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City of Odessa donates property to Odessa College

Odessa College plans to create a green space downtown and construct a stage area for community concerts and events

ODESSA, Texas — Plans to make Downtown Odessa a hotspot have been in the works for years. Now, Odessa College is getting onboard.

This comes after city council unanimously approved a donation agreement between the City of Odessa and Odessa College.

The city donated the property at the corner of 4th Street and N. Jackson Ave. Odessa College plans to create a green space downtown and construct a stage area for community concerts and events. 

NewsWest 9 spoke to Ken Zartner, Vice President of Administrative Services. He said the city and the college are excited to bring new recreation to the area.

"We are going to have a large splash pad with a beautiful seating arrangement," said Zartner. "There will also be a large green space here with about 80 to 100 trees gathered around the green space."

The City Manager for the City of Odessa, Michael Marrero, said this plan has been in the works for nearly two years.

"It just happened we had the availability of property and our discussions have turned on how can we enhance what the city is doing in Downtown," Marrero said. "We planed to meet the goals and accomplishments the college wanted to do."

One of those goals the college wants to focus on is education.

"Ultimately, after the green space is built and and after these structures are put together, we also want to have a large academic building that can serve a variety of programs," said Zartner . 

Overall, Zartner and Marrero hope this opportunity allows for more activities for people in the community and outside visitors too.

"Just think about it, having a large green gathering space to have concerts where people can bring their children for families," said Marrero. " I hope they  really get to enjoy Downtown and the amenities it has."

Leaders at OC told NewsWest 9 there is still some approvals that need to happen internally. They believe that the project could be completed by the end of next year.

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