By Karen Gleason
The 830 Times
All five members of Val Verde County Commissioners Court were present.
Here’s what happened at the meeting:
County judge lauds Texas Parks & Wildlife Department rescue crew
County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. praised the work of a Texas Parks & Wildlife Department rescue crew called in to retrieve a member of the Precinct 2 road crew whose county work truck was overwhelmed by runoff that flooded the Dolan Creek Road on Thursday, Oct. 1, leaving him stranded.
“You see stuff like this on TV; it was just unbelievable. . . It was impressive,” Owens said of the quick and effective work done by the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department crew.
Owens also thanked members of the Val Verde County Sheriff’s Office and the Val Verde County Fire Department, who also responded to the emergency call.
Commissioner reminds women to get mammograms
County Commissioner Pct. 3 Fernando Garcia reminded women in Val Verde County that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and urged them to get a mammogram screening.
Garcia also shared a personal story underlining the importance of the testing.
“My mom had breast cancer 30-something years ago, and she’s still with us because she went and got checked and took care of it early. So all you ladies out there, go get yourselves checked, because your families need you,” Garcia said.
Court approves federal grant application for adult drug treatment court
Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to authorize the application by the Val Verde County Adult Drug Treatment Court for a federal grant that will only include in-kind matching, with no financial obligation to the county.
Val Verde County Court-At-Law Judge Sergio Gonzalez attended the meeting with members of his Adult Drug Treatment Court and Juvenile Drug Treatment Court and thanked the court “for its steadfast support of our specialty court state grant programs and its continued efforts to secure federal funding.”
Gonzalez said the specialty courts “serve high-risk, high-need individuals not expected to succeed under traditional probation” and noted the specialty courts’ outcomes “reduce the financial and social costs associated with repeated arrests, court involvement, incarceration and victimization, thereby protecting Val Verde County taxpayers and enabling limited county resources to serve more residents effectively.”
Court approves payment to Belong of Del Rio
Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to approve a $2,500 payment to Belong of Del Rio.
Roxanne Carter, regional director of SJRC Texas/Belong, spoke to the work her organization has done over the past quarter.
Carter said Belong is in the process of implementing additional community partnerships as well as conducting more car seat and CPR training workshops for the public.
She also said she will be putting together “child safety kits” so those who attend the car seat training can have the educational kits to take home with them.
Court approves application for Community Development Block Grant
Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to apply for the 2027-2028 Community Development Block Grant community development fund program through the Texas Department of Agriculture in the amount of $750,000.
County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. asked Carl Esser, the county’s grants administrator, if he needed a list of projects the county would fund with the grant, if it is approved.
Esser told the court the county must use at least 51 percent of the funds for “priority one activities,” such as projects dealing with water, streets, drainage and others.
“You don’t have to select a particular project today, you just need to say that you’ll use 51 percent of the funds for those elements,” Esser said.
Commissioner Pct. 4 Gustavo “Gus” Flores asked if the grant funds would be distributed among the four precincts, and Esser replied, “Right now, this is just to get your foot in the door to see if you’ll get an invite to submit a full application.”
He added the pre-application must be submitted by Nov. 19, and Owens said the measure would come back to the court if the county is invited to proceed with a full application.
Court authorizes plan of finance and approves tax notes for county projects
Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to authorize a plan of finance and approve the issuance of $2,175,000 in Series 2026 Val Verde County Tax Notes.
County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. told the court, “This is your paving money, based on $5,000 per mile of road, per precinct, and then another $1,000 per mile of road for Precinct 1 and Precinct 3.”
Owens then recognized David Gonzalez with PFM Financial Advisors LLC of San Antonio, who gave the court a presentation on the issuance of the tax notes.
He discussed treasury and municipal interest rate movements, an overview of the county’s current debt portfolio and the tax rate impact of the Series 2026 notes.
Gonzalez told the court the $2,175,000 tax note will have no impact on the county’s interest and sinking (I&S) tax rate.
Court majority approves hotel occupancy tax funding for car show
Commissioners court members voted 4-1 to expend $2,200 of the county’s hotel occupancy tax (HOT) funds for the Fiesta de Amistad Car Show.
County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. gave the sole opposing vote following a presentation by the car show’s organizer, Cesar Garza, owner of Texas Tint.
Garza requested an expenditure of $7,550.
Garza told the court he started the car show three years ago, in part “to give people a reason to come to Del Rio.”
He said there were 10 cars exhibited at his first show, and 70 cars were exhibited the second year.
Garza said he expects more than 200 cars this year.
Garza said he planned to use the county HOT funds to advertise the car show outside of Del Rio.
Owens noted that data from the Del Rio Chamber of Commerce’s Placer.ai visitor tracker showed 168 out-of-town visitors had attended the car show last year, adding the requested amount would thus break down to $44.64 per visitor.
Owens said in comparison, the money the county spends on the George Paul Memorial Bullriding event breaks down to $3.94 per visitor.
The court eventually decided to allocate less than a third of Garza’s original request.
Court approves agreement for public defenders office
Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to approve an interlocal agreement between Val Verde County and Culbertson County Far West Texas Regional Public Defenders Office for indigent defense services for Fiscal Year 2026-2027.
James McDermott, chief public defender with the regional public defenders office, gave a detailed presentation about the public defenders office in Val Verde County, noting the attorneys in his office here are now taking 100 percent of eligible cases.
“Some weeks we’re in court every day here,” McDermott told the court.
Commissioner Pct. 4 Gustavo “Gus” Flores asked how the decision to appoint a public defender, and McDermott replied that decision is made by the judge in the case.
The writer can be reached at delriomagnoliafan@gmail.com
