Dec. 5—Ector County Commissioners this week secured the land for a new Ector County Courthouse, which will sit on what is now the downtown U.S. Post Office.
The owner of the land agreed Tuesday to sell the land to the County. Ector County Judge Dustin Fawcett said he yelled when a deal was reached for a $4.7 million purchase price.
The new courthouse will be funded by $325 million in certificates of obligation issued by county commissioners in November. The debt will increase property taxes for Ector County residents.
Owners of a $210,000 home in Ector County will pay about $17 more a month in property taxes. A $210,000 home has a $170,000 taxable value.
Fawcett acknowledged recent criticism of issuing debt without taking the matter to voters but also said some information out there is silly and misleading.
“We were elected to make decisions and we would never issue $325 million in debt without a plan and a budget,” Fawcett said adding he is an eternal optimist and believes there will be a boom here with the coming Trump administration.
He also pointed out homeowners don’t bear all of the cost of the property tax increase as it is also spread to businesses and companies. He stands by the move pointing out it was a unanimous commissioners vote.
“I was elected to make decisions for four years,” he said. “Not making these decisions is what got us into this situation of doing nothing but passing the same old budget each year and making no waves. Ector County deserves better than that.”
He said the extreme condition of the current courthouse has been an issue for years. He now looks forward to scheduling a series of events to allow Odessans to voice opinions on what the exterior of the new courthouse should look like.
He said he is a fan of columns and domes and hopes for a building that looks like a courthouse but said staying on budget and on time is the top priority.
He said the downtown Post Office will likely consolidate operations at the current 52nd Street location and the vehicle maintenance portion of the current downtown Post Office will need to be housed elsewhere. “We are looking to help them find a spot … there is plenty of land for that type of thing out here.”
Fawcett said the goal is to begin construction by the end of 2025 on what will be a 250,000 to 320,000 square foot courthouse. That is almost twice the size of the current courthouse. The new structure will drastically change the look of downtown and will also feature a green space and a parking garage for 500 vehicles.
The current courthouse has 190,000 square feet but due to conditions in what was a jail facility there, only 140,000 square feet is currently utilized.
There will not be a jail facility in the new courthouse but there will be holding areas for prisoners awaiting court dates — but no overnight stays.
Fawcett said a new courthouse has been “studied long and hard by multiple county judges and commissioners.” The project will be situated close to the Marriott and a new library. The intersection of Third Street and Texas Avenue will be closed.
The old Henderson Drug building will be used as an office for Butler-Cohen, which is the firm that will tackle designing and building the new courthouse. Fawcett said they will renovate the Henderson Drug building at their own expense and that in the future it could be used for a visitors center for Odessa.
The size of the new courthouse is not set in stone yet as decisions on what all county functions will be moved to the new building are still up in the air.
Fawcett hopes to move most county annex offices (not purchase or elections) to the new courthouse and envisions a drive through for Odessans to do things like renew car tags or get a birth certificate. Jury selection and rooms will be housed on the first floor of what will likely be a four story structure.
“A drive through would help the elderly and also those with kids who don’t want to get out of the car,” he said.
He added that is not yet affirmed by the commissioners court but is one idea they have discussed.
Adult probation will be brought into the courthouse and no longer housed across the street and a green space is included that could include an amphitheatre or an area for food trucks.
The current library building could be used for the health department or taken over by the City or Medical Center Hospital. He said leaving elections and purchasing at the current annex makes sense so voters would not have to go through courthouse security to early vote and also because both departments need warehouse space.
The new courthouse will have at least two additional district courts as the area continues to grow and there will soon be a need for both. “We have to prepare for growth,” Fawcett said.
He added there have been meetings about specialty courts like DWI or veteran’s affairs. Operational efficiencies are important to the plan.
“We are not trying to build a Taj Mahal … but the goal is to build a facility that is thoughtful in the long term and will stand the test of time and operate efficiently.”
He said having the bathrooms in the same area on each floor is something that will make maintenance more efficient. He added all furnishings for the new courthouse are included in the price tag and said no more purchases or projects (other than repairing the elevators) will be made at the current courthouse.
The three-year time frame is something he believes in. “Now that we have the property we believe that time frame is feasible.”
SOME BACKGROUND
Along with the new courthouse, the Ector County Juvenile Justice Center will be overhauled at its current location.
Fawcett had hoped for several counties to group together to build a regional youth facility, but that did not work out.
Ector County issued $26 million in certificates of obligation for a new Ector County Juvenile Justice Center several years ago. The existing facility was built in 1974.
The county went out to bid for a 64-bed facility that would’ve included beds for pre- and post-adjudication kids, but it received no bids. They went out to bid again for a much smaller pre-adjudication facility, but they received proposals of $46 million and $54 million in 2023.
He said combining the youth center and new courthouse plans makes sense.
What to do about the courthouse has plagued the commissioners’ court for years. In 2009, a committee was formed to determine next steps for either repairing or replacing the courthouse. To build a new courthouse in 2009 would have cost an estimated $55 million. A poor economy led to the committee waiting until 2013 to take the issue to voters. By that time the cost was estimated at $90 for a new build. The 2013 $95 million bond election failed 4,918 to 2,609.
The first Ector County Courthouse was made in 1891 from a remodeled medical facility with rooms for the sheriff, court clerks and the Odessa School with the county and district courtrooms upstairs. It was the only public building in town for years and hosted dances, socials and church services.
In 1904, a two-story red-stone courthouse was built east of the first one. The three-story cement building where the current courthouse is, was built in 1938 and the current courthouse was built around it in 1964, as the current building still has many of the characteristics from the 1930s, art deco architectural style.
Gov. John Connally dedicated the courthouse April 12, 1964.
