Tri City Record Unveils New Office Sign, Strengthens Downtown Presence
The Tri City Record unveiled a larger, brighter sign at its new Farmington office at 111 N. Behrend Ave. on December 1, marking the newsroom move one block off Main Street and signaling a renewed investment in local reporting and downtown activity. The relocation brings newsroom staff and Ballantine Communications operations closer to the civic center, with potential benefits for community access, advertising reach, and foot traffic for nearby businesses.
The Tri City Record marked its relocation to 111 N. Behrend Ave. in Farmington with a new prominent sign installed by workers from RAM Studios on November 19 and formally unveiled on December 1. The move places the paper one block off Main Street in downtown Farmington and consolidates staff who had been working from West Main Street and North Orchard Avenue, alongside employees of Ballantine Communications phone book business Directory Plus.
The paper is one of three published by Ballantine Communications of Durango, Colorado. Ballantine Communications traces its Colorado roots to purchases in 1952 and a renaming in 1960 that produced The Durango Herald. Beginning in 1999 the company expanded through acquisitions that led to the current portfolio including The Journal. The Tri City Record itself launched on May 22, 2023 as a seven day website and a five day newspaper, and later merged with the Farmington Daily Times. Its lineage links back to the Junction City Times founded in 1890.
Local staff welcomed the change. Multimedia sales representative Michele Wayne said she was happy the paper had a new home. Education reporter Alx Lee described the addition as bringing a fresh look to the newsroom and reinforcing the outlet's commitment to community coverage. Ballantine executive editor Trent Stephens noted, Our new sign at our new office is bigger, brighter and ready to welcome you. No more driving past.
Beyond symbolism, the move carries economic and civic implications. A visible newsroom on a downtown block can increase walk in access for sources and advertisers, improve the paper's local branding, and support nearby retailers through increased foot traffic. Consolidating operations with Directory Plus may deliver modest efficiencies in overhead and coordination of local advertising sales, which matter for sustaining reporting budgets in a thin margin industry.
For San Juan County residents the change underscores continued investment in regional reporting that covers Farmington, Aztec, Bloomfield and countywide issues. The new office and sign signal the publisher's intention to maintain a local presence and to make it easier for residents to engage with journalists who cover municipal decisions, school systems and local economic developments.
