Tarrant County is putting roughly $10 million toward permanent backup power at two critical facilities: the Green Bay Jail and the Tarrant County Resource Connection Building. County commissioners approved the funding during an October meeting, and officials say it will help keep essential services running the next time severe weather knocks out the power grid.
The money is federal Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery funding from HUD, administered through the Texas General Land Office’s 2021 Winter Storms grant program, according to Fort Worth Report. Tarrant County Judge Tim O’Hare and Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham publicly celebrated the approval, framing it as a long-term investment in the county’s ability to withstand prolonged outages.
“This funding strengthens our emergency readiness and helps ensure we can respond to our citizens when future emergencies arise,” O’Hare said, according to the outlet’s report. He also said he was grateful for the grant administered by the state land office.
What the Grant Actually Pays For
The roughly $10 million grant will go toward installing permanent emergency backup generator power systems at both the Resource Connection Building and Green Bay Jail, per the same account. Both locations will see a standby generator, automatic transfer switch, conduit and wiring, fuel system improvements, and electrical distribution upgrades, along with construction of a generator foundation at each site…