MARFA — On Wednesday, Presidio County Commissioners approved the lease of the “bull barn” off of Golf Course Road to Ballroom Marfa, which intends to renovate it for an event venue.
County Attorney Blair Park explained that the barn had been leased by the county to the Hereford Cattle Association in 1932 for 99 years at $1 a year. The association used to have bull sales there but stopped some two decades ago. When the lease expired, the county put a new lease out to bid in a request for proposals.
Only one proposal — from nonprofit Ballroom Marfa — came back. The art organization and gallery will pay the county $12,000 a year and plans about $1 million in renovations to make the aging barn an event destination for locals and visitors. At least one event per year free to local residents is also written into the lease, something Ballroom Marfa Executive Director Holly Harrison said was already in their plans.
“We feel like we’re in a really great place to have our own space and focus on community engagement in Presidio County,” Harrison told commissioners.