Kerr County to close facilities April 8 for eclipse

The Kerr County Commissioners’ Court voted unanimously to close facilities on Monday, April 8, the day of the solar eclipse, citing a need to keep employees safe and allow them to stay home to alleviate the strain expected on local roads and infrastructure.  “To be clear, April 8, when the eclipse occurs, is not a holiday.  But the school districts, the city, and we, as the county, think it better for people not to come down to the courthouse.  We do not need to bring people in that day, except those who are required to work,” said Kerr County Judge Rob Kelly.

Employees will be given an administrative day, similar to when county facilities have had to be closed due to bad weather or during COVID-19.  The employees who are required to work during the event will be given an administrative day off to take at some point before the end of the year.

Kerrville and Kerr County are in the “path of totality” for the eclipse, making it a prime viewing location for the celestial event, because the eclipse peak of totality will last 4 minutes, 24 seconds.  Due to its favorable viewing location, the area is anticipating that the population for that weekend and event Monday will swell by two to three times the county’s normal count of 53,000.

All of the key emergency response agencies have been planning for this event for the better part of 2 years, and they are expecting a large enough crowd to converge on the area that it will place a huge strain on the traffic systems and local food/fuel resources.  In order for the county to be considered for any state-provided assistance or items, according to the Texas Department of Emergency Management, it had to declare a state of disaster in advance of the event.  Kerr County Judge Kelly enacted such a Declaration of Disaster for Kerr County, Texas, on March 4.  And as required by the Texas Government Code for that declaration to stay in effect, Kerr County commissioners voted unanimously to extend it until April 11.

The April 8 closure applies to all offices that are in the Kerr County Courthouse, 700 Main Street in Kerrville, and the West Kerr Courthouse Annex, 510 College Street in Ingram.  Normal hours of operation are expected to resume on Tuesday, April 9.

For updates, visit the county’s website at www.kerrcountytx.gov.  For additional information regarding the eclipse, visit www.kerrvilleeclipse.com.