Welcome to The Dirt. In every issue, our anonymous writer will give you the dirt on your burning questions about the Amarillo area. Got something you’re just dying to know? Drop us a line at info@brickandelm.com, and our intrepid writer will dig up the answer.
So, um, what exactly do they do in the Santa Fe Building?
Quite a bit, actually! Everyone knows the Santa Fe Building’s unique profile in our skyline, but not everyone thinks about the fact that it’s, you know, an actual building with offices and stuff.
Built in the late 1920s, the skyscraper served as regional headquarters for the Santa Fe Railroad until the 1970s. It sat empty until Potter County purchased it around 1995, and officially reopened as a government building in 2000.
The building’s 14 stories currently house numerous Potter County offices, including the auditor, adult probation, one of the four county constables, election administration, human resources, purchasing, tax assessor/collector, and treasurer. If you’re a Potter County voter, you might also regularly use the Santa Fe Building as a polling place during elections.
I’m confused about the pool situation. Where can I swim in Amarillo this year?
Neighbor, summer’s coming and you’re not the only resident hoping to cool off somewhere. To catch you up, Amarillo’s government operates three outdoor pools: Southwest, Southeast and Thompson Park. But Southwest and Southeast are both closed for 2026. These pools are 50 and 60 years old, respectively, and dealing with issues like leaks, high maintenance costs and safety concerns. (The same challenges led to the 2018 closure of the original Thompson Park Pool, and its $8 million renovation in 2021.)
The city hasn’t yet decided if repairing either pool would be worth the expense, so it’s spending the next few months figuring out next steps. That leaves us with two fewer options for cooling off this summer.
Thankfully, the new Thompson Pool is really nice! The city also manages the indoor Charles E. Warford Activity Center, though the sunbathing is decidedly not as good. Of course, you can also join private clubs with outdoor pools including the Tascosa Golf Club, Amarillo Town Club, Verdure and Amarillo Country Club.
You can also drive! The recreational pool at the Virgil Henson Activities Center at West Texas A&M University is a great option to the south. Drive the other direction and you can enjoy the Johnson Park Youth Center in Borger, the H2O Aquatic Center in Pampa and, toward Fritch, a little swimming hole we like to call Lake Meredith.
What’s with buried soda cup with a red straw downtown? It’s a Toot’n Totum thing, right?
We do love our funky-looking statues around here, don’t we? Amarillo is like a grandmother lovingly curating her tchotchke cabinet. Ours contains disembodied legs, vandalized Cadillacs, and 100 decorated horses (give or take).
Yes, it’s a Toot’n Totum thing. Our local gas station chain seems to share the city’s taste for whimsical lawn decor.
TNT’s corporate offices and hiring center make up the small business park at 12th Avenue and South Taylor Street, as you head south toward the I-27 and I-40 interchange. For at least the past 20 years, the big “straw” was just a lonely red pole with “1201” painted up the length in big blocky numerals. It announced the street address.
Then, in the last half of 2025, the Mitchell family apparently decided to upgrade. It became the top portion of a buried Tex Randall-sized fountain drink. It’s subtle, but we love it. Once you see it, you won’t forget it.
You might remember the Center City Gateway Arches getting revamped in 2025 as well, just a few yards away. Maybe that’s around the time Toot’n Totum manicured their roadside space? As we’ve learned from Candy Cane Lane, one eye-catching neighborhood project can inspire others!
