa City Manager Michael Marrero and City Attorney Natasha Brooks were fired by the City Council on Dec. 13, 2022. Daniel Vaughn is the countrys first barbecue editor, and he has eaten more barbecue than you have. The 57-year-old owner of a local construction and roofing company, Joven was elected to the unsalaried position in 2020 on a pledge to reduce the municipal debt, rebuild infrastructure, and declare the West Texas city of 115,000 residents a sanctuary city for the unborn. No sooner had Hallmark moved into her new office than Joven began dropping by for unannounced visits, during which she said the mayor would sometimes rant for hours about the corruption he saw in city government. Males had a median income of $31,115 versus $21,743 for females. We have a group of leaders hell-bent on dividing us.. Historically, municipal governments responsibilities, such as waste management, water distribution and public safety, have not been considered highly political. Officials haven't specified what caused the break, but say the broken line is about 60 years old. Thats not the definition of a mass exodus., Hallmark resigned three days later, bringing that number to eighteen. The City of Odessa has a new Mayor and two new city council members after a landslide victory in the December 15th runoff election in Odessa, Texas. . The ordinance became somewhat of a campaign promise during this years election, with at least one newly elected council member, Chris Hanie, saying it would be a top priority if they were elected. A great way to keep up with ECRP & what we are doing in Odessa! [30], Odessa has a councilmanager government, with a city council of five councillors (elected from geographic districts) and a mayor (elected at-large). Compared to other nearby cities, Odessa has more democratic voters. The Ector County Independent School District serves portions of Odessa in Ector County (the vast majority of the city). Critics see the terminations of Brooks and Marrero as the first steps in an effort by the Joven coalition to rid Odessa city government of employees considered insufficiently conservative. 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The Texas Tribune is a member-supported, nonpartisan newsroom informing and engaging Texans on state politics and policy. Well, you know, if you had any control over the public and the media, [my priority] would be to control them in some form, she told me. More than 165,000 people in Odessa still without water after aging line breaks. ECISD Picks Taxpayer's Pockets. Odessa is also home to five charter schools: Compass Academy Charter School, UTPB STEM Academy, Harmony Science Academy-Odessa, Embassy Academy, and Richard Milburn Academy-Odessa. The MOSC has three resident chamber ensembles: the Lone Star Brass, Permian Basin String Quartet, and West Texas Winds. Tisha Crow, the longtime chair of the Ector County Republican Party, is widely considered the mastermind behind the right-wing takeover of the Odessa City Council. Things are really, really ugly. On January 9, the city council reconvened for a special session, at which it once again voted to terminate Marrero and Brooks. They should have been allowed to speak prior to the vote, citizens argued. Mr. The key to ensuring safety during a threat is speed. We had been hearing for several months that once [the Joven faction] got the majority that there was going to be a purge, recalled one senior city employee who recently resigned. Odessa's private schools include Montessori Mastery School of Odessa, Latter Rain Christian School, Odessa Christian School, Permian Basin Christian School, Faith Community Christian Academy, St. John's Episcopal School, St. Mary's Central Catholic School (of the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Angelo, Rainey School of Montessori, Sherwood Christian Academy, and Zion Christian Academy. At a time when newsroom resources and revenue across the country are declining, The Texas Tribune remains committed to sustaining our mission: creating a more engaged and informed Texas with every story we cover, every event we convene and every newsletter we send. Congressman August Pfluger Odessa residents are wondering if thats still the case after the local Republican Party helped elect new council members. It is situated above the Permian Basin, a large sedimentary deposit that contains significant reserves of oil and natural gas. A local attorney is threatening more lawsuits as a new City Council, backed by the local Republican Party, gets to business. Odessa Headlines | Covering Ector County, Texas It is situated above the Permian Basin, a large sedimentary deposit that contains significant reserves of oil and natural gas. [31], In the 2014 fiscal year, the Odessa government had $179.1 million in revenues, $146.3 million in expenditures, $454 million in total assets, and $203 million in total liabilities. Teresa, as a "big voice in Texas politics." She founded West Texas Voice, a blog educating readers on legislative and political . (Thompson denies any impropriety. Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea.The city is also the administrative centre of the Odesa Raion and Odesa Oblast, as well as a multiethnic cultural centre.As of January 2021, Odesa's population was approximately 1,010,537. Local politics arent supposed to divide the community, Norris said in an interview with The Texas Tribune. The first post office opened in 1885. According to the university, only 30% of business schools in the United States, and 15% of world business schools, have received AACSB accreditation. He would only call me by my married name [Williams], because he said that its ungodly for a married woman to not use her husbands name., Before one city council meeting, Joven told Hallmark hed be glad to accept her resignation. Joven attempted to pass the ordinance in January 2021, but three council members declined, noting that it was not a city issue and there were other priorities. [21], Historically, the Odessa economy has been primarily driven by the area's oil industry, booming and busting in response to rises and falls in the crude oil price. Odessa, Texas: R R R R R R How It Works: by Jayme Lozano Carver and Pooja Salhotra Joven attempted to pass the ordinance in January 2021, but three council members declined, noting that it was not a city issue and there were other priorities. The Ector County Democrat Party shared the story on their Facebook account on December 12th with the commentary: It simply cannot be overstated enough the importance of voting for Bryant over Joven, and this is a key reason.. This Democrat Is Back in the Texas Lege After 40 Years. According to the city's 2021 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report,[27] the top employers in the city were: The MidlandOdessa Symphony and Chorale (MOSC) was founded in 1962,[28] and is the region's largest orchestral organization, presenting both pops and masterworks concerts. Its no surprise to me that, now that they have secured additional votes in this bloc of Republicans, that they would go and try to make a substantial change.. In Ector County, TX 25.5% of the people voted Democrat in the last presidential election, 73.3% voted for the Republican Party, and the remaining 1.2% voted Independent.. City councils are typically nonpartisan. The Ector County Democrats stayed fairly quiet about the municipal races until a story broke in the Midland Reporter Telegram about Jovens desire to see Odessa pass the Sanctuary City for the Unborn ordinance. Elections | Odessa, TX On January 3, district court judge John Shrode, an appointee of Governor Greg Abbott, issued a temporary restraining order allowing Marrero and Brooks to keep their jobsonly to rescind the order the following day, without explanation. The metropolitan area is also a component of the larger MidlandOdessa combined statistical area, which had a 2010 census population of 278,801; a report from the United States Census Bureau estimated that the combined population as of July 2015 is 320,513.[5][6]. The reason was unclear and the decision has rocked the West Texas oil town. Ive never met someone so organized, said Downtown Odessa board chairman John Herriage at a board meeting in early January. Dec. 16, 202212 PM Central. To Casey Hallmark, it seemed like a dream job. As of the 2020 United States census, there were 114,428 people, 41,942 households, and 28,218 families residing in the city. In Tarrant County, for example, the conservative PAC Patriot Mobile Action spent about $390,000 on four conservative candidates running for a local school board. There were a lot of things done over the years that benefited a small group of influential, wealthy people in the community, Russell told me. Our hard workers throughout this campaign . After extensive review, Council determined this type of change would require an adjustment in the day-to-day leadership of the City., The Ector County Republican Party did not respond to requests for comment. Nothing is really getting done in the city.. Tim Edgmon, whom Joven ally Chris Hanie removed from his board position on the Odessa Development Corporation in November, recently told the Odessa American that the local Republican Party was conducting a silent coup. What Im looking for [in a council member] is someone who doesnt want to continue to award contracts and bids to the same people., Another key figure behind the right-wing takeover is Ector County GOP treasurer Jeff Russell, who runs an Odessa carpet and flooring store. Its daily. The University of Texas Permian Basin (UTPB) began in 1973. When these substantial changes happen, in concert with local Republican leadership including precinct chairs and a county chair, its hard not to wonder if there are blatant violations of the Open Meetings Act, Horick said. Tamir Kalifa for The New York Times. In recent years, though, Odessa politics have become increasingly divisive and ideological, mirroring national trends. The agenda for the January 24 city council meeting included a private executive session to discuss the judges dismissal. Theyre trained for that. Odessas ordinance is even more restrictive than the states abortion ban, providing exceptions only for ectopic pregnancies. According to City Council member Steven Thompson, one of two members who voted against the terminations, the two interim employees the City Council hired to replace Marrero and Brooks did not report to work on Wednesday, the day after the courts ruling. Find 379 listings related to Political Offices in Odessa on YP.com. Out of the three candidates who won their race, the largest margin of victory goes to Denise Swanner who was running up against former Mayor David Turner for the City Council At-Large position. Joven sat in the middle of a semicircular dais, flanked by the six council members, Marrero, Brooks, and the city secretary. He said he intends to file two or three more lawsuits within the next several weeks. The actions of the Joven coalition have sparked an angry backlash from many Odessans, turning the city councils formerly staid fortnightly meetings into dramatic confrontations. Politics & Voting