87R16312 BHH-D
By: Frullo H.R. No. 452
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, Citizens of Lubbock are visiting Austin on March 31,
2021, to pay tribute to their city's rich heritage and to celebrate
Lubbock Day at the State Capitol; and
WHEREAS, The Lubbock area is one of the oldest inhabited
places in Texas; archaeologists have discovered evidence of some
12,000 years of continuous habitation at the Lubbock Lake Landmark
site, a national historic and state archaeological preserve; and
WHEREAS, The City of Lubbock was incorporated on March 16,
1909; railroads stimulated the city's growth as a trade center, but
residents also wanted the benefits of an institution of higher
learning; when legislation creating Texas Technological College
was passed in 1923, the site selection committee was impressed by
the enthusiasm and hospitality of the city's residents and chose
Lubbock for the college's location; and
WHEREAS, Today, the city and its surrounding area have a
population of more than 300,000 people, and it is home to the Texas
Tech University System and its flagship institution, Texas Tech
University, a school well deserving of its Tier One status; and
WHEREAS, The Texas Tech Health Sciences Center attracts
students from around the world; in 2016, it was named the number one
graduate school by SR Education Group, and it is consistently
ranked among the top universities in the nation by U.S. News & World
Report; and
WHEREAS, Lubbock's three universities and one public
community college annually draw more than 50,000 students to the
area and refresh the local economy with thousands of new graduates
each year, creating a community where more than 35 percent of
residents over the age of 25 hold a college degree or higher; and
WHEREAS, Texas Tech's athletic programs have achieved
historic successes; the men's basketball team reached its first
Elite Eight in 2018, followed by a Final Four appearance in 2019,
and the baseball team has appeared four times in the College World
Series in the past seven years, while the track and field team has
won indoor and outdoor Big 12 championships; in addition, the
women's basketball team at Lubbock Christian University won a
national championship in 2016; and
WHEREAS, Lubbock's metropolitan area labor force is vibrant,
and the cost of doing business continues to rank among the lowest in
the nation because of low rates for electric and natural gas
utilities, as well as affordable land, wage rates, and cost of
living; and
WHEREAS, Lubbock is consistently recognized by national
organizations for its business-friendly atmosphere, and it has been
named the number one city for professional women, ranked in the top
20 for young entrepreneurs to start a business, and named seventh in
the 2014 Forbes list of "Opportunity Cities" based on the city's low
cost of living, its cultural offerings, and the strength of its
business community; and
WHEREAS, Lubbock enjoys a diverse economy that draws its
strength from agribusiness, manufacturing, and commerce, as well as
from educational and health care services, and the city boasts the
largest medical infrastructure to be found between Dallas and
Phoenix; with the growth of cotton culture on the High Plains,
Lubbock has become one of the world's primary centers for the
processing of cottonseed and hybrid grain sorghum seed; and
WHEREAS, The Lubbock region also features several major,
award-winning wineries and vineyards, and the area north of Lubbock
is known for its cattle production; and
WHEREAS, Lubbock offers a wealth of cultural institutions and
recreational opportunities, including the Lubbock Symphony
Orchestra, the Lubbock Civic Ballet, the Museum and Planetarium and
other offerings at Texas Tech University, and the Silent Wings
Museum; a new, state-of-the-art performing arts center is under
construction and is to be named after local legend and Rock 'n' Roll
Hall of Fame inductee Buddy Holly; Lubbock County voters have also
approved the construction of the new Lubbock County Expo Center to
serve as a multipurpose event center for the region; and
WHEREAS, Through meticulously planned infrastructure, city
leaders have created a low-traffic community with the number one
ranked commute in the state and more neighborhood parks per capita
than any other city in Texas; and
WHEREAS, Those wanting a glimpse of the frontier can find it
in the restored structures at the Ranching Heritage Center, a
15-acre site tracing the evolution of ranch architecture and the
history of the cattle industry; the region's history is also
celebrated at the Bayer Museum of Agriculture; and
WHEREAS, Many talented musicians have come from the Lubbock
area; they include Buddy Holly, Roy Orbison, the Maines family,
Virgil Johnson and the Velvets, Waylon Jennings, Tanya Tucker, Joe
Ely, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Butch Hancock, Pat Green, and Josh
Abbott; their rich and diverse contributions have earned Lubbock
and West Texas recognition as the "Music Crossroads of Texas"; and
WHEREAS, Lubbock's thriving business community is
represented by the largest business federation on the Texas South
Plains, the Lubbock Chamber of Commerce, which grows and guards the
prosperity of the Lubbock area; and
WHEREAS, Early major achievements propelled by the chamber
during more than a century of service include recruiting
out-of-state farmers to populate the area and make productive the
fertile soils of the Llano Estacado, working to bring the railroad
to Lubbock, founding the South Plains Fair, and drafting and
delivering the application to the Texas Capitol that would result
in establishing Texas Technological College, which today thrives as
the heart of the Texas Tech University System; and
WHEREAS, The Lubbock Chamber of Commerce was also
instrumental in establishing Lubbock Preston Smith International
Airport, Reese Air Force Base, and the area's outstanding
transportation infrastructure, and it recently introduced an
Association Health Plan for its small-business members in 34 West
Texas counties and is the first chamber in Texas to launch such a
plan; and
WHEREAS, The citizens of Lubbock have truly kept faith with
the founders of their West Texas community; renowned for their
friendliness and warmth as well as their hardiness and
determination, they have helped to build a vital urban center that
serves not only a large part of West Texas but also eastern New
Mexico; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 87th Texas
Legislature hereby recognize March 31, 2021, as Lubbock Day at the
State Capitol and extend to the members of the visiting delegation
and all their fellow citizens sincere appreciation for the bright
luster they add to the Lone Star State.