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TBPC interested in detention facility
By Tracy Dang
Colorado County Judge Al Jamison gave an update on the status of the juvenile detention facility in Eagle Lake at Commissioners' Court Monday.
The judge received a contract from the Texas Building and Procurement Commission to lease approximately 5,500 square feet of the facility's administrative building.
The judge made a few changes to the contract and said he would not allow TBPC to remove two walls in the conference room.
Some of the changes include responsibility designation. The county would be responsible for cleaning and spot cleaning the building. The county would not be responsible for things such as replacing the carpet in three of the offices and adjusting the interior door to comply with Texas standards.
TBPC has verbally accepted the contract but has not yet signed the contract. The judge made a phone call to Texas Senator Armbrister Tuesday morning and asked if he could give TBPC a little encouragement on behalf of the Texas Health and Human Resource Services.
The county began overseeing the facility Sept. 1 when Correctional Services Corporation, a Florida-based company, said it would cease operations and management of the facility as a result of the Texas Youth Commission pulling juveniles in its charge out of the jail.
Commissioners had authorized the judge to shut down the juvenile detention facility on March 1 because the number of juveniles housed at the facility was not generating enough income.
Jamison told the court Wharton County Junior College had expressed interest in using the facility for education purposes Feb. 7, but those discussions are no longer open.
At the May 8 Commission-ers' Court meeting, Jamison said The GEO Group, Inc. of New Braunfels had also expressed interest in using the facility, but he has not heard from the company since then.
Currently, the departments of the Texas Health and Human Resources, including Food Stamp, Medicaid, Child Protective Services and Adult Protective Services, are renting out 12 offices and 78 parking spaces.
“The most important thing was we wanted to keep those state departments here in Colorado County,” County Attorney Ken Sparks said.
The building that used to house those departments was bought by Texana Mental Health and Mental Retardation Center, and the state was going to move them to Bellville or Brenham.
Rice Consolidated Indepen-dent School District was also interested in using the facility, but Jamison said he was waiting to hear from TBPC first.
In other business, commissioners:
€Heard a report from Sparks regarding the new grand jury table, which was purchased from statutory fees collected from hot check writers.
€Proclaimed the month of May as Adult Abuse Prevention Month.
€Proclaimed the month of May as Mental Health Awareness Month.
€Established a 35 mph speed limit on Kansteiner Road.
€Established a 45 mph speed limit on Lake Sheridan Road.
Citizens Phil Mailloux and John Julian Mort expressed concerns that the road is too dangerous because there are two hills that create blind spots.
€Scheduled a public hearing to amend subdivision rules on Monday, June 12 at 9:20 a.m.
€Scheduled a public hearing to establish a 40 mph speed limit on 2.35 miles of CR 111 beginning at Highway 71 on Monday, June 12 at 9:10 a.m.
€Approved the request of Nicole Bubela and Kevin Poentizsch to use the courthouse square for a wedding on June 16, 2007. They are required to pay a $250 clean-up deposit.
€Awarded a bid for paving a concrete parking lot at the Colorado County Services Facility to Jimmie L. Class Construction in the for $23,760. TMR Construction had put in a bid in the amount of $23,536, but Class had previously donated concrete to the Eagle Lake area.
€Approved an application from San Bernard Electric Cooperative, Inc. to place 10 power poles and two anchor guy-wires in the right of way of San Felipe Road.
€Renewed a membership in the TBPC Cooperative Purchasing Program.
€Approved a request of Terry Grabow to sell membership or subscription services for emergency pre-hospital care within the county, as long as no advertising shows that the county is endorsing the products.
€Allowed Lone Star Legal Aid to use the conference room at the Colorado County Services Facility.
€Approved the final plat for the Providence Landing Subdivision, pending the completion of road bonds and 911 addresses.
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