By Thomas Warren III, Editor-in-Chief

For the first time in a long time, Amarillo taxpayers might actually have an elected official who is looking out for them at Amarillo City Hall.

On Tuesday, the Amarillo City Council voted 4-1 to take the first step down the path of issuing $35 million in certificates of obligation to create a new city hall. The vote came less than a year after voters defeated Proposition A, a $275 million bond which would have funded the majority of a spending package that included this project.

So, despite voters turning down the downtown spending package our municipal leaders put forward, the wishes of taxpayers are again being ignored by elected officials who are hellbent on getting their self-serving agenda accomplished. Based on the past four years, all I can really say is “go figure.”

You might notice, however, that the City Council’s vote was a rare 4-1. Who was that one person opposed? None other than Amarillo’s brand new Place 1 City Councilman, Cole Stanley.

When Cole Stanley ran for office in the May election, he spoke at length about fiscal responsibility and campaigned on bringing business insights and knowledge to the City Council. And, on this particular item, Stanley came through for Amarillo taxpayers and got it right, declining to follow in the footsteps of elected officials who intend to ignore the will of the voters.

While Stanley still has just under two years left on his term, the vote he took this week, as well as his recent statements about looking to pay things down instead of paying them up are promising. Cole Stanley got this one right, and let’s hope he gets even more of these votes right over the next two years. If he does, it is entirely possible that Cole Stanley might end up being one of the best elected officials Amarilloans have had in years.