Community Facts

Location

Located in the extreme northeast portion of the Texas Panhandle, Ochiltree County is a thriving community bordering Oklahoma.  The county seat, Perryton, is only 7 miles south of the Oklahoma state line and is the northernmost county seat in Texas. 

Known as the "Wheatheart of the Nation," the county is located in the Great Wheat Belt of the southwest and includes both rich soil for farming and grazing and underlying deposits of oil and gas from the Anadarko Basin.

Residents of the county can enjoy the rural feel of Perryton while still remaining close to busy Texas cities such as Amarillo, Texas (120 miles distance), Dallas and Fort Worth (400 miles distance.)   The average elevation is about 3,000 feet.

Population:            County:  9,259            City:  7,765

Climate

If you are looking for a dry climate and mild winters, Ochiltree County is the place for you.  Rain often comes in the form of thundershowers, peaking in late spring and early summer.  Winds tend to pick up during the stormy season.  The average annual temperature is 55 degrees.  The monthly average for January is 38 degrees and for July is 89 degrees.  The average annual rainfall is 19.6 inches, with the average annual snowfall being 16 inches.

Days between killing frost is 191.  There are an average of 74 days over 90 degrees.  The relative humidity percent by hour is:  6:00 a.m.:  72%; 12:00 noon:  45%; and 6:00 p.m.:  41%.

Community/Recreation Facilities

Perryton has 27 Protestant Churches and 1 Catholic Church.  There are 5 motels with 171 rooms, 1 country club, 38 civic clubs, 1 museum, and 1 library.  There are 5 parks, 1 movie theater,  a city pool, golf course, activity center, and senior citizen center.

Education

Public School Budget for 2004-2005:  $12,000,000.

Number of schools:  2 elementary; 1 junior high; 1 high school; and 1 private.  Total enrollment of the Perryton Independent School District is 2,107.  Public school special programs include special ed, UIL, gifted & talented.  Colleges:  Frank Phillips College - Allen Campus Perryton.

Housing

The average cost per sq. ft. for an EXISTING home, three-bedroom:  High $50; Medium $40; low $25.  The average cost per sq. ft. for a NEW home, three-bedroom:  High $75; Medium $65; low $55.  The typical lot size is 80 x 120 sq. ft. and the typical lot cost is $10,000.
 

Communications

The Perryton Herald is published bi-weekly.   The local radio station is KEYE 1400 AM &  96.1 FM and KXDJ 98.3 FM.  The cable/digital television service is provided by Allegiance Communications, PTCI and Valor Telecom (Dish Network). Telephone service is provided by PTCI  or Valor Telecom.  High speed internet providers are PTCI (DSL), Valor Telecom (DSL) Centramedia (wireless) and Allegiance Communications (HSD)

Financial

There are 3 banks in Perryton:  FirstBank Southwest, Interstate Bank, ssb and Perryton National Bank.   Assets total  $474,473,000 and plant financial assistance is available.

Government

City of Perryton
Incorporated in 1920, the City of Perryton utilizes the council-manager form of government.  As the only incorporated city and the county seat of Ochiltree County, Perryton has grown to around 8,000 residents.  Perryton is governed by a mayor and five council members who adopt policy; a city manager is employed to implement policies.  A full-service city, Perryton employs 70 full-time personnel to serve its residents and customers.

The Fire/EMS department is staffed by nine Texas Certified Firefighters/Paramedics and is guided by an equally qualified chief.  Responding to some 400 ambulance runs and 60 fire calls annually, this department is the primary responder for all of Ochiltree County.

The Perryton Police Department strives to make Perryton a safe place to live, work and play.  Ten uniformed officers enforce state and local laws around the clock throughout the city.  This department also provides dispatching services for the Fire/EMS Department.

In addition to operating a municipal swimming pool, the Parks Department maintains five different parks that offer activities for all ages.  From two wading pools to a walking trail, Perryton's parks have nice amenities that include a large covered pavilion, three different restroom facilities, basketball courts and a number of playgrounds.

The Perryton Municipal Golf Course is one of the finest courses in the area.  A fully irrigated 18-hole layout provides a unique challenge to all golfers.  A PGA class golf professional and a qualified course superintendent make this facility a showplace that attracts an array of golfers.  Our greens are consistently noted as the finest in the area.

The Street Department maintains some 54 miles of paved streets and six miles of unpaved streets with a comprehensive maintenance program.  Snow removal, drainage channel maintenance, mowing and sign maintenance are also provided by this department.

Ochiltree County
Ochiltree County is governed by the Ochiltree County Commissioners Court, made up of four commissioners and the County Judge.  The county maintains 633 miles of county roads, both paved and unpaved.  Ochiltree County also operates Wolf Creek Park and Lake Fryer, located 18 miles southeast of Perryton, boasting some of the most beautiful camping in the Texas Panhandle.  Wildlife is abundant in the park, with deer and wild turkey spotted there on a daily basis. 

