Written by Amanda Coers – The Brown County Commissioners met at 9 a.m. on Monday, August 6th, in the Brown County Courthouse to discuss items posted on the agenda. The first order of business was the burn ban, which remains in place due to continued dry conditions in the area. 

 

 

For the second time the upcoming lease renewal for the Juvenile Detention Building was listed on the agenda. Discussion of the lease as well as the possibility of initiating a bid process for the lease was also included on the agenda. 

Matters concerning the lease for the Juvenile Detention building were posted on the July 30th agenda. The items were passed to the next Commissioners Court meeting as Brown County Judge Ray West was not able to attend. 

At the August 6th meeting, discussion of the lease was again tabled as Precinct 1 Commissioner Gary Worley was not present and had asked Judge West to hold discussions for the next meeting when hopefully all four commissioners could be in attendance. 

It was noted the Brown County Attorney Shane Britton had told Commissioner Kelton he would attend this morning’s Commissioners Court, but was not present. 

Currently the lease for the Juvenile Detention building is with TrueCore, formerly known as G4S Youth Services. TrueCore Behavioral Solutions, based in Tampa, operates residential facilities for children who have been ordered by the court into juvenile justice facilities. The company boasts a 20-year history of providing services to at-risk youth. Nearly 2,000 TrueCore employees work in facilities across four states.

After discussion of the lease was passed to the next meeting, the court heard a request from Benny Dodd for Clear Creek property access. 

Dodd represented the land owner, Grady Watson, during his discussion with the commissioners. According to Dodd, Watson owns land located in Precinct 1 of Brown County, near an old bridge that was recently replaced by a newer bridge installed by TxDOT. 

Access to the northeast side of the property is gained through an abandoned road and old bridge now blocked on either side by the new bridge. Dodd explained the last inspection of the bridge dated in 2016 deemed it fair overall. Though the bridge was deemed in need of replacing by TxDOT, it was also said to be of historical value, and therefore not demolished after a newer bridge was erected nearby. 

An agreement between Brown County and TxDOT states the historic bridge is not to be used for vehicular traffic.

Watson bought the property not knowing he had no access to the backside (northeast), according to Dodd. He further explained the front side of the property is “less usable.” Access to the backside of the property is needed to install a small cabin or RV. Dodd stated Watson would be willing to sign a waiver of liability for Brown County should he be allowed to use the bridge to access his property. 

Dodd was encouraged to contact TxDOT regarding the matter.  

Also listed on the agenda: 

  • Wayne Shaw Precinct 3 – Application approved to install private line CR 269.
  • Christine Pentecost, Tax Assessor Collector – reported education credits in compliance with Section 6.231 of the Texas Property Tax Code. Pentecost reported 28 hours of continuing education for the year. A transcript was submitted. 
  • Joel Kelton Precinct 2 – Public Hearing regarding closing a portion of CR 432, a dead end road leading to a ranch, which owns the property on both sides of the road. 1,717 feet of the road will be closed as the commissioners approved the request.
  • Karen Ophelia, Election administration – approval of purchase of Election Day signage.
  • Brown County Sheriff Vance Hill – declare items as surplus and sell them through recycling center. Sheriff Hill explained his department recently remodeled the showers located inside the Brown County Jail. Approximately 20 metal stalls were removed and the sheriff would like to sell the scrap to a recycling facility. The commissioners approved his request. 

A full recording of the commissioners court can be heard here: