The 830 Times
Writer’s note: The writer did not attend the county commissioners court meeting. This report was written from the video of the meeting posted online.
All five members of Val Verde County Commissioners Court were present for the Oct. 21 meeting.
Here’s what happened at the meeting:
Court honors Del Rio mental health professional for statewide award
During the “Citizens’ Comments” portion of the court’s meeting, Carmen Abreu of West Texas Counseling and Guidance asked the court to join her in honoring Alejandra “Alex” Garcia, West Texas Counseling and Guidance’s lead clinician, who recently earned the Mental Health Professional of the Year award for 2026, awarded by the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) for the state of Texas.
Garcia is a Del Rio native who left the area to pursue higher education but returned to serve her community.
County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. called the award “impressive,” and Garcia told the court she hopes to use the publicity as a platform to call attention to the mental health needs of the community.
Court approves ‘historic’ loan to fund county paving projects
Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to approve an order authorizing the county’s tax note series 2026 in the amount of $2,175,000, payable from proceeds of the county’s annual ad valorem taxes.
The court voted to borrow the money at an interest rate of 4.43 percent from JPMorgan Chase, one of several banks that bid on the tax note.
David Gonzalez, of the county’s financial advisors, PFM, said the loan will not impact the county’s tax rate, and the county will be able to maintain its existing interest and sinking (I&S) tax rate.
County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. noted, “This is the first time in Val Verde County history that we’ve set aside so much money for paving.”
Court approves use of softball fields by Del Rio Queens Softball
Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to allow the Del Rio Queens Softball team to use the county softball fields on Frontera Road twice a week, beginning Oct. 21 through Dec. 31.
The Queens will use the county softball fields on Wednesdays from 4 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. and on Thursdays from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
The Queens’ own playing fields are currently under renovation, and County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. said no one else is using the county fields at this time.
Court approves resolution for indigent defense funding
Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to approve a resolution for the Texas Indigent Defense Commission (TIDC) formula grant program and authorized County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. to sign the resolution.
The resolution will allow the county to apply for state grant funding to supplement county monies for indigent defense.
The TIDC assists eligible counties in implementing and improving indigent defense.
Court approves hotel occupancy tax monies for Fiesta de Amistad Charro Extremo
Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to expend $500 in county hotel occupancy tax (HOT) funds for the Fiesta de Amistad Charro Extremo event requested by ARA Promotions LLC.
The group had initially asked for $9,030 in funding.
Following discussion of how many persons attended the event and whether the organization is a nonprofit — it is not — the court reduced the original request to $500.
Court approves hotel occupancy tax monies for Border Bull Mania
Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to expend $10,000 in county hotel occupancy tax (HOT) funds for the Border Bull Mania event being requested by The FOB Inc., a local nonprofit organization working on behalf of area veterans.
Precinct 2 Commissioner Juan Carlos Vazquez made the motion to approve the $10,000 in funding with the stipulations that the organization follows county guidelines for the expenditure of HOT monies and brings back receipts to document those expenditures.
Court approves use of county annex for microchipping event
Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to approve a request by the group Border Animal Mission (BAM) for the use of one of the buildings in the Judge Antonio “Tony” Faz III County Annex, 315 E. Chapoy St., as the site of a planned pet microchipping event.
The event is scheduled for Nov. 12, and BAM will offer free microchipping services to local pet owners.
County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. pointed out BAM held a recent spay and neuter event and spayed or neutered 415 animals at no cost to their owners.
Court approves use of county annex for community bingo event
Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to approve a request by Cornerstone Caregiving to host a community bingo and donation drive event at the Judge Antonio “Tony” Faz III County Annex, 315 E. Chapoy St.
The event will be held from 9 a.m. to noon Dec. 10 in support of SJRC Belong.
Court approves use of county annex for health fair
Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to approve a request by SCAN to host a resource health fair at the Judge Antonio “Tony” Faz III County Annex, 315 E. Chapoy St.
The health fair will be held at the county annex from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Oct. 29.
Court approves streetlight installation for Cherokee Trail
Commissioners court voted 5-0 to authorize County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. to enter into an agreement with AEP for the installation of one LED streetlight near 792 Cherokee Trail at a cost of $740.97.
The streetlight installation was requested by Precinct 3 Commissioner Fernando Garcia, who said the cost of installing the streetlight will come out of his Precinct 3 operating budget.
Court denies commissioner’s request for Cienegas Road streetlight
Commissioners court members did not vote on a request by Precinct 4 Commissioner Gustavo “Gus” Flores to approve the installation of one LED streetlight at the intersection of Owens Road and Cienegas Road and to authorize the county judge to sign an agreement with AEP for the new light.
Flores made a motion to approve the installation of the light, but no one seconded the motion, so it died.
Flores has been requesting the installation of various streetlights along a section of Cienegas Road since February.
Court denies taxpayer’s request for waiver of penalty and interest on home taxes
Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to deny a request by a taxpayer, who was not named in the meeting, to waive the penalty and interest for the 2024 tax year on property tax owed on property he owns.
County Tax Assessor-Collector Elodia “Loly” Garcia informed the court the property owner had asked the county to waive $158.20 in penalties and interest.
Members of the court asked questions about the requested waiver, including whether Garcia’s office had sent notices to the taxpayer.
When she said she had, the court voted to deny the request.
Court approves grant application for Laughlin Air Force Base
Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to authorize County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. to sign the Defense Economic Adjustment Assistance Grant (DEAAG) application for the Val Verde Aerospace and Manufacturing and CTE Innovation Initiative at Laughlin Air Force Base and to request a grant in the amount of $4,702,518.94.
County Engineer Carlos Velarde told the court if the county receives the grant, it will give Laughlin the ability to purchase equipment that will allow base personnel to manufacture aircraft parts and other items that are no longer available because of the age of the aircraft.
Three pieces of equipment would be purchased, including a metal 3D printer.
Owens said if the $4.7 million grant is approved, it will increase the amount of grants applied for and received by the county for the base to more than $20 million.
Court approves request to house camels at county fairgrounds
Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to ratify allowing two camels to be housed at the Val Verde County Fairgrounds on Oct. 15 and Oct. 16 on behalf of Michael Diaz, executive director of the Whitehead Memorial Museum, for the Living History Days event at the museum.
Court approves contract change order for sports complex well
Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to ratify change order No. 1 submitted by Bollinger Drilling Co., increasing the contract amount by $21,500 for an additional 200 feet of drilling and an additional 100 feet of casing as part of an ongoing project to drill a water well at the Robert “Bob” Chavira Sports Complex.
The change order will be paid from the Precinct 2 tax note 2023 account.
Court hears update from veterans service office
Commissioners court members heard an update from Veterans Service Officer Sergio Palafox.
Palafox told the court he is working on a set of written policies for the office.
He said the policies will also cover what the office can and cannot do when it takes veterans to San Antonio or other cities for medical appointments.
County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. said he would like the court to start thinking about moving the veterans office into a larger facility within the next two years.
The writer can be reached at delriomagnoliafan@gmail.com.
