Commissioner Jacob Holt

06/02/2026

For those residents concerned about Data Centers

You may have seen a post circulating that we will discuss Data Centers at the regularly scheduled Commissioners Court on Monday, June 8th.

While we do have our regular Commissioners Court on Monday, June 8th, we have moved the Data Center discussion to Tuesday, June 9th, instead.

The meeting details are:
Tuesday, 6/9
9:00am
Parker County Courthouse, top floor

We are making this change for two reasons. First, we want to have the data center discussion as a standalone topic to be respectful of everyone's time. Second, this change allows us to host the data center discussion in a much larger courtroom to accommodate a larger audience.

Let me know if you have any questions.

05/31/2026

❗️ To our Neighbors that drive on Central Road ❗️

We closed Central Road this week to replace the old bridge.

Here are the highlights:

🔹TIMELINE 🔹
We’re looking at 45 to 60 days of work. We’re confident it’ll be back open in August before school starts.

🔹 PROJECT SCOPE 🔹
The old bridge is being replaced with concrete box culverts — better water flow, and built to last for decades.

🔹PROJECT CONTRACTOR 🔹
Ed Bell Construction. The County can’t do the project because these box culverts are extremely large and heavy; we don’t have the equipment to safely transport / lift / install these culverts. Ed Bell has done a good bit of work for the county before and they’ve been some of the best regarding keeping to a schedule… they actually got to this project a week faster than I thought they would!

🔹APOLOGY 🔹
I owe y’all an apology for the late notice. My daughter just graduated high school, life got a little busy, and honestly this project jumped to the front of the line faster than I expected. That’s on me.

🔹NEED FOR PROJECT 🔹
We’ve known for a few years this bridge was going to need replacing. Our crews have patched it up more than once and while it was still safe, those repairs were just buying time. When Ed Bell Construction (the same contractor handling the RWMH widening on the west end of the loop) had a bridge crew open up, the timing was right and we jumped on it so that it could be done before school starts back up.

I’ll keep you posted as things move along. As always, reach out if you’ve got questions. 👍

05/04/2026

Folks, over the last 10 days, two major storms rolled through Parker County. These storms caused millions in property damage and took at least one life. In the middle of all that loss, our neighbors showed up for each other in a big way. That's what makes Parker County so special.

At the County government level, we're doing everything we're legally able to do to help. Today, we held a special Commissioners Court and voted unanimously to move $4 million from our rainy day fund to cover construction debris removal (which is usually one of the biggest costs after a disaster like this).

I want to use this post to walk you through what the County is doing and answer some questions I've been hearing.

1️⃣ Is the County getting any state or federal money?
Short answer: No.
Long answer: To unlock state or federal disaster funding, losses must reach a minimum threshold of $56M in uninsured or underinsured damages. Even combining our losses with surrounding counties, we're not going to hit that number. So no, the County won't be receiving outside financial help. We'll be covering the debris removal costs ourselves.

2️⃣ What happens to the debris the County picks up?
Answer: The county will have to pay to send it to a landfill or dump. We will pay for it from the $4M we allocated today from the rainy day fund.

3️⃣ Why did the County charge for debris removal at first?
Answer: Disaster recovery experts from the state advised the County to charge residents the same rates the landfills charge us. We initially went along with that, but quickly changed course and decided to absorb those costs ourselves. Kudos to Commissioner Conley on leading the charge for the county to pay for those costs.

Commissioner Conley is already reaching out to the six residents who were charged to make sure they get fully reimbursed.

4️⃣ Will county crews pick up tree limbs and brush from the bar ditch?
Short Answer: Yes!
Long Answer: Precinct 1 and Precinct 2 crews will pick up tree limbs and brush that you move to the bar ditch, at no cost to you. Precincts 3 and 4 have also sent crews over to help, which we are very grateful for. Thank you to Commissioner Walden and Commissioner Hale.

If a resident is able to haul the tree limbs and brush directly to the Precinct Barn, please do. That frees our crews up to focus on folks who need the most help (the elderly, disabled residents, single moms with little ones, etc.).

5️⃣ Can contractors drop off vegetation at the Precinct 2 barn?
Short Answer: Yes and at zero cost.
Long Answer: We're allowing contractors to drop off vegetation at the Precinct 2 barn for free. They'll need to check in, provide a driver's license, and give us the address where the material was picked up.

6️⃣ How long will cleanup take?
Short Answer: We don’t know yet.
Long Answer: We're looking at months, not weeks. I expect the majority of Precinct 2 employees will be focused on tree limb and brush removal for at least another month just to start.

7️⃣ Will this delay normal road projects?
Short Answer: Yes.
Long Answer: We're expecting at least a six-week delay on our regular work. That doesn't affect projects being handled by outside contractors, like the Oakridge reconstruction or the Ric Williamson expansion. Those stay on track.

8️⃣ How long will county crews pick up tree limbs and brush from the bar ditch?
Short Answer: We don’t know yet.
Long Answer: We haven’t set an end date yet but we do ask that folks do their best to move tree limbs and brush as soon as they can. That will help us be as efficient as we can be and get back to road repair & maintenance asap.

9️⃣ Can I leave a big pile of mulch in the bar ditch?
Short Answer: Please don’t!
Long Answer: If the mulch has already been put on a truck or trailer, *please* don’t dump it in the bar ditch. It will not be quick or easy for county crews to remove and will slow down our efforts overall. Instead, please bring the mulch to the Precinct barn for free disposal.

Feel free to holler here with any other questions you might have on the storms and cleanup process.

