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Honestly, I'd say the only thing Lubbock "needs" in my opinion is the taller buildings and some more density downtown, and the tier one status for Texas Tech. Maybe fix the dry county thing.
Other than that, I wouldn't say it needs more trees or hills -- it's visually representative of the panhandle plains, and you've got the canyons nearby. What is the city's slogan, something like, "The Texas you Imagined"? Because it does kind of look like some of the stereotypes that are out there of our state's landscape, and some people like that.
Also, the medical facilities are extremely impressive for the region and the city size. So are the museums -- being an Austin resident, I'm surprised that Lubbock's museums are on par with (or even better in some ways) Austin's museums despite having a fraction of the population.
I was overall impressed when I visited back in December. Lubbock doesn't need much. I'd guess if it were in another state, you'd probably hear a lot more buzz about it... but in Texas, there are so many large and mid-sized cities that Lubbock doesn't quite get the status that it merits.
Lubbock doesn't necessarily need anything, but there are a few wants that I would like to see.
I would love for more highrises to be put in Lubbock. The revitalization should make the downtown one of the best for its size in the nation, and the skyline should show it.
Less cookie cutter neighborhoods. It's great to see Lubbock is growing, but it doesn't need to do it by slapping up low quality housing.
Better public transit. Bus routes hardly go outside of the Tech area because ridership is low... or is ridership low because routes hardly go outside ot the Tech area?
The idea of a riverwalk (or streamwalk like it would be here) sounds nice too.
Needs? Well, I've exhausted nearly every facet of Lubbock's scope on my blog pages. So right here, I thought I would tell you what their media needs are, the more the area gets bigger. In addition to the area's unique offerings, why not add something?
Let's start with Lubbock radio.
It's a strong AM market as far as offerings and the number of stations. Here's what I envision for the AM dial:
790 KFYO - Already the market's top news/talk outlet, but they deserve a Newsradio moniker, and its signal ought to be boosted to 10,000 watts of power. And I'd like to see them reacquire CBS as its network of choice, since they've been associated with each other for many years. They ought to put together West Texas' largest news team. They need to stop being cheap and go for mid-market status with major-market attitude.
1420 KJDL - I would love to see them become "The Talk of Lubbock" or "Lubbock's Place To Talk". An upgrade of their website would also be welcome.
1090 KVOP - Currently something else, but how about ESPN 1090? That'd be a great fit. Why not? And more sports options would give a nice alternative to KKAM 1340.
580 KRFE - Yes, they play big band, but how about them having local disk jockeys instead of some satellite feed? They can oversee something like this. It'd be a great place to groom new talent, too.
Also, stations should appear for Radio Disney, a black community channel, and an all-Beatles station. Hey, that lattermost idea was realized in Dallas a few years ago, and in Houston twenty years ago, so it can be done.
Now, to FM. It, too, is pretty strong, with just about every genre and format covered. Here's what I dream about, though.
Smooth Jazz 101.7, The Island - This is representative of what Lubbock should have had. The problem is that the format will probably never be back on American radio airwaves. If it ever does come back, then this currently unopen frequency would be the perfect location.
Classics 103.5 - Currently, it's La Ley, a Spanish music format. But why not have your own classical music station 24 hours a day in Lubbock? KOHM is good, but someone's got to do NPR in that area.
And I think that 99.5 and 101.1 should swap formats. The Bear would now be known as Classic Rock, and 101.1 KONE can be called K101, a new country station.
Now, for the newspaper. The Avalanche-Journal needs a new, larger, more high-tech facility, with an expanded overall newspaper. I'll be happy if it can become another Austin American-Statesman in terms of size. This market is worth that.
Now, for the TV market.
KCBD (11-NBC) - They should change their name to Eyewitness News and have slightly catchier theme music (well, you'll probably be seeing that on all stations, anyway).
KAMC (28-ABC) - How I wish they'd be on Channel 3, instead, but oh, well..... Can you say News 28? This station, along with....
KLBK (13-CBS) - .....should be owned separately. Nexstar ought to sell both stations. 13 should be owned by Post-Newsweek, and 28 ought to be bought by Gannett or something. Local 13....where local news comes first.
