County judge asks court to rescind prior action so architect can compete for jail study

County Judge Pedro Petitravigna Jr. asked the Jim Wells County Commissioners Court to rescind agenda item 12.3 from the March 27, 2026 minutes and to "cease negotiation with Southwest Architects Incorporated" so that the firm could still apply to the county's current RFQ/RFP for a facility needs analysis related to either expanding the existing jail or building a new facility.

"We have a RFQ RFP out right now. Having this kind of has that over, Southwest Architects' head per se, and, they will not be able to to apply or put in for the bid if we don't rescind this," the judge said, arguing the rescission was a fairness measure. A motion to approve the rescission was made and seconded, and the court approved the motion by voice vote; the transcript does not record individual vote counts or identify who seconded the motion.

The action removes an ongoing negotiation that the judge said could prevent a firm from participating in the county's competitive procurement. The court did not record a roll-call tally in the transcript; the outcome recorded in the transcript was "motion carries."