Smith County hears updates on new courthouse, approves animal shelter improvement project

Published 6:00 am Wednesday, February 25, 2026

The new Smith County Courthouse is steadily progressing and an improvement project has been approved for the county animal shelter.

The commissioners court on Tuesday received updates regarding the new courthouse before approving a nine working days weather delay on the completion date, still set for the original finish date of August 2027. The court also approved the Animal Shelter Development and Infrastructure Upgrades project, which will bring renovations and improvements to the current downtown shelter.

Courthouse updates 

Stephen Flournoy, project executive, and Bradley Barr, senior superintendent, from Hoar Construction updated commissioners on the progress of Smith County’s new courthouse, a $179 million bond project approved by voters in 2022. The court learned of significant milestones the construction team has recently met and also approved a nine-day extension delay and reduced the guaranteed maximum price for the project for a change order.

“The project’s going very well right now,” Flournoy said. “We call it the greatest public audition, so you don’t have to look very far to see how it’s going.”

Major milestones that have recently been completed on the project include tying in the underground tunnel from the jail to the new courthouse and backfilling the 30-foot-deep hole. Crews also got power and natural gas turned on to the building. Other milestones include window installation, permanent power activated on Oct. 31, the structural top-out completed on Nov. 19, natural gas activated on Feb. 16 and the start of dome construction, which is scheduled to be installed by a crane at the end of March or early April.

“The exterior skin, that greenish color, and our masonry is in process,” Flournoy said. “That’s exciting because we’re starting to see final finishes come to light on the outside of the building, and I promise you that things are changing drastically on the inside.”

Flournoy said air handling units will be installed on the lower floors soon and upper floors to follow within 30 days. He said the restrooms are nearing the finishing stage.

The project includes three phases: Phase 1, which included a new parking garage completed in November 2024; Phase 2, which remains ongoing as construction continues on the courthouse; and Phase 3, which will include the demolition of the current courthouse and expansion of the green space to Spring Avenue.

Flournoy discussed local partners involved in the courthouse work and credited the crew, who has been hard at work on the project.

“We are extremely proud of our team,” he said, noting that it includes Hoar Construction and subcontractors, Smith County and Fitzpatrick Architects.

There is an average of 250-plus workers on the construction site every day. Of all the subcontractors on the job, about 60 percent are East Texas trade partners.

“It’s extremely important to us, and I think it shows the value of our team’s effort as well as the community to reinvest in the community,” Flournoy said. “Without them, that work doesn’t get done out there, so they’re a true partner to us and to the community to try to get this job fulfilled.”

Subcontractors that are not from the area are living here for months at a time, contributing to the local economy, he added.

Updated timeline 

Hoar Construction had 135 potential weather days since the project’s start in 2023, and Flournoy said the company has only claimed 86 of those days so far and requested nine additional days due to recent winter storms that stopped construction for two to three days.

“We work every single day to overcome things like (the recent winter storm),” Flournoy said. “We worked very diligently to protect the building, knowing that storm was coming and then also diligently to recover from it and get our folks back on site and our work back ongoing.”

The commissioners unanimously approved a change order to refund Smith County $124,908 to purchase networks for the courthouse, which was originally planned for Hoar Construction to purchase, but after evaluation decided that this was a better process, reducing the projects budget down by $79,748.

Although the project was delayed nine days, the target completion time for Phase 2 remains December 2026 and Phase 3 in August 2027.

Improvements coming for animal shelter

The commissioners unanimously approved the Animal Shelter Development and Infrastructure Upgrades project and authorized the Purchasing Department to receive sealed proposals for the project.

Two outdoor green spaces will be added behind the shelter and will include fencing and shade structures, Fitzpatrick Architects Director Daniel Romo said. A 12,000-square-foot space will be ample room for dogs to be taken out for exercise or to hold events. Another, smaller 1,700-square-foot space will be added next to it and used for letting out one dog to meet potential adopters.

“The main issue was needing an outdoor green space for the animals to have a community interaction,” Romo said.

To make room for those green spaces, an old, covered parking area and storage buildings that are no longer used will be demolished.

