Odessa, Texas
City in the United States in Ector County, Midland County
About Odessa
Odessa () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat of Ector County in West Texas, with portions extending into Midland County. The population was 114,428 at the 2020 census, making it the 34th-most populous city in Texas. It is the principal city of the Odessa metropolitan statistical area, which includes all of Ector County. The metropolitan area is also a component of the larger Midland–Odessa combined statistical area, which had 359,001 residents in 2020.
The city is famous for being featured in the book Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream, and the movie adaptation, Friday Night Lights. The University of Texas Permian Basin is located in the city and enrolls over 5,000 students. In 1948, Odessa was also the home of First Lady Barbara Bush, and the one-time home of former U.S. presidents George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush. Former president George H. W. Bush has been quoted as saying, "At Odessa we became Texans and proud of it."
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How Odessa is governed
Form of government not yet listed.
1 of 14 positions listed. Gray dashed boxes are placeholders waiting for a name.
Residents of Odessa
Registered voters elect the officials below.
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Mayor
Executive
- Javier Joven per Wikidata
The city's chief elected official. Presides over the executive branch, proposes the budget and represents the city.
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City Manager / Administrator
Executive
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The professional administrator who runs day-to-day operations (in some cities appointed by the council instead of the mayor).
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Police Chief
Administration & departments
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Leads the police department.
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Fire Chief
Administration & departments
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Leads the fire and emergency services department.
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Public Works Director
Administration & departments
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Streets, water, sewer, and city buildings.
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Finance Director
Administration & departments
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The budget, taxes, and city accounts.
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Planning & Zoning Director
Administration & departments
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Land use, zoning, building permits.
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Parks & Recreation Director
Administration & departments
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Parks, programs, and public facilities.
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City Council
Legislative
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The elected body that passes ordinances, sets the tax rate and approves the budget.
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City Clerk
Administration & departments
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Keeps the official records, runs meeting agendas and, often, local elections.
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City Attorney
Administration & departments
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The city's lawyer; advises officials and prosecutes ordinance violations.
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Boards & Commissions
Legislative
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Citizen advisory bodies, such as planning, zoning appeals and library boards.
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Municipal Court
Judicial
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Hears traffic, ordinance and other minor cases.
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Municipal Judge
Judicial
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Presides over the municipal court.
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- Website
- odessa-tx.gov
Looking for your county, state and federal representatives too? See who represents 79760 or everyone in Texas.
Population over time
From 99,940 in 2010 to 114,428 in 2020 (+14.5%).
Show the numbers
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 114,428 |
| 2010 | 99,940 |
Odessa in the news
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Ken Paxton Thanks Crowd for 'One Clap' During Campaign Stop
The Texas attorney general paused his remarks to thank an audience member for a lone clap as he addressed voters in Odessa, Texas.
News Newsweek
History
Odessa was founded in 1881 as a water stop and cattle-shipping point on the Texas and Pacific Railway. Odessa is said to have been named after Odessa in the Russian Empire (present-day Odesa, Ukraine). The settlement was named by Russian workers building the railway in 1881, because the terrain reminded them of their homeland; the local shortgrass prairies resembled the steppes of the Russian Empire.
The first post office opened in 1885. Odessa became the county seat of Ector County in 1891 when the county was first organized. It was incorporated as a city in 1927, after oil was discovered in Ector County on the Connell Ranch southwest of Odessa.
With the opening of the Penn Field in 1929 and the Cowden Field in 1930, oil became a major draw for new residents. In 1925, the population was just 750; by 1929, it had risen to 5,000. For the rest of the 20th century, the city's population and economy grew rapidly during each of a succession of oil booms (roughly in the 1930s–1950s, 1970s, and 2010s), often with accompanying contractions during the succeeding busts (particularly in the 1960s and 1980s).
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.