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Commissioners take no action on Old Jail
The issue was contentious, but the crowd was well-behaved.
In the end, though, no decision was made regarding the fate of the Old Jail. The Pecos County Commissioners Court postponed Monday any possible decision to its Sept. 22 meeting to allow Allie and Drew Slater an opportunity to formally present their proposal on the Old Jail to the court.
The Slaters were not in attendance Monday.
"We want to base what we do on correct information," County Judge Joe Shuster said. "It's not an individual deal. Our decision is going to be based on the truth, not half-truths, not individual feelings, but on the truth."
According to a letter of intent sent by Allie Slater to Shuster, Longfellow Ranch Partners LP proposes to enter into a 20-year lease for office space on the first floor at the Old Jail after doing renovation work to the building.
The letter specifies that Longfellow will spend as much as $200,000 for renovation, with any spending overages to be compensated by rent reduction during the term of the lease.
Longfellow would also donate $200,000 to the Pecos County Historical Commission.
It wasn't enough to sway the historical commission. It voted at a recent meeting 11-7 to reject the Longfellow proposal for the Old Jail.
"Its historical integrity will be compromised if it is altered on the inside," said historical commission member Rose Mary Rogers of Iraan. "If this is passed by the court, it would set a precedent. ... The majority (of the historical commission) voted this down and will continue to work against it."
Added Morine Collett of Iraan, a member of the historical commission: "That's a lot of money and Lord knows we all need money.
But why are they so obsessed with the Old Jail? There are a lot of other buildings that could be restored. You're going to lose the feeling of it. Let's not turn historical sights into commercial buildings."
Historical commission member Bob Sadler of Fort Stockton, who voted for the Longfellow proposal at the recent meeting, said he was impressed by Slater's presentation.
"I don't think there's anything wrong, per se, with taking a historic building and using it for a useful purpose," he said, adding that the Old Jail needs to be preserved for future generations and that the Longfellow proposal would do that very well.
Betty Hargus, who heads the historical commission, said she appreciates the concerns of those who oppose the Longfellow proposal, and that there are many scenarios being played out in their minds. But she said many of those scenarios are not based upon accurate information.
"They don't intend to tear anything out," Hargus said. "They don't intend to tear anything up upstairs."
Among other business, the court:
>> approved, following a presentation by Lott Brothers Construction, a request for $4,988,850 to construct the Pecos County Memorial Hospital's Physical Therapy and Wellness Center; the bond for the project was for $4,621,500 and the overrun of $367,550 will come from the hospital's contingency fund
>> approved in separate votes bids for emulsion from P2 Emulsion Plant LLC
>> approved a commitment to locate the bachelor officers quarters for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice N5 Fort Stockton Unit on county-owned land, with the exact site to be determined; according to several TDCJ officials in attendance, locating the BOQ on county land should save four to six months in having the housing ready for correctional officers
>> approved in separate votes, following an executive session, the purchase of portions of real property near Iraan; the court approved $43,629.26 to the Trustee of the Marital Trust Under the Will of Rodney Richardson and $108,455.39 to the Trustee of the Polly Blanton Brooks Revocable Trust
>> approved renewing the contract of Betty Hargus as the independent bookkeeper for Desert Pines Golf Course for two years
>> approved accepting a bid of $3,890.95 from Petra D. Salinas for property that was struck off to Pecos County: Lot 4 & N 1-2 of Lot 5, Block 3, Village Park Addition, Deed Record, Vol. 527, Page 319, Situs 4102 North Orient
>> called for bids for an oil and gas lease for a term of two years for Lots 1-20, Block 27, Original Townsite of Imperial; bids are to be opened at 11 a.m. Oct. 13
>> called for bids for sale of surplus metals at precincts 1-4; bids are to be opened at 11 a.m. Oct. 13
>> set sheriff's and constable's fees for 2009
>> approved a budget amendment of $50,000 for fuel for the Pecos County Sheriff's Office; the funds are to come from the county's contingency fund
>> approved the transfer of funds, the payment of overtime and the accounts payable for PCMH, as presented by PCMH chief executive officer Russell Tippin
>> approved the financial report and the payment of county overtime, as presented by County Treasurer Barry McCallister
>> approved the line time transfers and budget amendments, the financial report and all accounts, as presented by the County Auditor's office
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