Ector County Commissioners are scheduled to get an update Tuesday from County Attorney Lee McClendon on possible amendments to the county’s game room ordinance.
The Odessa City Council wants to join forces with commissioners to help address the proliferation of game rooms throughout the county and the corresponding problems some of them are causing local law enforcement.
County Judge Debi Hays said McClendon sent the city a proposed interlocal agreement to address the issue and are waiting to hear back if city attorneys are OK with it.
McClendon has said he is in favor of keeping game rooms 1,500 feet from neighborhoods, instead of the current 300 feet, and 1,500 feet from each other. He’d also like to require them to have an exterior window in the front and ban them from having coverings or tint on the windows to help law enforcement agencies in monitoring their activities.
In addition, McClendon said he’d also like to restrict the businesses from having more than 50 games operating at any one time and limiting their hours to 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 8 a.m. to midnight Friday and Saturday.
The commissioners will also address an error that was made during their last meeting. The commissioners voted unanimously to contract with GrantWorks Inc. of Austin to vet organizations seeking some of the county’s $32 million ARPA funds.
However, it later came to light that Commissioner Armando Rodriguez’s vote should not be counted because he attended the meeting via telephone, Hays said. Allowances made during COVID-19 are no longer authorized.
Commissioners can only vote in person, but no one at the county was aware of that, Hays said.
The commissioners will also discuss purchasing an armored vehicle for the Ector County Sheriff’s Office using seized and donated funds Tuesday.
The commissioners are also expected:
- To discuss what to do now that the majority of the cemetery plots at the Dona Rabb addition have been sold. Hays said the county can theoretically try to purchase homes and land in the area to expand the cemetery or create a cemetery elsewhere.
- Discuss allowing Fix West Texas to hold a low-cost vaccination clinic on March 5 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. at the Ector County Coliseum.
- Get an update on the Ector County/Odessa Schlemeyer Airport.
- Discuss assigning 11 parking spots to Ector County Health Department staff. Hays said during jury trial weeks, staff members have difficulty finding places to park.
- Discuss allowing Ector County Independent School District to hold its bond election on May 7.