in West Odessa, Texas - Sperling's BestPlaces Lets pave roads. Since November, though, those typical functions of city government seem to have taken a back seat to Team Jovens ideological agenda. There were a lot of questions being asked about employees party politics, and where you landed on certain issues like the sanctuary city bill, the former employee said. Horick said Odessa has become more politicized under Joven, who is the first Hispanic mayor of Odessa. On the evening of December 13, residents packed into city hall to watch the council vote on the terminations of Marrero and Brooks. It is home to the Odessa Bronchos and the Permian Panthers. During the presentations it was noted by the presenters that the bond . I am a councilman, and I will be referred to as such. In the meeting, Hanie acknowledged asking Hallmark to address him as councilman but denied screaming or using the f-word. A Plan to Bridge Odessa's Digital Divide Comes Down to Earth So that doesnt concern me at all., Like Swanner, council member Matta dismissed the significance of the departures. They Lost. Hallmark submitted her own resignation letter in January, after what she said was more than a year of bullying and harassment from Joven and his allies. Many in the audience appeared to have come to the 6 p.m. meeting directly from their jobs, a few wearing rumpled suits, the rest in work boots and jeans. It was incorporated as a city in 1927, after oil was discovered in Ector County on the Connell Ranch southwest of Odessa. It opened in 1952 and currently enrolls about 6,000 annually in its university-parallel and occupational/technical courses, and 11,000 students annually in its basic education, continuing education, and community recreation courses. [8], Odessa has also taken steps to diversify the energy it produces. Marrero and Brooks were out. In a vote of 5-1, with one abstaining, the new City Council passed the ordinance during their second meeting. Politics & Voting in Odessa, Texas - Sperling's BestPlaces The overall total in the race was 71.43% (4,003) for Denise Swanner and 28.57% (1,601) for David Turner. The judges job was safefor now. "[7], Odessa was founded in 1881 as a water stop and cattle-shipping point on the Texas and Pacific Railway. Disclosure: The University of Houston have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.6 males. State officials News and commentary covering Odessa and the greater West Texas region. (The voters had little choice, since both Connell and Hanie ran unopposed.) There was one in Big Spring. [24] Plans were also in place for a small nuclear reactor called the High-Temperature Teaching and Test Reactor to be run as a test and teaching facility in conjunction with the nuclear engineering department at University of Texas of the Permian Basin.[25][26]. Does it concern you that the city attorneys office is down to two attorneys? I asked. Odessa City Manager Michael Marrero and City Attorney Natasha Brooks were fired by the City Council on Dec. 13, 2022. After thorough . To top it off, the lack of transparency from the Mayor and the City Council led many to wonder just what the City of Odessa was hiding. At a time when newsroom resources and revenue across the country are declining, The Texas Tribune remains committed to sustaining our mission: creating a more engaged and informed Texas with every story we cover, every event we convene and every newsletter we send. Since no candidate running for office in these races met the necessary threshold to win their race a Run-Off election was scheduled for December 15th. You May All Go to Hell, and I Will Go to the TexasLand Theme Park, Despite Being the Victim of a Brisket Bandit, This West Texas Joint Is Still Serving Juicy Slices, The Top 50 Texas BBQ Joints: 2021 Edition, A Texas Family Passed Up Millions to Turn Their Ranch Into a Nature Preserve, For $40, You Can Get an Excellent Steak Dinner Off a Dirt Road in the Panhandle. Disagreements over critical race theory, library books and history curriculums have turned schoolboards into political battlegrounds. The county GOP blasted this as wasteful spending, even though state law requires that occupancy-tax money be used to promote tourism, convention centers, or the arts. We were going to have here in Odessa, but that attorney from San Antonio- was it Sandoval? Odessa water outage ongoing after aging water line breaks | The Texas Collins, the former Odessa Development Corporation board member, is planning to launch recall campaigns against some or all of the Joven-affiliated council members. In 2010, the racial makeup of the city was 75.4% White, 5.7% Black, 1.1% Asian, 1.0% Native American, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 14.2% from other races, and 2.5% from two or more races. Odessa | Texas, United States | Britannica Amid the flurry of complaints, the village government issued the owners of the rental businessan Odessa couple, Russell Subia and Michelle Villanuevatwo violations of a city ordinance for. In Tarrant County, for example, the conservative PAC Patriot Mobile Action spent about $390,000 on four conservative candidates running for a local school board. Im flabbergasted by what just happened today, Filiberto Gonzales, a former Odessa city council member, said during the meeting. Mr. From Odessas increasing budget to the possibility of mask mandates, business shutdowns, and restrictions on family gatherings - many voters throughout Odessa expressed their concern with the direction Odessa was going. On election day Swanner pulled 74.51% (1,140) of the vote compared