Don’t bother looking up at the clock atop the Tarrant County Courthouse for the correct time after today.
It’s going to be wrong and you’re going to be late, or early, all but twice a day.
Restoration work to the old courthouse begins today, and it will stop the clock in mid-tick, maybe mid-tock, for about a year, according to a press release from the county. Weather and time have taken a toll on the clock tower, and isn’t that ironic?
Workers need to replace the cast iron balustrade, seal up joints between granite blocks to prevent rain seepage, and replace the copper cladding on the dome.
The face and internal clock movement also need repair work far more extensive than replacing the battery.
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After all that, according to the courthouse powers, “Later this month, scaffolding around the base of the tower will be erected. In May, a crane will be brought in while some interior preparations are made. In June, scaffolding will be built to the top of the tower and exterior work will begin on the project, which is estimated to be completed by the summer of 2012.”
And at that point, time in downtown Fort Worth starts again, and not a moment too soon.
Bruce Felps owns and operates East Dallas Times, an online community news outlet serving the White Rock Lake area. He has the eerie ability to know the time within five minutes, and no, he doesn’t wear a watch.
