Renovations are almost done!
After countless manhours of construction and renovation, the Potter County Courthosue is only a few weeks away from its grand opening.
That's scheduled for August 18 and County officals are eager for people to take a step back into the past.
Not much has changed on the outside of the old courthouse. It's been about a year since we spoke with Potter County Director of Facilities MIke Head about the renovations, and it's down the punchlist of getting everything finished.
"We have a dedication date set for August 18th, on the morning prior to the big downtown block party," said Head.
Once you get inside, it's a whole new world, especially if you saw the the building before it was closed, according to Mike.
"All they saw was drop ceilings, white and blue paint, shag carpeting, paneling. You step back into the building and you'll see what it was truly like back in 1932."
Everything's art deco from the original chandeliers to the book matched wood in the courtrooms. And working with the texas historical commission, they've remained true to the original character.
"One of the most unique things in our second floor balcony. not many people knew that it even existed--it was covered by walls. Once it's open people will get to truly see the old balcony area on the 2nd floor," added Mike."
The building also includes some old murals from the 1970s down by an inmate that are housed in the old booking room of the jail.
The look in the courtrooms is also the same, along with a little new technology for the Commissioners Court.
"In the last year, I've taken a lot of employees and ex-employees through this building and it's brought back a lot of memories.
Opening in just a couple more weeks, reminding everyone that everything old really is...new again.
