Curtis Parrish Gives COVID-19 Vaccine and Expo Center Updates

Tuesday on KFYO Mornings with Dave King and Matt Martin, Lubbock County Judge Curtis Parrish joined Dave and Matt to talk about the impeachment of Donald Trump, division in America, how COVID-19 has affected Lubbock county, yesterdays Commissioners court meeting, an update on the Expo Center, the Buddy Holly Hall, vaccines distribution in Lubbock, and more.

With Parrish's recent recovery from his bout with COVID-19, Curtis talked about how COVID-19 has affected Lubbock. The county judge said that we have been losing some of our best and brightest to the virus, such as some of our wiser elderly population who have been married for decades, some of his older church members, and even some of Curtis's friends, and he said that it has been absolutely heartbreaking, but that there will come a point where we can collectively grieve.

Moving to the more positive side of the pandemic, Curtis talked about the continued rollout of vaccines, as well as the establishment of an alternative care site. Parrish explained that Lubbock county and the city have been working together, and have been knocking it out of the park, cementing Lubbock as one of the top 3 sites in the entire nation for distribution of vaccines to its citizens. They have also been working together with the Texas Department of Emergency Management to create an alternative care site located at the old Grace Hospital site. Curtis explained that this will free up some room in our Hospitals. The facility currently has an additional 20 beds, and if needed, can expand that number to 30. The facility will also have a plasma infusion center to help reduce symptoms of patients. Curtis said that he has been very proud of the people of Lubbock, the city, state, Covenant hospital, and UMC who have all worked together to make sure that we are taking care of our citizens and helping the number of COVID-19 cases to go down dramatically. Despite this, Parrish explained that this does not mean that it is time to take our foot off the gas, and that we must instead stay vigilant to fight the virus. He encourages you, if you want a vaccination, to contact the city and try to schedule one for yourself.

Shifting the focus, the County Judge also discussed the Buddy Holly Hall, as well as the upcoming Expo Center. When asked for an update on the Expo Center, Curtis explained that the process is ongoing, and that he has met with the architect and design teams this weekend, and says they are working hard. He also reminded us that the Commissioners Court has formed a citizens committee to oversee the design, development, and construction going forward, and that they are also working very hard. Curtis expects that we will see a lot more movement around March of this year, and at the same time we will start to see what the facility will cost and what kind of building we will be getting. Parrish hopes to see a ground breaking around the end of the summer or beginning of the fall, but isn't exactly sure when it will happen.

Moving the focus to a completed building, Parrish talked about the Buddy Holly Hall. The Judge said that this facility is a crowned jewel for the people of Lubbock and West Texas. He encourages the people of Lubbock to get a ticket to an upcoming event and go see for yourself how great the facility is, and how it will promote entertainment in Lubbock for decades to come. Curtis recently went to see the Lubbock Symphony Orchestra perform Vivaldi's Four Seasons, and said that there is no bad seat in the house, and that even from the back, you can hear a bow go across strings thanks to the amazing acoustics. Parrish said that the facility really is first class, and the gold standard for what other facilities will be mirroring going forward.

Watch the full interview with Lubbock County Judge Curtis Parrish in the video above.

KFYO Mornings with Dave King & Matt Martin airs weekday mornings live, from 6:00 AM to 8:30 AM on News/Talk 95.1 FM and 790 AM KFYO, online at KFYO.com, & on the free KFYO app.