88R7821 BHH-D
 
  By: Burrows H.R. No. 189
 
 
 
R E S O L U T I O N
         WHEREAS, Many notable citizens of Lubbock are visiting Austin
  on February 22, 2023, to pay tribute to their city's rich heritage
  and to celebrate Lubbock Day at the State Capitol; and
         WHEREAS, A thriving region of the state, the Lubbock area is
  one of the oldest inhabited places in Texas; archaeologists have
  discovered evidence of some 12,000 years of continuous habitation
  at the Lubbock Lake Landmark site, a national historic and state
  archaeological preserve; and
         WHEREAS, The City of Lubbock was incorporated on March 16,
  1909; the railroads stimulated the city's growth as a trade center,
  but residents also wanted the benefits of an institution of higher
  learning; when legislation creating Texas Technological College
  was finally passed in 1923, the site selection committee, impressed
  by the enthusiasm and hospitality of local citizens, chose Lubbock
  for its location; and
         WHEREAS, Today a city of more than 300,000 people, Lubbock is
  home to the Texas Tech University System and its flagship
  institution, Texas Tech University, a school well deserving of its
  Tier One status; and
         WHEREAS, The Texas Tech Health Sciences Center attracts
  approximately 5,000 students from around the world, and it was
  named the number one graduate school in the nation by the SR
  Education Group in 2016; it is also consistently ranked among the
  top universities in the nation by U.S. News & World Report; and
         WHEREAS, Three universities, including Texas Tech
  University, and one public community college annually draw more
  than 53,000 students to the area and refresh the local economy with
  around 10,000 new graduates each year, creating a community where
  32 percent of residents over the age of 25 hold a college degree or
  higher; and
         WHEREAS, The athletic programs at Texas Tech University have
  achieved a number of historic successes; the men's basketball team
  has recently reached the Final Four, the baseball team has appeared
  four times in the College World Series in the past decade, and the
  men's outdoor track and field team has won a national championship
  title; moreover, the women's basketball team at Lubbock Christian
  University won national championships in 2016, 2019, and 2021; and
         WHEREAS, Lubbock's regional labor force numbers more than
  165,000, and the cost of doing business continues to rank as one of
  the lowest in the nation, with one of the lowest costs for electric
  and natural gas utilities, as well as affordable land, wage rates,
  cost of living, and property taxes; and
         WHEREAS, Lubbock is consistently recognized by national
  organizations for its business-friendly atmosphere, including
  being named the number one city for professional women, ranked in
  the top 20 for young entrepreneurs to start a business, and named
  seventh in the 2014 Forbes list of "Opportunity Cities" based on low
  cost of living, cultural offerings, and the strength of the
  business community; and
         WHEREAS, Lubbock enjoys a diverse economy that draws its
  strength from agribusiness, manufacturing, and commerce, as well as
  from educational and medical facilities, boasting the largest
  medical infrastructure to be found between Dallas and Phoenix; with
  the growth of cotton culture on the High Plains, Lubbock has become
  one of the world's primary centers for the processing of cottonseed
  and hybrid grain sorghum seed; and
         WHEREAS, The Lubbock economy is deeply rooted in cotton
  farming, and the city remains home to the world's largest
  contiguous cotton patch; the area also features several major,
  award-winning wineries and vineyards, which produce more than 80
  percent of all the state's wine grapes; the region north of Lubbock
  has the highest density of cattle in the entire country; and
         WHEREAS, Lubbock also offers a wealth of cultural
  institutions and recreational opportunities, among them the
  Lubbock Symphony Orchestra, the Lubbock Civic Ballet, the Museum
  and Planetarium and other offerings at Texas Tech University, the
  Silent Wings Museum, and a new, state-of-the-art performing arts
  center named after local legend and Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Buddy
  Holly; and
         WHEREAS, City leaders meticulously planned infrastructure to
  create a low-traffic community with more neighborhood parks per
  capita than any other city in Texas; Lubbock is nicknamed the "Hub
  City" because it is surrounded by five major highways, and it aims
  to continue that legacy through the eventual expansion of
  Interstate 27 that will assist in relieving congestion on other
  major Texas highways; and
         WHEREAS, Those wanting a glimpse of the frontier can find it
  in the restored structures at the Ranching Heritage Center, a
  15-acre site tracing the evolution of ranch architecture and the
  history of the cattle industry; the region's history is also
  celebrated at the Bayer Museum of Agriculture; and
         WHEREAS, The talented musicians who have come from the
  Lubbock area include Buddy Holly, Roy Orbison, the Maines family,
  Virgil Johnson and the Velvets, Waylon Jennings, Tanya Tucker, Joe
  Ely, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Pat Green, and Butch Hancock; their rich
  and diverse contributions have earned Lubbock and West Texas
  recognition as the official "Music Crossroads of Texas"; and
         WHEREAS, Lubbock's thriving business community is
  represented by the largest business federation on the Texas South
  Plains, the Lubbock Chamber of Commerce, which grows and guards the
  prosperity of the Lubbock area; early major achievements by the
  chamber during more than a century of service include recruiting
  out-of-state farmers to populate the area and make productive the
  fertile soils of the Llano Estacado, securing railroad service,
  founding the South Plains Fair, and drafting and delivering the
  application to the Texas Capitol that would result in establishing
  Texas Technological College, which today thrives as the heart of
  the Texas Tech University System; and
         WHEREAS, The Lubbock Chamber of Commerce was also
  instrumental in establishing Lubbock Preston Smith International
  Airport, Reese Air Force Base, outstanding transportation
  infrastructure, and a revolutionary market-driven Chamber Employer
  Health Plan that is a model nationwide; committed to revitalizing
  the community and creating a culturally sound, vibrant downtown,
  the chamber oversees the efforts of Imagine Lubbock Together, a
  private-public partnership; moreover, it is the nation's first and
  only chamber to be twice 5-Star Accredited and twice named Chamber
  of the Year; and
         WHEREAS, Among the delegation visiting the Capitol today are
  proud members of the chamber's 47th Leadership Lubbock class, who
  represent the future business and community leaders of Lubbock; and
         WHEREAS, The citizens of Lubbock have truly kept faith with
  the founders of their West Texas community; renowned for their
  friendliness and warmth as well as their hardiness and
  determination, they have helped to build a vital urban center that
  serves not only a large part of West Texas but also eastern New
  Mexico; now, therefore, be it
         RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas
  Legislature hereby recognize February 22, 2023, as Lubbock Day at
  the State Capitol and extend to the members of the visiting
  delegation and all their fellow citizens sincere appreciation for
  the bright luster they add to the Lone Star State.