How Four Journalists Feel About Chip and Joanna Gaines Buying the Waco Newspaper Building

Soon enough, the smell of newsprint and ink that’s alluring to journalists will be replaced by the scent of fresh shiplap.

We learned last week that entrepreneurs Chip and Joanna Gaines are expanding their Magnolia empire by purchasing Waco’s Tribune-Herald building to house their new headquarters.

Earlier this month, Magnolia told Waco officials that it will move into the building at 900 Franklin Ave., just to the west and about three blocks from the company’s Silos shopping district, Waco’s top tourist attraction. Magnolia plans to spend $13.6 million to renovate the three-story 111,000-square-foot building.

Magnolia is redeveloping a downtown office building into a hotel. It also added a furniture store, six small shops, and renovated an old church. The Gaineses also operate a restaurant.

The Tribune-Herald staff will vacate the newspaper’s 70-year-old home and relocate to another downtown building. It’s a bittersweet time for former and current journalists who have ties to the newspaper. Candy’s Dirt talked to four — Alan Cochrum, copy editor (1978-84); Brian Medricka, The Lariat (’93-94); J. Alan Nelson, business editor (’83-90); and Carl Hoover, Tribune-Herald staffer since 1984 — who have fond remembrances of their times at the Trib.

How do you feel about the Gaineses moving into the building?

Cochrum: It’s nice to know that a structure that has been an important part of the Waco community will now be part of a business that has brought a whole new level of national familiarity to the area.

Medricka: “I spent many nights in that building when I was at Baylor more than 25 years ago, so it has a special place in my heart. But, I’d rather see a good company — in this case, Magnolia — move into the Trib headquarters rather than some random out-of-area company that won’t respect its prominent place in the budding downtown.”

Nelson: “Chip and Joanna continue to make Waco their own personal parking lot. The Silo zombies — hoards of pilgrims that travel to Waco to see and buy their bric-a-brac — come in major swarms and herds. The infrastructure of Waco’s roads, etc, are overloaded at the moment.”

Hoover: “Not much sentiment for the building I’ve worked in for my career with the Trib. It’s utilitarian and hardly an architectural marvel. The major loss for me will be a spiritual or symbolic one, regardless of the Gaines or Magnolia.”

What ghosts or skeletons will they have to clear during demolition day?

Cochrum: “A lot of the Tribune-Herald’s undead undoubtedly fled during the demo days that were part of a full-bore reno during the mid-1980s. The newsroom and business operations separately spent weeks in a sort of warehouse near the main building during the project. However, if the Gaineses are lucky, they might find some vintage original scribbles by longtime sportswriter Dave Campbell, of Dave Campbell’s Texas Football fame.”

Medricka: “There may be some ghosts of former publishers, staff members, or Lariat editors that the Gaines family may have to deal with. But a little sage goes a long way, right? I’m sure Joanna has plenty on hand from her Magnolia Table cooking show. That should do it.”

Nelson: “No ghosts or skeletons. Just the broken hearts of the people who understand why a local newspaper is vital to our democracy. The numbers of those people are fewer and fewer.”

Hoover: “A major newsroom renovation in 1986 or so wiped most of the reporting ghosts away and cost-cutting — some might say union-busting — in the decade or two later took care of the composing room and our press.”

Is it a proper use of such a historic building?

Cochrum: “If a building can survive decades of reporters and editors, what can’t it deal with?”

Medricka: “There’s nothing better than mixing old and new to create a completely awesome experience for Waco. I have no doubt they will respect the history of the Trib property while creating new history for years and years to come.”

Nelson: “I’m not sentimental. The Trib lives to cover history and stories of the day, not itself. While we have fond memories of the structure, the Trib is not a building. It’s a gestalt of people who share the idea that journalism is crucial. The Gaineses are likable, nice people. That’s the hook to their success. I wish them well, but I don’t like taxpayer dollars subsidizing their numerous ventures about town when those dollars are often denied to smaller businesses.”

Hoover: “It’s a logical and commercially viable one. We’re one block away from Magnolia Market at the Silos, which reopened after a major addition and reoriented its major entrance in the process to the street that bounds the block the Trib is located on. There’s space for offices, storage, and video studios for the Magnolia Network. Building a downtown facility with all of that would cost much more than this. Honestly, the Gaineses have more of a forward-looking vision with that property than a host of other Waco businesspersons whose imagination are defined more by lofts, offices, and small retail.”

Do you watch Fixer Upper?

Cochrum: “My wife and I have watched a number of episodes, although we’ve since mostly gone from American House Reno to Yorkshire Veterinary via the original 1970s-80s version of All Creatures Great and Small.”

Medricka: “I have watched Fixer Upper from its premiere in 2013 and was sad to see it go off the air in 2018. I now have Discovery+ so I can watch the new version, Fixer Upper: Welcome Home. I’m craving more new episodes soon.”

Nelson: “I’ve tried to watch Fixer Upper. I’ve tried. I fall asleep or do something else after five minutes.”

Hoover: “My family watched Fixer Upper in its early seasons, largely to play name that neighborhood on the houses chosen. Over time, the only variety was in the houses’ original condition. Chip would knock some walls down, find a hidden problem under or above the house, Joanna would open the kitchen and paint it white or a light shade and put some homely accents on a few walls (televisions, the central focus of most American families at home, btw, don’t exist in Fixer Upper houses). Since the new season currently requires a Discovery + subscription to view, we haven’t opted to pay up.”

Will this lead you to buy more Magnolia Market products on the next trip to Target?

Cochrum: “Will former Trib staffers get discounts?”

Medricka: “I was already a fan to begin with. I don’t own much stuff, though — a few candles and a ‘you got this’ metal sign from the store — because I’m more of a modern-style person than rustic farmhouse. All of the Gaineses stuff is nice, though, and appeals to different members of my family.”

Nelson: “Nope. No, no, no.”