Kim Smith

EDITOR’S NOTE: The original version of this story contained an error. It was Councilman Steve Thompson who said the Navarro contract “was basically a disaster” not Interim City Manager Richard Morton. The OA regrets the error. The Odessa City Council unanimously voted Tuesday night to put $200,000 worth of hotel occupancy tax funds toward city [...]

The Southern Tire Mart lawsuit against the City of Odessa is officially over. According to Ector County District Court records, retired Judge James Rush entered a “nonsuit without prejudice” order at the behest of STM on Jan. 10. A nonsuit is a legal procedure that allows a plaintiff to voluntarily dismiss a case, but leaves [...]

Current Odessa city council members are taking a second look at the sports complex deal struck by the old council and a city-financed project could be in the future. In February 2023, then Mayor Javier Joven and the city council hired Synergy, a company that develops and manages multi-sports facilities, to conduct a sports complex [...]

Aaron Smith, the former assistant Odessa city manager who recently settled his whistleblower lawsuit against the city last month, has his job back. Smith interviewed for the position recently vacated by Cristina Burns, accepted an offer of employment and will begin Feb. 3, Communications Director Monica McDaniel said Monday night. Smith first began working for [...]

Odessa American reporter Kim Smith visited with the City of Odessa’s Interim City Manager Richard Morton. Here’s the latest news: Question: What’s the latest on your cyberattack recovery effort? What percentage of your systems are back to 100%? Answer: All systems that serve the public are up and running. Most of our internal systems are [...]

A negligence lawsuit has been filed against Deerings Nursing and Rehabilitation by the daughter of a woman who died there last year. According to the lawsuit filed in Ector County Court-At-Law Friday, Dec. 13, Mary Pettey was admitted to the nursing home on March 8, 2023, suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, high [...]

By Kim Smith

A City of Odessa department head under investigation by the Texas Department of Public Safety’s Texas Rangers was the subject of four complaints filed within days of each other with the human resource department one year ago. According to records obtained by the Odessa American under the Texas Public Information Act, Equipment Services Director Chris [...]

The Odessa City Council meeting Tuesday night was a contentious four-hour affair with arguments springing up over an inland port, the TGAA contract and some east side roadway improvements. Members of the public also repeatedly called the council out over the contract, a proposed bathroom ordinance and campaign tactics. The council spent 70 minutes alone [...]

By Kim Smith