The shelter upgrade project will utilize American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) federal funds with around $1.6 million available with $1.2 million previously set aside dedicated to the Animal Control Shelter and around $400,000 reallocated funds. The project must be completed by December 2026 to meet funding requirements.

The main goals of the project are to utilize the original animal shelter building located off of North Center Street and East Ferguson Street and improve community engagement, adoption experience, address odor and ventilation issues inside the shelter, fix drainage problems in kennel areas, create a green space for animal interaction and better separate the Animal Shelter and Animal Control operations.

“Currently the jury parking lot is taken over by the courthouse obstruction, but by the time this is over, people can park in that area so they would come in between the animal shelter and the animal control building,” Romo said. “Right now, it looks kind of like an alley, so this is more inviting to the community to bring them back there with shade structure and landscape.”

The plan for the outdoor improvements also includes, lighting, security cameras, exterior fans for airflow and an exterior family restroom.

Vincent LaTour, project engineer at EMA Engineering and Consulting, said interior improvements include upgrading the HVAC system, adding exhaust fans, fixing kennel drainage and adding a larger meet-and-greet room. Operational improvements include separating the Animal Control and Shelter lobbies.

“We are working towards just another clean, healthy environment, one for the animals, but also to facilitate an area, a place that we want these people to come in and adopt these animals,” LaTour said.

Judge Neal Franklin said the project design makes the space a lot more convenient for potential adoptees and the staff.

“If you’re going as a potential adoptee, you have a couple of choices there,” Franklin said. “You can go inside to visit or they can bring it to you to that large new room or you can go outside to that closed off area in the green space and you can bring your other dog to make sure that they’re going to get along.”

Franklin said the plan must maintain access for neighboring county departments and parking logistics and shared access are still under review.

“This shows that if you’re creative you can take an existing space and make it not only work, but make it shine, so this looks really good to me,” Precinct 2 Commissioner John Moore said.

Shelter coordinator Holli Jones said the plan opens many doors to expand her team’s outreach and community efforts.

“We are so excited, not just for our staff, the community, for the pets, but as Commissioner Moore mentioned, the overall experience,” Jones said. “We have so many things we’re dreaming of for events, for community engagement, nutrition seminars and adoption events.”

Animal control and shelter supervisor Colton Parsell said he looks forward to the separation of the shelter and control facilities.

“Being able to get Animal Control into another building that’s separate from the shelter, but still working together is going to be great,” Parsell said. “It separates people coming in for the experience of the animal shelter and animal adoption from people that are having a different experience and, as you can imagine, having those people in the same lobby at the same time can make it a very less than stellar experience for somebody.”

The commissioners agreed the project is still in the works but gave it the green light to go out for bids on the project.

Other items  

Other agenda items also approved at Tuesday’s meeting along with recurring business include:

• Feb. 25, 2026 as “Judge Quincy Beavers Jr. Day” in Smith County. The late judge will be laid to rest Wednesday.
• A $45,160 donation from the 12th Court of Appeals for upgraded office carpeting.
• A lease agreement between Smith County and Commercial Vehicle Leasing LLC for four FCIC vehicles.
• A grant application for the Texas Anti-Gang Center for the year 2027.
• A Smith County Indigent Defense $80,000 agreement with John Dalton Griffin for the eight-month term.
• Purchasing Policy updates.
• The 3rd Party Data Access Agreement between Lindale Volunteer Fire Department and Smith County to provide Spillman Hosting Services.
• A facility use agreement between Smith County and Tyler Junior College for the May 2 election.
• Interlocal agreements for two subdivisions for the May 2 election.
• Annual contacts for three bids.
• The modification of the Fiscal Year 2026 County Pay Scale to include Animal Control Dispatcher.

To watch any of the commissioners court meetings, visit the Commissioners Court records page at smith-county.com or Smith County’s Facebook page. The meetings are held at 9:30 a.m. each Tuesday in the commissioners’ courtroom on the first floor of the courthouse annex located at 200 E. Ferguson St. in downtown Tyler.