Renderings of Buddy Holly’s iconic glasses and artwork at several Lubbock crosswalks will be removed as city leaders aim to abide by state and federal standards as part of a new push directed by the governor and federal officials.
Lubbock’s City Council on Tuesday heard an update from city staff indicating the city must either remove or submit a plan to remove its “Creative Crosswalks” from public roadways by Dec. 5 or potentially face consequences in the form of having state and federal transportation dollars withheld.
David Bragg, Lubbock’s interim division director of public works, told the council the Texas Department of Transportation notified communities on Nov. 5 that they had 30 days to remove or submit a plan for removing artwork and other designs from crosswalks and public roadways not in compliance with federal and state standards. By that deadline, the city will notify the state of its plans to remove the artwork in the coming months.
“The removal will occur within the confines of normal maintenance within the next year,” Bragg said.
Bragg said he did receive clarification from TxDOT that the city’s decorate brick pavers at some intersections around downtown and the city are in compliance.
City Manager Jarrett Atkinson told the council the city would cover the cost of removing the crosswalk art within its scheduled maintenance budget. But he didn’t have an estimated cost for the work.
The announcement from TxDOT came several weeks after Gov. Greg Abbott issued a statement on Oct. 8 directing TxDOT to ensure counties and cities are in compliance with federal and state guidelines regarding roadway safety, the Avalanche-Journal reported at the time.
Specifically, federal and state guidelines for roadway safety prohibit non-standard surface markings, signage, and signals that do not directly support traffic control or safety, including the use of symbols, flags, or other markings conveying social, political, or ideological messages.
“Texans expect their taxpayer dollars to be used wisely, not advance political agendas on Texas roadways,” Abbott said last month. “Today, I directed the Texas Department of Transportation to ensure Texas counties and cities remove any and all political ideologies from our streets. To keep Texans moving safely and free from distraction, we must maintain a safe and consistent transportation network across Texas.”
This comes at a time when there is national debate within several states on whether to keep or remove roadway paintings or markings for certain political, social and ideological movements, like the removal of “rainbow walkways” in Florida.
While Lubbock does not have any city-produced rainbow-painted crosswalks, it does have a crosswalk painted at the intersection of 18th Street and Crickets Avenue in honor of music legend Buddy Holly, as well as other “Creative Crosswalks on Mac Davis Lane near Buddy Holly Hall and on Avenue V in the Heart of Lubbock neighborhood.
The Buddy Holly crosswalk was installed in 2020, according to Avalanche-Journal reporting at the time.
The crosswalk was first publicly discussed during a work session months before that, when the new downtown master plan was presented to the city council. This crosswalk was mentioned as a beautification project that pays tribute to the Lubbock native who was born Sept. 7, 1936.
Last month, Bragg told the A-J that the city was notified of the governor’s directive and that “city leadership is looking into the matter to see if the installations at the locations identified are prohibited by this announcement.”
At the time, city staff and leaders were hopeful the new directive from the state and federal government would not apply to Lubbock’s non-political Creative Crosswalks.
On Tuesday, Atkinson told the council he hopes the city will get better guidance from state and federal officials in the future.
“The way this is written right now is very broad and very universal,” Atkinson said. “We’re only aware of one city that is challenging back, and they are challenging – really relevant to what this directive was designed to go after – it’s a political expression.
“I presume, after this settles down, we’ll probably get better guidance in the future. I don’t think it will be very quick … but I do think we need to comply and we’ll keep on it and if there’s an opportunity to get enough clarity to allow us to come back and do some of these things we will certainly look at doing that and bringing it back to you.”
This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Lubbock will remove Buddy Holly glasses, ‘Creative Crosswalks’ to meet state directive
Reporting by Adam D. Young, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal / Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
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