After closing the Williamson County parking garage more than a year ago due to structural instability, the county is moving forward with designing repairs for the facility and hopes to reopen it in about one year.

On Feb. 14, Williamson County commissioners approved a contract with structural engineering firm Jose I. Guerra Inc. for $294,978 to design repairs for the parking garage, which is located between Third, Fourth and Rock streets in Georgetown.

Robert Daigh, senior director of infrastructure for Williamson County, said design should take about three months, and then the project will be put out to bid. Construction is expected to take nine months.

"So in approximately a year, we hope the garage will be open to the public, and they will have a very safe garage to operate in," Daigh said.

County officials closed the parking garage Jan. 24 after discovering a crack in a portion of the structure. Daigh said Jose I. Guerra Inc. has evaluated the damage, and the county will make needed repairs as well as reinforce different aspects of the facility with concrete and steel.

Williamson County opened the parking garage in 2003. Daigh said it should have been 50 to 75 years after it opened before the parking garage needed major repairs.

After closing the parking garage in 2011, the county hired construction law firm Allensworth & Porter to represent the county in legal matters related to the parking garage.