Kerr County Courthouse facility closed; Offices relocating

Severe flood damage in the lower area of the Kerr County Courthouse means the facility itself at 700 Main Street in Kerrville will be closed to the public for the unforeseeable future. All county offices not physically located within the courthouse plan to be open for business as usual on Monday, July 20.

Kerr County’s elected officials and administrators have forged a plan for all departments normally operating within the courthouse to temporarily relocate to other county-owned facilities. This involves a massive moving operation over the next few days, but the displaced offices are planning to “set up shop” and reopen for business as soon as possible -- tentatively by Wednesday, July 22. Future announcements regarding the reopening will be announced on the county’s website (www.kerrcountytx.gov) and Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/kerrcountytexas).

Duration of Changes:

1st Floor: First/ground floor offices at the courthouse, including the county clerk’s office, county commissioners’ court office, the tax office and others, are expected to shift locations for only an estimated 1 to 2 weeks.

2nd Floor: Those on the second floor are expected to be operating in their temporary location until the courthouse elevator can be repaired, which might take a minimum of 2 months or more.

Lower Level: The offices that were on the basement level, where the flood resulted in more than 6 feet of water in the building, will be displaced the longest. While the building has been deemed structurally sound, the entire interior of the basement level will need to be cleared, reconstructed and re-equipped before those departments may return. This could take up to 1 year, officials said. Those offices affected include the county attorney’s office, human resources, the treasurer’s office and others.

Here is a chart showing where the displaced courthouse departments wil be

“We understand that, over the coming weeks and months, this may be confusing or disorienting for some members of the public when they need to find a specific office that has been relocated. But this was the best possible plan we could develop to deal with these circumstances,” said Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly.

“We appreciate everyone’s patience and cooperation as we, too, take the necessary steps to recover from this second catastrophic flood in as many years. One thing undamaged is our commitment to serving the community we love,” Kelly added.

“We are proud of our Kerr County team, because our employees have had very helpful attitudes and are ready to get back to work as soon as possible. We are optimistic that we – just like so many others in our community – will build back better and stronger, together,” the judge said.