All of these should start offering weekend morning newscasts and expand their existing products during the week, especially mornings. In addition, Channel 40 ought to be brought back, not just for old times' sake, but to offer an independent station playing old TV shows, movies, and sports, and done with an exciting, new identity (40-Vision?).
And, of course, I'd love to see the expansion and growth of Lubbock Magazine. They debuted last year, and when I go to Lubbock later this year, I plan to buy a copy for myself. It gives the city coverage, plus a touch of class.
Needs? Well, I've exhausted nearly every facet of Lubbock's scope on my blog pages. So right here, I thought I would tell you what their media needs are, the more the area gets bigger. In addition to the area's unique offerings, why not add something?
Let's start with Lubbock radio.
It's a strong AM market as far as offerings and the number of stations. Here's what I envision for the AM dial:
790 KFYO - Already the market's top news/talk outlet, but they deserve a Newsradio moniker, and its signal ought to be boosted to 10,000 watts of power. And I'd like to see them reacquire CBS as its network of choice, since they've been associated with each other for many years. They ought to put together West Texas' largest news team. They need to stop being cheap and go for mid-market status with major-market attitude.
1420 KJDL - I would love to see them become "The Talk of Lubbock" or "Lubbock's Place To Talk". An upgrade of their website would also be welcome.
1090 KVOP - Currently something else, but how about ESPN 1090? That'd be a great fit. Why not? And more sports options would give a nice alternative to KKAM 1340.
580 KRFE - Yes, they play big band, but how about them having local disk jockeys instead of some satellite feed? They can oversee something like this. It'd be a great place to groom new talent, too.
Also, stations should appear for Radio Disney, a black community channel, and an all-Beatles station. Hey, that lattermost idea was realized in Dallas a few years ago, and in Houston twenty years ago, so it can be done.
Now, to FM. It, too, is pretty strong, with just about every genre and format covered. Here's what I dream about, though.
Smooth Jazz 101.7, The Island - This is representative of what Lubbock should have had. The problem is that the format will probably never be back on American radio airwaves. If it ever does come back, then this currently unopen frequency would be the perfect location.
Classics 103.5 - Currently, it's La Ley, a Spanish music format. But why not have your own classical music station 24 hours a day in Lubbock? KOHM is good, but someone's got to do NPR in that area.
And I think that 99.5 and 101.1 should swap formats. The Bear would now be known as Classic Rock, and 101.1 KONE can be called K101, a new country station.
Now, for the newspaper. The Avalanche-Journal needs a new, larger, more high-tech facility, with an expanded overall newspaper. I'll be happy if it can become another Austin American-Statesman in terms of size. This market is worth that.
Now, for the TV market.
KCBD (11-NBC) - They should change their name to Eyewitness News and have slightly catchier theme music (well, you'll probably be seeing that on all stations, anyway).
KAMC (28-ABC) - How I wish they'd be on Channel 3, instead, but oh, well..... Can you say News 28? This station, along with....
KLBK (13-CBS) - .....should be owned separately. Nexstar ought to sell both stations. 13 should be owned by Post-Newsweek, and 28 ought to be bought by Gannett or something. Local 13....where local news comes first.
All of these should start offering weekend morning newscasts and expand their existing products during the week, especially mornings. In addition, Channel 40 ought to be brought back, not just for old times' sake, but to offer an independent station playing old TV shows, movies, and sports, and done with an exciting, new identity (40-Vision?).
And, of course, I'd love to see the expansion and growth of Lubbock Magazine. They debuted last year, and when I go to Lubbock later this year, I plan to buy a copy for myself. It gives the city coverage, plus a touch of class.
And there you are.
You forgot the most important radio station, save KTXT!!!!!!!! Now that it's gone, all we have is Christian, Country, Rap, and Tejano. As far as the Lubbock Magazine goes, it desperately needs improvement. I read through one once, and half of it is advertisments.
