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Council delays permanent Amarillo EDC appointments, asks city appointees to stay through hiring process
Summary
Council discussed replacing temporary Amarillo Economic Development Corporation (AEDC) board members and agreed to keep current council-appointed members in place until the search firm selection and initial steps of director recruitment are finished; no permanent appointments were made.
The Amarillo City Council discussed whether to replace temporary members of the Amarillo Economic Development Corporation (AEDC) board and decided to delay permanent appointments while the AEDC completes a search‑firm selection and early director‑recruitment work.
Mayor and council members debated whether to wait until after the upcoming municipal election or allow the council’s current appointees to continue through the AEDC’s search‑firm selection and director hiring process. City staff reminded council that municipal code prescribes staggered three‑year terms and allows appointees to remain until successors are named.
City attorney Merritt Stanley and city attorney staffer (identified in the meeting as Ms. Coggins) briefed council on applicable municipal code provisions, noting recommended term structuring to preserve staggered expirations and stating that appointees must be Potter or Randall County residents and registered voters. Staff told council there were 54 applicants in the AEDC application pool, and that some applicants had withdrawn.
Council members who currently serve on the AEDC—Josh Craft and Don Tips—said they were prepared to step down but were willing to remain through parts of the process. Craft said he was “ready to come off,” while other council members urged continuity so the two could complete the RFP/firm selection work. One council member asked staff to ensure applicant qualifications have been verified; staff said applicant vetting materials were not provided to council at the time.
Council discussed options including appointing an entire permanent board after the search firm is selected, or appointing only a few members now. After debate, council took no action on permanent appointments and agreed to maintain the status quo: the temporary board members would remain and the two council members serving on AEDC would continue to participate through the selection of a search firm and early director recruitment. Councilmembers signaled preference to replace the entire board at once rather than placing partial appointments.
At the end of the meeting the mayor also read a list of 17 former or current AEDC affiliates who had signed a letter requesting time on an upcoming agenda to present perspectives about the AEDC; council discussed routing that request through the AEDC chair before scheduling a public presentation.
No vote was taken to appoint members at the meeting; staff will continue consultations with AEDC appointees and return to the council when the search‑firm selection phase is complete.
