News

Improvements to Fort Stockton continue at a fast pace, and the Fort Stockton city council on April 24 ensured that those doing the work will get paid. The council approved $102,000 for L.T. Construction to finish up work on the Hodges Pavilion. The pavilion is being built adjacent to the Fort Stockton Civic Center and Panther Pictures and will be an outdoor venue for multiple events such as concerts.

The supply of physicians is far less than the demand in many parts of Texas and across the country. In rural areas of the state, that shortage is magnified on a large scale.

The idea of a covered outdoor basketball court at Fort Stockton Middle School is an intriguing one for some in the district. The item had been discussed at the March school board meeting, and board member Andy Rivera asked for the item to be put on the April 26 agenda for the board to consider putting out a request for proposals to construct the court. The court would be just like the one the city of Fort Stockton constructed at Gene Cummings Park, which has grown in popularity as the weather has warmed.

Efficiency is the name of the game at the Fort Stockton Independent School District, and the FSISD school board on April 26 approved the campus calendars for the 2023-24 school year to include a 4-and-a-half-day school week for middle and high school students. The idea is to allow school staff more conference, tutoring and training time.

The Pecos County Commissioner’s Court officially established the PACE Authority – Property Assessed Clean Energy – during the April 24 commission meeting, becoming one of 86 counties in Texas to establish the program. PACE, simply, is a financial tool to encourage property owners to upgrade facility infrastructure with little or no capital outlay.

Fort Stockton is taking steps to become healthier, and at Monday night’s city council meeting, an important step was made when the council adopted Resolution 23-111R, allocating funds for an Outdoor Fitness Court at Gene Cummings Park. The city applied for a grant as part of the National Fitness Campaign and accepted a $40,000 National Grant from the National Fitness Campaign Grant Committee and Statewide Partners, and will provide a local match of $35,000, plus additional extension of the concrete slab, as well as the $7,500 for the installation of a Fitness Court Studio to promote and implement a free-to-the-public outdoor Fitness Court.