TRACTOR SUPPLY ALREADY BUSY BEFORE STREET TO STORE’S PUT IN

Pecos’ Tractor Supply store held it’s official grand opening and ribbon cutting Saturday morning, a week after the store actually opened its doors and four days before the final paving was due to be laid down on the street in front of the building.

Hot mix paving was due to be laid down on Tuesday and Wednesday on the eastward extension of Canon Street from Stripes to the store, which is located behind the Hampton Inn and La Bonita Inn, south of Interstate 20.

“The city’s paving this road in front, and as soon as that gets done I think it will be a lot easier for people just to come off (Highway) 17 to us,” said Jesse Tyer, manager of the Pecos store. “But for the most part, people said ‘we couldn’t find you on the map for a while’ but this last week everything’s been really well for us.”

The store opened on June 15, and was in its second week of operation when the Saturday morning ribbon cutting was held.

“It’s been great,” he said. “Before we even opened the doors, we had to put a sign on the door telling them when we were going to open. Everybody was so excited.”

Pecos is one of the last towns of its size in West Texas to get a Tractor Supply store. “They saw the business in Monahans and saw how Carlsbad (N.M.) was doing and said ‘let’s put something right in the middle’,” Tyer said. “Our company says we want to get to people out in the country life, the people out here, so they don’t have to travel so much to get to a Tractor Supply.”

He said the store current has 14 employees. “Mostly local. I’d say 95 percent of the people are local. A handful of us came from out of town, and took an opportunity at this store to help out.”

Tyer said he worked at several other Tractor Supply locations before coming to Pecos. “I was in Sweetwater for a year. I started out in Odessa, then I worked Midland and Stanton. So now I’m here – I’ve worked this whole West Texas area.”

Tyer said Tractor Supply will be open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Sundays.