News

The Jacksboro Economic Development Corporation received the go-ahead from Jacksboro City Council to purchase property on south Main Street for further development.

The JEDC entered into an agreement with ARC GBLMESA001 LLC, a subsidiary of Global Net Lease, in September 2025 to purchase properties totaling approximately 36.33 acres located at 872 and 902 South Main Street for a total purchase price of $1 million.

Jack County Judge Keith Umphress issued a declaration of local disaster as cold temperatures moved in Friday and accumulations of sleet and snow overnight and in the coming days threatened residents, infrastructure and property throughout the area.

Umphress issued the declaration early Saturday, Jan. 24 after reports of insufficient heating in homes in Jacksboro flooded Jack County Sheriff’s Office dispatch as well as social media pages.

Jacksboro High School junior Garrison Johnson will represent his hometown and the state at the Society of Range Management national meeting in California next month.

In May 2025 Johnson was named the National Range Judging individual champion at the 74th annual National Land and Range Judging contest in Oklahoma City where more than 1,000 individuals and 199 teams from 39 states were in attendance. FFA and 4-H students matched their skills in judging the adaptability of land for various purposes, including farming, range management and home development.

The filing period is open for candidates looking to run for local office in the May election, including city council and school boards.

The filing period opened Wednesday, Jan. 14 and will run through Friday, Feb. 13. The last day to file a declaration of write-in candidacy will be Tuesday, Feb. 17.

Candidate applications can be obtained and submitted for the May election from each separate political subdivision.

Each entity has until Feb. 13 to order a general election or special election on a measure, such as a bond election.

Jack County Commissioners Court received an application for a tax abatement and the designation of a new reinvestment zone for the construction and operation of a data center campus on State Highway 199 on the Jack/Wise County line. If negotiations went accordingly, construction could start as early as this year.

Jack County Judge Keith Umphress said Monday, Jan. 12 this was the 11th project he was currently negotiating, but it wasn’t even on the court’s radar until a few weeks ago. At first, he said, court officials thought the project was a housing subdivision.

Jack County Justice of the Peace Jessica Bailey will look to hire an additional clerk for her office as workloads have continued to increase.

The commissioners approved the request Monday, Jan. 12 after Bailey said case loads in 2025 significantly increased over the previous year, so much so that the office could not keep up with the call volume.

“We have been so busy we can’t even return phone calls at the rate they’re coming in,” Bailey said.

After months of discussion the city of Jacksboro will put the final stamp on a deannexation request for properties along the northeast side of Lake Jacksboro, effectively removing them from the tax roll and eliminating any obligation to provide city services.

Jacksboro City Council unanimously granted the request at its regular Monday, Jan. 12 meeting.

Property owners Don Sneed with DSCI, Inc. and Lynn Boyer with Marmot LLC asked in August 2025 to deannex the properties when the city said it could not feasibly provide utility services.

The community in Jacksboro came out over the weekend in support of one of the Tigerette’s brightest stars who achieved a her life-long dream. After years of dedication and hard work, Hayden Walker will continue her basketball career in the college ranks after her commitment to Oklahoma Christian University.

Walker’s commitment to the program actually came in the latter half of the 2025 school year on National Signing Day.

However, the community held a special ceremony for Walker Sunday, Jan. 11 to celebrate her achievement.

Churches in Jack County are gearing up for the Souper Bowl of Caring, a national campaign to collect food and monetary donations for local charities and organizations. In its 24th year locally, the event will benefit Concerned Citizens of Jack County and the Meals on Wheels program.

On Sunday, Feb. 8, congregations in Jack County will collect donations during morning services for the program.

Jacksboro City Council signed off on an agreement just before the new year between the city and Texas Regional Landfill Company, detailing new terms for royalty fees paid to the city as well as site usage.

The council met in a special called meeting on December 22, 2025, where, even though they held off on passing a resolution to appropriate excess funds, City Attorney David Spiller advised the council adopt the agreement now, saying time was of the essence.