Amarillo council appoints Brian Bruckner to AEDC board after failed vote on Will Miller

The Amarillo City Council voted to appoint Brian Bruckner to the Amarillo Economic Development Corporation board after an earlier motion to appoint Will Miller failed during a special called meeting. The council approved Bruckner’s appointment by a 5-0 vote; an initial motion to appoint Will Miller failed after the council recorded two yes votes, one no and two abstentions.

The vacancy had drawn extended council discussion about whether the board needed “institutional knowledge” or fresh perspectives ahead of a planned search for a new AEDC executive director. Council members who supported Bruckner cited his prior AEDC experience and prior participation on search committees; supporters of Miller argued for appointing a candidate with financial-institution experience who could bring conservative, analytical oversight to economic development decisions.

The debate preceded two formal motions. The first motion—to nominate Will Miller—was moved and seconded but did not receive sufficient affirmative votes and failed. The council then moved to nominate Brian Bruckner; that motion passed unanimously, 5-0. Council members said they expect the newly constituted AEDC board to lead a forthcoming executive director search and to work closely with city staff and regional partners on pending projects.

Public comment before the appointment covered several topics related to city budgeting and economic development. A resident who identified herself as Miss Hope said Pleasant Valley had not received modernized drainage infrastructure and asked that the neighborhood not be charged drainage fees while infrastructure remained outdated: "We Pleasant Valley has been a part of y'all for 65 years…until then, I don't know what can be done about our drainage fees because, like I said, the last 65 years, our culverts and ditches haven't been maintained." The resident said some culverts and ditches are being addressed but many remain unaccounted for.

Business and civic commenters urged clearer AEDC priorities. Lisa Romanelli, who said she was speaking about the selection of new AEDC leadership, asked the board to define what "ROI" means for Amarillo taxpayers and urged a strategy emphasizing quality-of-life investments, federal and defense-aligned projects, and local partnerships. Romanelli said AEDC should focus on investments that "reduce your property taxes, or financially strengthen public schools, or even fund the projects that we just heard about," and suggested leveraging Amarillo’s transportation location and military legacy to attract federal funding and private investment.

Other public commenters raised concerns about budget transparency and senior services. A commenter identified as Mr. Fisher accused city accounting practices of obscuring reserves and called current practices "financial gaslighting," saying fee revenues for water and drainage were being used outside their intended purposes. Tim Benson pressed the council to dedicate more resources to seniors, saying the budget had allocated "$12,000,000 plus in the homeless camp and $0 for seniors."

Council members debated a longer-term nomination strategy, noting two AEDC terms will expire in December and that the board will soon conduct a search for an executive director. Several council members urged a mix of experienced and new board members to balance institutional knowledge with fresh perspectives. Council comments repeatedly referenced Bell Helicopter and the Fermi America project as local economic anchors and noted that the next AEDC board will play a role in positioning Amarillo for pending private- and federal-sector opportunities.

After the appointment and brief remarks welcoming Bruckner to the AEDC board, the council adjourned the special called meeting.