San Marcos — Commissioners on Tuesday voted to award the contract for designing and building the Hays County Government Center to Balfour-Beatty; a contract for approximately $74 million is expected to be signed next week.

“We are at a crisis, it is important for the court to act on this issue,” said District Attorney Sherri Tibbe before the vote. Tibbe, who is also a member of the steering committee for the new center, said conditions in the Hays County Justice Center are beyond overcrowded.

Currently, she said, inmates are taken through public areas for lack of holding facilities, defense attorneys are forced to confer with their clients in hallways, and judges preside over trials in spaces that do not have “a sense of authority and dignity.”

On Thursdays, when misdemeanor cases are tried, upwards of 500 most weeks, “it’s a zoo. It’s almost impossible to conduct court proceedings,” she said. “It’s not fair to people who have to appear before the court, it’s not fair for employees to work in these conditions or judges that have to conduct courtroom proceedings.”

Tibbe said beyond her office are location problems with juvenile and adult probation. “Adult probation is in a very inappropriate space, the office is divided by a pizza restaurant. There’s also a bar in the same area we have probationers coming in and taking classes on why they shouldn’t be drinking or taking drugs. They can hear the music from the bar. That’s totally inappropriate.”

Commissioners had previously voted to place a ceiling of $89.5 million on the project, which will bring many of the county’s departments under one roof.

“This is a perfect time to build and a perfect time to finance and we desperately need it,” County Auditor Bill Herzog said. “If we don’t do this today we probably won’t get the quality contractors we have at the prices we’ve got. It’s now or never.”

Commissions made their final selection of Balfour-Beatty over bid supplied by two other companies, Satterfield & Pontikes and Skanska/Kirksey. Brenda Jenkins of Broaddus & Associates said that initially, around 20 companies submitted bids. That was narrowed to 10 and then to five.

She said the Balfour-Beatty bid will “get everybody in the building” for under $74 million. “We’ve achieved the directive and we can’t be more excited. I think we are in the middle of a perfect storm in a good way — we have low pricing, we have the best contractors and architects on board and a dip in material pricing Were in good stead to go forward.”

Commissioner Jeff Barton, commenting on the current Justice Center, said at the time the old grocery store was remodeled for courtrooms and offices that commissioners “thought we were doing a good thing.”

However, “none of us thought that a long-term solution. It’s time to get into a permanent and more fitting building.”

“Based on the information we have, we will not have to raise taxes to build this facility,” Commissioner Debbie Ingalsbe said.

Jenkins had detailed a number of scenarios where, for a lower cost, some departments intended for the government center would have to be housed elsewhere. The original plan had a price tag of $118 million.

Jenkins is to return next week when a contract is expected to be signed and a time-line unveiled.

The building is expected to be ready for occupancy in 2011.