You can also reach out to me directly at the office at 817-594-4022 or email me at [email protected].

04/30/2026

Starting Monday, May 4th, Precinct 2 is making two (temporary) changes to help folks get cleaned up after the April storm.

🌿 ROADSIDE LIMB & BRUSH PICKUP
If you're not able to haul your tree limbs and brush to the barn yourself, our crew will come pick it up from the bar ditch. We're thinking of our elderly residents, folks with disabilities, single moms with little ones... anyone who just can't make that trip.

If you can bring it to the barn, please do. That way our crews can focus on helping the folks who really need it.

A couple of things to keep in mind:
• Stack the brush on the backslope of the bar ditch — not down in the bottom where it'll block drainage, and not on the road shoulder.
• This is for *VEGETATION ONLY*. We won't be picking up metal, shingles, insulation, drywall, or anything like that.

🚛 CONTRACTORS DROPPING OFF AT THE BARN
Starting Monday, we'll also let contractors drop off tree limbs and brush at the Precinct 2 barn — as long as they're working for residents in our precinct who were hit by the storm.

Contractors will need to check in at the barn office and give us the address of the property they're hauling from.

Drop any questions in the comments and I'll do my best to answer them. We appreciate your patience while we all work through this.

— Jacob Holt, Commissioner Precinct 2

04/29/2026

❗️ For those who travel Zion Hill Road (FM 2421) ❗️

In the coming weeks, you may notice equipment/personnel near the intersections of FM 2421 and Johnson Bend / Zion Hill Loop (on the north).

We are gathering traffic counts now so we can work with traffic engineers to determine the best options to improve that stretch of FM 2421. We are specifically studying the intersections with Johnson Bend and the northern end of Zion Hill Loop.

While FM 2421 is a state road and thus controlled by TxDOT, Parker County can still speed up improvements by handling the engineering & design work now. When TxDOT receives additional funding in the future, this project will be "shovel-ready" and much more likely to be selected.

As always, I'm happy to respond here to any on-topic questions or comments. For other concerns, please give me a call at the office at 817-594-4022 or email me at [email protected].

04/28/2026

‼️ TORNADO WARNING ‼️

There is a confirmed tornado in NW Wise County, moving southeast, as of 3pm Tuesday.

04/28/2026

EDIT: The information below is OUTDATED. We have changed our policy effective May 4 where we will pickup tree limbs and brush from the roadside. Please see my most recent post for full details.

❗️ Storm Relief Update from Precinct 2 ❗️

To help our neighbors recover from the recent storms, the Precinct 2 barn will be accepting residential brush and vegetation drop-offs for at least the next two weeks.

We've heard from many of you asking whether we'll be picking up brush from the bar ditches. Unfortunately, that's not feasible although we will make exceptions for the elderly or the handicapped. If you are elderly or handicapped, please call the Precinct 2 barn (817-594-4022) to make arrangements.

With 435 miles of county road in Precinct 2, clearing bar ditches across the precinct would take months, and in the meantime those ditches couldn't be mowed (which would create drainage and line-of-sight concerns down the road).

Please bring your brush and vegetation directly to the barn rather than piling it in the bar ditch.

This is for residential use only; we are not accepting brush or tree limbs from contractors.

If you have questions or comments, feel free to leave them below, reach me directly at [email protected], or call our office at 817-594-4022. We're here to help! 👍

04/28/2026

FYI - Use this link to report storm damage.

Parker County storm recovery update – how you can help

As we move into the recovery phase of last weekend’s storm, we are working on assessing damage, organizing volunteers, and establishing a system for donations. Here’s what our community can do:

ISTAT DAMAGE REPORTING

Parker County works with the Texas Division of Emergency Management to track damage impacts. Residents with damage to their homes or businesses are asked to complete the Individual State of Texas Assessment Tool (iSTAT). These self reported surveys help local and state officials understand the extent of damage and connect impacted Texans with available recovery resources.

iSTAT surveys are available in English and Spanish at damage.tdem.texas.gov. Please select the April 9 - Severe Weather event tab.

VOLUNTEER CENTER ESTABLISHED

All community members interested in lending a hand are asked to check in at the Volunteer Reception Center at the Parker County Springtown Annex, 1024 E. Hwy 199, between the hours of 8 a.m.-4:45 p.m., Monday-Friday. This helps us keep everyone safe and be most effective in our group efforts. Both individuals and organizations are welcome, however we ask that groups designate a single point of contact to represent them at registration. We also ask that everyone already volunteering also check in so we can stay organized.

DONATION CENTER DETAILS TBD

A central hub for donations is still in the works. Once we have established those details, we will provide an update on how to donate to our Springtown area neighbors. Please continue to follow our website and Facebook for updates.
Parker County Office of Emergency Management remains committed to safety for our community and is thankful to our citizens for their continued support.

04/26/2026

‼️ EDIT: TORNADO ON 4/25 & 4/28‼️

Comment here for trees or brush covering Precinct 2 roads.

04/20/2026

Good news for folks who travel along Ric Williamson and FM 51!

The County is making two changes that should improve the flow of traffic through the intersection.

First, we are adding an extended turn lane for folks traveling west on RWMH and then turning north onto FM 51.

Second, we are extending the turn lane for folks traveling east on RWMH and then turning north onto FM 51. This should also 'true up' the lanes for folks driving straight through (headed east) on RWMH.

We anticipate that this project will be completed by the end of this summer.

If you have any questions or comments on this project, you can leave them here or email me at [email protected].