to Turners 25.49% (390). The lawsuit has not been filed. In a press release from West Texas for Life, Jim Baxa wrote, In our interview process we have found Mayoral Candidate Javier Joven, City Council Candidate Denise Swanner, and City Council Candidate Mark Matta to be candidates for political office who not only say they are pro-life, but are willing to put action to their pro-life beliefs.. But they say this group was driven less by ideology or self-interest than genuine civic-mindedness. It also has displays about the presidents of the Republic of Texas. WASHINGTON (AP) Minutes after media outlets identified the gunman who killed seven people in West Texas, a Twitter account that may be automated began spreading baseless information linking the shooter to Democratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke. The city is famous for being featured in the book Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream, and the movie adaption, Friday Night Lights. Council is committed to continually improving every aspect of the City. The US average is $28,555 a year. The manager has strength as long as they can maintain majority support on the council., Council member Steven Thompson, a retired small-business owner and self-described Republican who voted to keep Marrero and Brooks, said that the wave of firings and resignations has thrown municipal government into chaos. Find a complete list of them here. - The Sales Tax Rate for Odessa is 8.2%. San Angelo Office 135 West Twohig Avenue, Suite B San Angelo, TX 76903 Phone: (325) 659-4010 . Hernandez / Politics and Protests in Odessa - Texas Christian University When I visited Odessa in January, the next city employee in the Joven factions crosshairs appeared to be Carlos Rodriguez, who has served as the citys presiding municipal judge, a council-appointed position, for nearly three years. Editor's note: An earlier version of this article contained a statement that was purportedly from Odessans for Ethical Leadership. Tax Rates for Odessa. City councils are typically nonpartisan. Supporters of Rodriguez congregated on the left side of the chamber, with a slightly smaller group of Joven allies on the right. . Did Junk Science Help Candy Montgomery Get Away With Murder? While Horick works to get Democrats elected, she said partisanship should not be in city government because it shifts local focus into national culture wars. (Brooks did not respond to interview requests.). The City of Odessa has a new Mayor and two new city council members after a landslide victory in the December 15th runoff election in Odessa, Texas. Mr. Its free. U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Helotes city, Texas; Odessa city, Texas As with Marrero and Brooks, no rationale for Rodriguezs proposed termination was ever supplied by the council. 3 talking about this. Theyre taking revenge on city employees that they have grievances with, such as Natasha Brooks and Michael Marrero, he told me. But even general housekeeping duties have become highly polarized along political lines in recent years, causing friction on even the most mundane issues. More than a century later, party politics appear to have seeped back into down-ballot races, injecting political ideology into municipal affairs in places like Odessa an oil town in West Texas. And Odessas not that big of a city. (Elms, who served on the boards of the Odessa Chamber of Commerce, the Odessa College Foundation, and numerous other local organizations, died in 2012 at the age of 77. The Political Climate in West Odessa, TX is Moderately conservative. Odessa, TX Political Map - Democrat & Republican Areas in Odessa As the weeks passed the election became more and more heated. Jan. 4, 2023 The Berets, Victor, he still had the Berets in San Antonio. City employees that weve had for a long time have resigned. Odessa City Council will reconsider firing city - The Texas Tribune He has been with the City of Odessa since 1995. Mayor, please understand, Im filing a suit against the city, attorney Gaven Norris said. In the end, the council decided not to fire Rodriguez, an apparent concession to the publics anger. Only after the new appointees had replaced their predecessors on the dais did Joven recognize Norris. In a 6-1 vote, Mayor Javier Joven and council members Denise Swanner, Mark Matta, Gilbert Vasquez, Chris Hanie, and Greg Connell established Odessa as the 62nd city to "outlaw" abortion. Council is committed to continually improving every aspect of the City. They want control of everything, he said. About 16.0% of families and 18.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.9% of those under age 18 and 14.1% of those age 65 or over. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Norris believes that Joven hired the firm to help him carry out a purge of city employees. ), Many Odessa political observers agree with Crow and Russell that an entrenched elitea business-minded group of moderate Republicans and Democratshas long dominated city government. In the old days we had a gentleman named Bill Elms, who was a CPA, and everything went through Bill, recalled council member Thompson. We have a group of leaders hell-bent on dividing us.. Norris filed the lawsuit on December 22. Joven tried that August to get a special election on the matter but was rejected again. More than a century later, party politics appear to have seeped back into down-ballot races, injecting political ideology into municipal affairs in places like Odessa an oil town in West Texas.
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