News

Breckenridge FFA had a successful day, Monday, April 15, at the Pecan Valley District Convention in Dublin with one second-place finish, three third-place finishes and a fifth-place finish.

The Pecan Valley District of Area IV consists of 14 chapters in schools ranging from 1A to 5A and has the most members of the 10,954-member area.

The district is made up of Aledo, Bluff Dale, Breckenridge, Brock, Dublin, Gordon, Huckabay, Lingleville, Millsap, Santo, Stephenville, Strawn, Three Way and Weatherford.

The city of Breckenridge is getting ready for summer and fun in the sun and the city pool. Hiring is underway and this summer’s pool hours have been announced.

Positions are open for lifeguard and lifeguard managers for the 2024 season. The city is accepting applications in person at city hall located at 105 N. Rose St. or online at breckenridgetx.gov.

A Breckenridge woman died Monday, April 22 as a result of injuries sustained in a two-vehicle crash.

According to Breckenridge Police Department Chief Blake Johnson, Shayden Ramsey, 22, of Breckenridge was exiting the parking lot of Walmart, located at 3800 Hwy. 180 West, when an oncoming truck struck her vehicle in the driver-side door. Ramsey and the second driver were transported to Stephens Memorial Hospital where she was pronounced dead.

The state is set for the closing of the first-ever performance series at the National Theatre. Brett Taylor and Friends will visit Breckenridge for a performance at the theatre Friday, April 26 at 7 p.m.

Doors will open at 6 p.m. and tickets are available online at friendsofhistoricbreckenridge.org for $20 for adults and $10 for children. Tickets at the door come with an increased charge of $5.

Stephens County Frontier Days is coming up the first weekend of May and the window is still open for participants to sign up for some of the events taking place.

The deadline has been extended until Monday, April 22 for those wishing to participate in the new Breck’s Got Talent competition taking place May 4. Breck’s Got Talent is replacing the previous competition Breck Idol, which was a singing-only competition.

Prizes for this year are $700 for first place, $350 for second place and $150 for first place.

Early voting begins next week with two contested elections for the city of Breckenridge. There are no other contested elections in Stephens County.

The city of Breckenridge will hold its election Saturday, May 4 at City Hall, located at 105 N. Rose Ave. Early voting will take place April 22-30.

Early voting will be offered from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. The polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Election Day.

The Breckenridge ISD Board of Trustees met Monday April 8 and received a brief review of preliminary 2023 State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) data. The board also approved to seek out new health insurance after voting to leave its current insurance collective.

STAAR has four levels of performance which are measured from highest to lowest by masters grade level, meets grade level and did not meet grade level.

The Texas Department of Transportation is giving community members the opportunity to learn and comment on upcoming projects in the Brownwood district.

Three public meetings with in-person or virtual options are scheduled this month. The three public meetings are split to represent three of the nine counties in the district at each meeting.

The virtual option will be made available by noon Wednesday, April 10, and will include a pre-recorded presentation that provides the same information and program materials presented at the in-person meetings.

Breckenridge Police Department will soon have its new chief pending a background check.

Breckenridge City Manager Cynthia Northrop announced Tuesday, April 2 that the city was nearly complete in hiring Blake Johnson as the new chief of police for BPD.

The city commission had previously voted to allow Northrop to negotiate a contract with Johnson during a special-called meeting March 26.

After holding a ribbon-cutting on the specialty clinic renovation, Stephens Memorial Hospital has set its sights on a new project for the hospital campus. SMH CEO Brian Roland says the hospital is facing parking shortages as the hospital has been able to increase staffing.

Roland briefly discussed the issue last month during the hospital’s board of directors meeting March 28. During the meeting, Roland said he has a spot in mind for a larger hospital parking lot.