Marfa PD seeking 3 new positions
MARFA — The Marfa Police Department is currently seeking applicants for three open positions within its department — a patrol officer, a school resource officer and an animal control officer.
Previous Patrol Officer Victor Lopez recently left the department to take up his new position as the sheriff of Jeff Davis County. Previous School Resource Officer King Merritt — who came on board in August — recently resigned to pursue employment closer to home in Houston, according to Lieutenant Nichole Fuentes. His last day was December 29.
Officer Ian Martinez is filling in on the Marfa ISD campus while the department seeks Merritt’s replacement.
Current Animal Control Officer Juan Avila has not yet tendered his resignation but plans to pursue a career with the Marines starting in February, Fuentes said. A job description for the animal control officer position can be found on the city’s website, cityofmarfa.com/jobs.
Job descriptions and qualifications for the patrol officer and school resource officer can be found on Marfa P.D.’s Facebook page and on the city’s website. Applicants must be Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE) certified peace officers, must have never been convicted of a felony or family violence, and must pass a drug screening and psychological assessment.
Applications will remain open until the positions are filled.
For more information, contact Chief Gilberto Carrillo via email, gcarrillo@cityofmarfa.com, or phone, 432-729-1841. To apply, visit cityofmarfa.com/…/page/employment-application.
City suffers Sal Si Puedes water line break
MARFA — The City of Marfa suffered a main water line break the afternoon of December 21 east of town in the Sal Si Puedes neighborhood.
The break was located on Oak Street and Golf Course Road in front of the USDA Building. The road was blocked off while crews from the city’s Public Works Department worked for three to four hours to repair the break. Public Utilities Supervisor Chuck Salgado said the only delay in addressing the issue was in ensuring they did not negatively impact nearby phone lines with digging.
Residents in the surrounding area were impacted by low water pressure, with a few trailer homes losing water completely while the break was repaired. Salgado said he believes the approximately 4-foot-long break in the PVC pipe was due to temperature fluctuations causing the ground to shift. Salgado said it was the first big water line break his crews have dealt with in a while.
Marfa Invitational announces Santa Fe expansion
MARFA — The Marfa Invitational art fair announced plans in a November Instagram post to host a “Tesuque Invitational” event in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and in Tesuque, a small village just north of Santa Fe, from October 21 to 26, 2025.
The “week-long celebration of Contemporary Art + Culture” will include “exhibitions, gallery openings, studio visits, artist + collector talks, home + private collection tours, outdoor installations, and performances … throughout the burgeoning Art + Design community of Santa Fe,” the post states.
The Marfa Invitational was founded in 2018 by husband-wife duo Michael Phelan and Melissa Bent. It is an annual art fair, typically held at Saint George Hall, that brings gallerists and artists from all over the world to Marfa in May. The entity also operates a sculpture park outside of town on Highway 90.
The Tesuque Invitational announcement came shortly after another Instagram post — which has since been deleted — announcing dates for the 2025 Marfa Invitational. Phelan wrote that the Marfa Invitational would be taking place across two weeks at Saint George Hall, with two editions: an international edition May 15-18, and a special “Mi Locale” edition May 22-25.
Phelan did not respond to a request for comment from The Big Bend Sentinel about plans for the 2025 Marfa Invitational.
The 2024 Marfa Invitational took place but did not include the traditional art fair element. The scaled-down event followed the loss of the Marfa Invitational’s nonprofit status — which has since been reinstated — and the filing of a charitable trust complaint with the Texas Attorney General’s Office by an ex-board advisor alleging Phelan misused donated funds for personal expenses. The Attorney General’s Office has not provided an update regarding the complaint, according to the ex-board advisor.
Regional ministry sponsoring free US citizenship classes
TRI-COUNTY – United States citizenship classes will begin throughout the area within the coming weeks, sponsored by the Rio Grande Borderland Ministries.
In-person classes will be organized in Fort Davis, Alpine, Marfa and Presidio. These group classes will be offered via Zoom at each site in Spanish on Thursdays at 5:30 p.m., followed by instruction in English at 6:30 p.m. A home study program is also available.
Additional information is available in English from the Reverend Michael Wallens, vicar of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Marfa, at 214-862-7292. A number for assistance in Spanish will be announced soon. Those interested may also obtain details from the public libraries in their community.
There is no charge for the classes. Rio Grande Borderland Ministries (RGBM) is a ministry of the Episcopal Diocese of the Rio Grande serving in the borderlands of New Mexico and Far West Texas. RGBM has been engaging with long-term systemic needs on the border for decades by working collaboratively to provide humanitarian support to vulnerable people in the border communities. The organization’s website is riograndeborderland.org.
McDonald’s franchise to open in Presidio
PRESIDIO –– News trickled through social media late last month about the opening of a new McDonald’s franchise in Presidio. The restaurant will be located at 1305 W O’Reilly Street, neighboring the UETA Duty Free store near the port of entry. The estimated cost of the project is $2.5 million, and the private funder hopes to light up the Golden Arches by December of this year. Impacts to other local businesses –– which include no chain restaurants on this side of the border –– remain to be seen, but the UETA will continue to be open for business as much as possible during construction.
Friends of library host annual meeting in Fort Davis
JEFF DAVIS COUNTY — Everyone is invited to take part in the annual meeting of the Friends of the Jeff Davis County Library planned for Wednesday, January 15 at 5:30 p.m. in the library.
All members and prospective members of the Friends are welcome to meet its officers, hear a review of last year’s progress and learn what is ahead at the library. Its free programs are a resource for people of all ages in the tri-county area.