After executive session, Liberty County approves White Construction as CMAR for new jail, 3-1

After returning from executive session on July 23, the Liberty County Commissioners Court approved a resolution authorizing execution of an agreement with White Construction to provide construction-manager-at-risk services for a new Liberty County Jail. The Chair reopened item 1 and the court voted; the Chair announced the result as three ayes and one nay, with the nay identified in the transcript as Commissioner Korbowski.

During public discussion before the vote one commissioner urged a short delay so the county auditor could review the numbers, saying, "I still would love to wait until Tuesday. We're only talking 3 days." Another commissioner said the step before the court at this point "only binds the county to the $60,000 fees for them to initiate their work" and said the county's auditor should be involved in reviewing the full contract. The second speaker then seconded the motion to proceed to vote.

The Chair cited Texas Government Code sections relating to contract negotiations and attorney consultation when moving the court into executive session earlier in the meeting. The resolution authorizes execution of the agreement with White Construction; specific contract language beyond the initiation fee and the transcript's discussion points were not read into the public record during the meeting.