Plainview, TX

Building Opportunity on the High Plains

A Clear Vision That Asks Its Residents to “Explore the Opportunities.”

Rising from the wide-open high plains of Texas and known for its blue skies and stunning sunsets, the city of Plainview is anchored in history and guided by a clear vision that continues to move the community forward. This identity is captured in its motto, “Explore the Opportunities,” reflecting Plainview’s optimism and progress, even in the face of adversity.

A Diversified Economy

Farming remains both a legacy and a livelihood in Plainview, even as the city welcomes new opportunities. Mayor Charles Starnes shares, “We’re in an agricultural area. If you go on to Google Maps and look down on us, you’ll see circles of the pivot irrigation systems just literally covering everywhere. We have some folks that grow cucumbers around here, but primarily cotton, corn, sorghum, and wheat.”

The closure of the Cargill meatpacking plant, which once employed more than 2,200 people, proved to be a pivotal moment for the community of approximately 20,000 residents.

“They closed their doors in February of 2013 and so we had a pretty high unemployment rate for a while,” he recalls. “We got lots of help from the Small Business Administration and from the state of Texas, and we executed a wonderful plan to upgrade our businesses.”

Today, Plainview is home to DSM Semichem, producers of electronic-level sulfuric acid needed for semiconductor manufacturing and a supporting company to the Samsung chip factory being built just outside of Austin. “They had a partnership with local Martin Industries, who manufacture sulfuric acid for the agricultural community, and come to find out they need that in chip manufacturing as well,” Economic Development Director Kristi Aday elaborates.

“It was an unexpected addition to the economy of Plainview, but one that fit very well. We’ve also got a new piping company here that supplies Samsung. It’s a new niche for us that we’ll continue to build on.”

Larson International’s amusement ride manufacturing operations are another major employer and are currently in the process of bringing a roller coaster museum to the community. The city is also home to one of the largest cornmeal plants in North America.

“They employ about 300 people and make 80% of the cornmeal for Taco Bell tacos,” says Starnes. Legacy Air is another remarkable Plainview enterprise. “They make light sport planes, and they’re also engaged in the oil and gas industry for drone inspection of electrical wires and oil fields,” he reports.

The city is also attracting new industry through the development of the Plainview-Hale County Business Park.

“One of the key outcomes from the closure of Cargill is this community coming together and planning its future. That was the start of the Plainview-Hale County Business Park,” Aday recounts. “We’ve got about 120 acres of shovel-ready property: electric, gas, internet, broadband, water, and sewer are all extended to the Park and ready for development.”

Located directly along Interstate 27, the park offers exceptional logistics access and high visibility. This ideal position has already attracted Western Equipment, a John Deere dealership that built a brand-new 40,000-square-foot facility, a decision Aday says has been hugely successful.

“We are targeting industries that have already proven successful in Hale County: food manufacturing and logistics, agriculture, manufacturing, and industrial uses,” she maintains. “We also know that most community growth comes from businesses already operating here, so it’s important that we continue nurturing those successes.”

Plainview also benefits from the presence of Wayland Baptist University, a four-year institution founded in 1908 that now offers three doctoral programs. “We’ve got some really strong things going, and the town is moving in a good direction,” Starnes notes. “We just keep moving forward and try to build strong amenities for our citizens, strong education for our children, and good shopping to keep the sales tax rolling in.”

Rebuilding the Heart of the City

Plainview’s downtown revitalization further exemplifies the city’s vibrancy. “We were a typical West Texas small town where commerce had exited the downtown area,” acknowledges Mayor Starnes. “Now we have a new generation of entrepreneurs opening businesses downtown.”

The City helped stimulate this growth through a major streetscape renovation in its downtown corridor. “We are nearing completion of our streetscape project, another initiative from the planning efforts after the Cargill closure,” he adds. “We now attract people from all over West Texas to shop and dine in Downtown Plainview. It’s exciting to go downtown.”

This reinvention was the result of a master plan supported by state grants and the creation of a Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ), says Assistant City Manager Jeff Johnston. “The TIRZ allows us to put revenue captured from rising property values right back into downtown.”

Through the TIRZ program, building owners receive reimbursement grants for essential infrastructure improvements such as roofs, electrical systems, plumbing, and interior upgrades.

“Like any historic downtown, the issue is infrastructure,” continues Aday. “The buildings are old and charming, but they need significant updates to be ready for the public. The purpose of the TIRZ is to help bring them up to code so businesses can open.”

Betty Faye Beauty Bar, Cavalier Men’s Clothing, and numerous other retail and service enterprises became early success stories, showcasing the results of these investments. “It was amazing how quickly businesses began to pop up in the downtown, buying those old buildings, getting some of this money to help with the costs that are needed to open their business,” remarks Johnston. This, in turn, inspired others to open shop in the core. Frontier Market is one example, bringing their beef storefront to the downtown. Communications Director Christine Lockridge highlights, “They saw the walkability, the events that we were having downtown. They saw what was happening, and they opened their business there.”

Housing and Infrastructure

As Plainview’s economy grows, housing has become a main priority. “We did a housing survey a few years ago and found that over half the people working in Plainview live outside the city limits,” Mayor Starnes conveys. “So, we’re in the process of getting new housing developments going.”

Efforts include expanded utility investment and infrastructure incentives that will attract development. “That study did key in on certain areas where we’re lacking housing. That’s anywhere we could support market-rate apartment complexes, duplexes, all the way up to low-income, middle-income, and even high-income housing,” Johnston shares. “One thing Plainview does have is lots of land. So, part of our strategic plan is to start moving water and sewer into those areas to help with the development process.”

One notable project is the transformation of the historic Hilton Hotel into the Conrad Lofts. Built in the 1920’s, the building was the seventh in the Hilton Hotel chain, operating in Plainview until the late 1980’s. “It had become so worn out and hard to maintain that it closed down,” depicts Mayor Starnes. “We had this eight-story building in town with no purpose.” To preserve this important landmark, the City worked with a development company that bought the property using tax incentives to convert the hotel into 28 downtown apartments. “So that was one of the big successes, and that, of course, brought the building back as a valuable piece of property for our property taxes,” he says.

The Next Chapter

When it comes to the future, City Manager Ted Chancellor sees extraordinary potential ahead. “Plainview’s growth is the result of years of planning and investment, and we’re now positioned to continue that progress sustainably,” he says, pointing out a major interstate expansion through the nation’s Ports-to-Plains project, a robotics enhanced Walmart distribution center, excellent healthcare through Covenant Health, and continued investment in roads and utilities, all of which will continue to make the city stronger.

Plainview sits in a strategic regional sweet spot, offering proximity to both Lubbock and Amarillo while maintaining a community scale that many families and businesses find appealing,” he emphasizes. “With direct access to Interstate 27 and its recent federal designation for expansion, strong career and technical pathways through our local colleges, and a skilled regional workforce, Plainview is positioned for long-term connectivity and growth. When a company like Walmart invests here, it reinforces that this is not just local optimism; it is external validation from a global company that sees real value in the community.

”As the city continues to embrace new opportunities, Plainview remains a vibrant community, confidently building its future. Highlighting a continued focus on business attraction, housing and infrastructure development, and community amenities, Starnes underscores, “We’re going to get all sorts of exciting things happening here in Plainview over the next year.”

AT A GLANCE

Who: Plainview, Texas

What: A city of 20,000 welcoming growth, diversification, and opportunity

Where: Hale County, Texas

Website: www.plainviewtx.org