By Thomas Warren III, Editor-in-Chief

I sincerely hope that I get what I want for Christmas this year.

As the City of Amarillo continues to discuss launching a $279 million bond initiative for the Amarillo Civic Center Complex, I hope they will consider my request. Instead of placing the bond on the ballot in May 2020 when there will likely be no other items on the ballot and turnout will be very low, the City Council should consider placing the bond on the November 2020 ballot.

Placing the bond item on the November 2020 ballot would drastically increase the turnout of voters who will have a chance to have their say on what is to be one of the largest single municipal bonds in Amarillo’s history. Just as voters head to the polls to cast their ballot for President, they would also have the chance to vote on whether to approve a debt burden that will affect not just this current generation of taxpayers, but the next, as well.

This is a bond that should be voted on by as many taxpayers as possible. Placing the ballot on the May ballot would be a slap in the face to the voters in the Panhandle and would show that the City of Amarillo is not concerned about making the vote as accessible as possible.

If the City Council truly cares about getting the community involved on this major issue, then they must place the bond on the November ballot. This would be a great Christmas gift for the voters of Amarillo to place this item on the November ballot, ensuring that turnout will be high and more taxpayers will have a say on this important issue.

It is truly what I want for Christmas. Let’s make sure we place this item on the November ballot and encourage high turnout in this very important contest.