Ochiltree County operates on of the few county owned cemeteries in the state.  It is located 8 miles south of Perryton near the site of the old town of Ochiltree.

Ochiltree County owns and operates a county park in the town of Perryton.  This park boasts six soccer fields, six softball and baseball fields and a rodeo arena.  Also located in the park is the County EXPO Center, a large heated and air-conditioned building that is the home of many community events, including the local livestock show, dances and banquets.

County law enforcement is provided by the Ochiltree County Sheriff's Department, which consists of the Sheriff, six deputies and a narcotics taskforce officer.  The department oversees enforcement of criminal laws, serves civil process and operates the 32-bed county jail.  Its communications center dispatches officers from the Texas Department of Public Safety as well as Texas Parks & Wildlife Game Wardens and local officers.

Utilities and Services

Electricity is supplied and distributed by Xcel Energy and North Plains Electric Cooperative. 

Natural gas supplier is West Texas Gas, Inc. and distributed by the City of Perryton.  Ranked as one of the best municipally owned systems in the state, it delivers about 450,000 mcf of gas to its customers on an annual basis. 

Water is supplied by the City of Perryton from the Ogallala Aquifer.  The Water Department delivers nearly 500 million gallons of water to the city's 3,400 customers each year.  Perryton enjoys an abundant, long-term reserve supply of this very good-tasting water which requires only chlorinization for treatment.

Sanitation is provided by the City of Perryton.  The Sanitation Department collects solid waste from the alley-located  refuse containers; trash is taken to the City's Arid Exempt Municipal Landfill.  The City of Perryton also operates and maintains a recycling center. The Wastewater Department collects and treats nearly 1 million gallons of sewage each day.  Once treated, the effluent is used to irrigate a variety of grain crops.  A new $3 million treatment plant was recently constructed giving a 30-year plant life to the facility.

Medical

Ochiltree General Hospital is a 65 bed facility providing a full range of inpatient services, extensive outpatient services, durable medical equipment, women and children health services, home health/hospice services, and a community based medical insurance plan.  Emergency services include a State Certified Level 4 Trauma Center, well trained emergency personnel, and excellent working relationships with specialists located in the larger urban centers.  The Ochiltree Hospital District is a Regional HealthCare System committed to being the preeminent health care provider in Ochiltree County and the surrounding area.  In addition, Senior Village Nursing Home, a 60 bed facility provides 24 hour nursing car utilizing licensed personnel.  Our community boasts of 5 family practice physicians, 5 dentists, 3 chiropractors, 3 retail pharmacies, and 1 optometrist.  Trained emergency transportation includes 2 ambulances, 5 paramedics, and 6 EMT's.  Emergency air lift service is provided by North West Texas Hospital in Amarillo.

Labor Analysis

Ochiltree County has a work force of 4,674 and an unemployment rate of approximately 1.9 percent.  Typically, unemployment data tells little about the availability of labor for new enterprises.  Recently, several new enterprises have been established in the Texas Panhandle requiring several hundred employees.  Reports from personnel of the Texas Employment Commission indicate that the employers had no difficulty in attracting applicants for new jobs.

Transportation

The highways serving the Perryton area are U.S. 83, State Hwy 70, and Hwy 15.  The railroad is Southwestern Railroad and does not accommodate piggyback service.  The frequency of switching service is as needed with the number of daily trains also being as needed or at customer request.  The interstate and intrastate motor freight carrier is Beaver Express.  Local parcel service is provided by UPS, Federal Express, and Pony Express.

The City of Perryton and Ochiltree County jointly own an exceptionally nice public airport, boasting a 6,000 foot paved runway and a grass cross-wind runway.  Users of our airport are fortunate to have a certified aircraft mechanic on the premises.  Fuel sales are also offered at the airport terminal.  The airport is also home to a new Automated Weather Observation System (AWOS) whereby pilots can obtain real-time weather conditions by radio, telephone or computer.  

Taxes

The 2004 tax rate per $100 is as follows:  City .389; County .57; School 1.4; Hospital .1903; and Water Appraisal District .02266; Frank Phillips College .05.  The total is 2.62196.

Agriculture

The following are the major products grown and the estimated volume produced:  wheat - 7.0 million bushels per year; grain sorghum - 3.5 million bushels per year; corn - 3.0 million bushels per year; hay - 10,000 tons per year; soybean - 400,000 bushels per year.  The estimated number of livestock units raised/fed/slaughtered in the area are:  cows - 10,000; hogs & pigs - 240,000 with future projections of 1.2 million; sows - 10,000 with future projections of 50,000; stocker cattle - 100,000; fat cattle - 100,000 head sold per year.  The food processing is furnished by Big 4 Packing and Booker Packing.

Ochiltree County boasts 374 farmers with an average farm size of 1,588 acres.  Market value per farm is $551,000 with machinery and equipment running $90,631 per farm.  There are 50 ranches in Ochiltree County with the average ranch size being 10,000 acres.  The market value per ranch is $4.5 million and machinery and equipment running $100,000 per ranch.