Wilson County to accept Texas General Land Office award to expand Expo Center as emergency shelter

County staff told commissioners the county has received formal notice of a long-anticipated award from the Texas General Land Office to fund an expansion of the Wilson County Expo Center that will serve as a ‘shelter of last resort’ in disasters.

County staff described the project scope as a 15-foot-by-50-foot expansion to the banquet-hall portion of the Expo Center, plus the addition of bathrooms, showers and kitchen upgrades to enable shelter operations. Staff emphasized the award is a reimbursement grant and said they will follow federal procurement rules for the work, specifically citing 2 CFR 200.

“This is just the official, acceptance of the award,” a county staff member said when presenting the formal award document to the court. The court then considered a motion to accept the award from the Texas General Land Office in the amount stated on the record for public-facilities improvements at the Wilson County Expo Center.

Staff also reminded commissioners that the award required public input during the application process, that the project must demonstrate how it mitigates risk to life, and that the grant cannot be used to purchase certain equipment. The county attorney had reviewed the draft agreement before it was presented to court, the record shows.

Because the grant is reimbursement-based, staff said expenses will be incurred and submitted for reimbursement under the grant terms; the county will follow advertised procurement and bid processes for any contracted work.

Next steps: staff will circulate the formal award document to commissioners as requested on the record, proceed with procurement steps consistent with the grant terms and return to court with contract selections and implementation timelines.