You forgot the most important radio station, save KTXT!!!!!!!! Now that it's gone, all we have is Christian, Country, Rap, and Tejano. As far as the Lubbock Magazine goes, it desperately needs improvement. I read through one once, and half of it is advertisments.
Good point about KTXT. They sure do need to bring it back.
I'd also like to see some growth in Lubbock's "surrounding towns", which could become suburbs eventually. Places like Wolfforth are getting some small spurts, but I see tons of potential in places like Shallowater, New Deal, Idalou, and Woodrow. But I envision four other communities that could adjoin Lubbock and serve a valuable purpose. They really don't exist yet, but they could happen if a visionary happens to come along. Keep in mind that just because there are surrounding towns on all sides of Lubbock, that shouldn't take away from Lubbock's own objective and future growth.
Here are some possibilities (the following are potential town names):
Posey - If you look at it on a map, it's just a railroad stop. But I envision a community between Slaton and Southeast Lubbock. A future belt freeway/tollway could go in in that area eventually, and U.S. 84 ought to at least be upgraded to a freeway, so this would be a fantastic place for just about any kind of family to settle. It doesn't necessarily have to strictly follow Lubbock's strict grid pattern, and the names don't even have to be the same. And they could do something very special around the Llano Estacado Winery, which is basically located in that area. They could surround that, at least in part, with gardens. Potentially 40 to 50,000 residents if it's fully built out. The northern boundary could be just south of 98th St in SE Lubbock.
West Reese Heights - If they ever build a new airport in Lubbock (Yeah, I know. Laugh if you must. But we can dream), then this community would be built southwest of Shallowater and west of the potential site for a possible larger airport (tentatively with the running name of Lubbock-Reese International Airport). Possibly 20 to 30 thousand people with large and small house lots. Creative neighborhoods. The only potential concern is where the runways would be designed and located at the aforementioned airport, so we'd have to work around that (if built, the proposed airport's terminal would be the east side of the property, so that would put the runways west). Designs could be done Hill Country style, but we could diversify.
Broadview - This could be Lubbock's most exciting development if it's done correctly. This one's another train stop, located on U.S. 84 (Clovis Highway), but the actual town could be entirely annexed north of that location. The community would be confined to an area just west of where University and Bluefield/Regis meet in North Lubbock, and stretching to just west of Milwaukee Ave for its western border. The southern border would be just off U.S. 84 and its northern border would be just north of a potential belt freeway/tollway in the area's northern outskirts (approximately a little bit north of FM 1294). What would this town be? The "Beverly Hills" of the Llano Estacado, with a special West Texas touch. Corporate parks and campuses could locate here once Lubbock gets new businesses and corporations that could necessitate such development. Income levels for houses could range from middle-class to very expensive. A new urban development could go in there. I can see 60 to 80,000 potential new residents at full buildout.
East Liberty Heights - A new northeastern suburb like this one could be setting up shop just east of the current airport site and just southeast of New Deal. The airport could be converted to a business airport if the Reese thing ever bears fruit. Why East Liberty Heights? The name is inspired by the actual municipality of Liberty. Well, we can't use Liberty because there is already a town in Southeast Texas with that very name, so we'd have to call it something else up here. This would be a simple bedroom community with the basic suburban trappings, and it would border a potential Northeast Lubbock, which, right now, doesn't really exist. Can you imagine what the new water tower might say? The town's identity might be known in these parts as ELH. Pretty cool, don't you think? Possibly 20 to 40,000 in population but can be annexed to accommodate 60,000 at its peak. A future belt through there would probably just be feeder roads for now.
Now, I still see Shallowater and Wolfforth being the two big, potential stalwarts of suburban life in this area and both have tremendous promise. But, once again, this should not take away from making Lubbock a stronger community. If anything, it'll give people more options and still have the convenience of the big city. Shallowater (possibly with 50,000 potential residents, and 80 to 90,000 at full buildout) and Wolfforth (ditto) are gateways waiting to happen, but with their own twists and nuances. We'll let your imaginations take course there. New Deal could be the northern gateway that Lubbock's metro deserves to have, and the emptiness could be replaced by four or five exits off I-27, with homes, businesses, places to eat and shop, and two Class 4A high schools, one on each side of the train tracks (20 to 30 thousand is not unrealistic for that area). Once you come southbound from Abernathy (which I propose to have the new location of the Stars and Stripes Drive-In movie theatre), you ought to see a gorgeous kaleidoscope of new life welcoming you with open to arms to Legendary Lubbock. And Idalou could be Lubbock's eastern gateway, with an emphasis on controlled growth, but also with an oasis for travelers coming from Wichita Falls or D/FW on a potential new corridor. 15 to 25,000 with annexation to hold 40,000. Lots of land, and that's the real upside to Lubbock County. It's inexpensive from what I understand, and it's available.
So, there you are with potential suburbia if and when this would happen. If Texas' economy stays better than the rest of the country and actually gets even better, then watch out.
And also in Lubbock and the surrounding areas, let's bring back Taco Cabana (it previously had a presence there, but, for some reason, left). How about Carl's Jr? I see them having more of a presence in West Texas than in other parts of the state, and they'd be a great alternative to Burger King, plus they are real popular in the western U.S. And they could use more places for breakfast now that Skillet's Restaurant is completely out of the picture. I'd love to see Jim's Restaurant (prominent in Austin and San Antonio) expand its operations and develop new prototype stores, so why not the Hub City for a few locations? They've got good Texas food and Austin and SA's best breakfast. Lubbock, I think, would eat it up.
Outside of the fast-foodies, they need some more local talent developing new ideas for eateries, some casual, and some that are fine dining. I did previously mention in my blogs about a place called European Gardens. If they could ever build anything like that in Lubbock, then you'd be seeing restaurants and shops specifically designed with a European flair, plus the food offerings ranging from German to French to the British pub variety. And I'd also like to see a new hamburger place that wood-fire-broils their burgers and have fresh ingredients, with fries, onion rings, and barbecue beans. I wish I could develop something like that for Lubbockites; if not, then I hope somebody else can. They'd have a chance to be Lubbock's best burger. If I launch anything like that, I'll get back to you. And it wouldn't hurt if Mr Tilman Fertitta (Landry's, Saltgrass) can take his ventures into this market and plant a few locations there.
Also I'd like to see these: new gas station/convenience stores such as the QuikTrip chain. Dallas is QuikTrip's only Texas outlet, so Lubbock would be a good choice for their expansion (I'd also like to see them in Houston, but that's another thread). Also, a brake specialist chain called Brake Masters. They are prominent in New Mexico and other western states, and they've even got locations in El Paso, so Lubbock would be another good outlet and would make good regional sense.
That's all just off the top of my head, and I may have even more later, but I'll leave you with one more idea. I love fried chicken. I wouldn't mind seeing someone put together a fried chicken chain that is unique to Lubbock and that region. It would be a barn-shaped building with a weathervane on top, and all they'd do is chicken (fried or rotisserie) and they would make homemade pinto beans, plus the other usual trappings at a fried chicken place, and they would serve rolls, not biscuits (nothing against biscuits, just something different). The fried chicken would incorporate a batter using a dash of pepper and special seasonings. The Houston region has its own chicken chain that's real successful (Hartz Chicken), so why not this for Lubbock? What do y'all think?? (The running title would be called Farmer's Fried Chicken --- I swear it was a dream!! )
So there you are once again. If I get any new ideas, you know I'll be back.
Does anybody have any opinions on what Lubbocks needs and wants are
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like it would be here) sounds nice too.
What Lubbock Media Might Look Like.....
), then this community would be built southwest of Shallowater and west of the potential site for a possible larger airport (tentatively with the running name of Lubbock-Reese International Airport). Possibly 20 to 30 thousand people with large and small house lots. Creative neighborhoods. The only potential concern is where the runways would be designed and located at the aforementioned airport, so we'd have to work around that (if built, the proposed airport's terminal would be the east side of the property, so that would put the runways west). Designs could be done Hill Country style, but we could diversify. 
Possibly 20 to 40,000 in population but can be annexed to accommodate 60,000 at its peak. A future belt through there would probably just be feeder roads for now.
