By Karen Gleason
The 830 Times
All five members of commissioners court were present.
Here’s what happened at the meeting:
Bayview Drive residents ask for speed bumps
• Three residents of South Bayview Drive, located off U.S. Highway 90 west of Del Rio,
spoke to commissioners court during the citizen comments portion of this morning’s
meeting. The residents all complained of private, commercial and service company
vehicles often speeding on a long, straight stretch of Bayview and asked commissioners
court to install a series of speed bumps along the road. All three of the residents who
spoke to the court expressed concern that the speeding vehicles may cause a severe
accident if they are not stopped and said they realized the sheriff’s office does not have
enough deputies to station one on the road 24/7. The court took no action following the
requests, as it cannot interact with citizens making comments to the court during this
portion of the meeting.
•
Court requests Texas AG opinion on land purchases for ‘digital city’
• After some discussion by County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. and members of the court,
the court voted 5-0 to send questions about the purchase of property in central Val Verde
County to the Texas Attorney General’s Office “to figure out the legalities.” The land
purchases, reportedly for the development of a “digital city,” are being offered online to
South American and other investors. The property in question is located off Texas Ranch-
to-Market Road 1024. Two county residents spoke about their concerns regarding the
land purchases and possible development during the citizen comments portion of the
meeting. Owens and several of the commissioners also expressed their concerns about the
land sales and stated plans for its development.
•
Court approves land purchase for new fire station
• Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to purchase 2.8 acres of land, located off U.S.
Highway 90 west of the Del Rio city limits, from the city of Del Rio for $150,000. The
money for the purchase will come from a 2023 tax note obtained by the county, and the
land will be used as the site of a planned new fire station that will serve developments
north and east of Del Rio.
•
Court approves purchase of office furniture for Tony Faz Annex
• Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to spend $20,000 from the county’s
contingency fund to buy desks and other office furniture for the Judge Antonio “Tony”
Faz County Annex building located on East Chapoy Street. County Judge Lewis G.
Owens Jr. said more and more events are being held at the county annex building, adding
he would like to see the annex furnished more completely.
•
Court reappoints two representatives to appraisal district board
• Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to reappoint George Wardlaw and Val Cadena
to the Val Verde County Appraisal District Board of Directors. Both Wardlaw and
Cadena have indicated their willingness to continue serving on the appraisal district
board, a group of citizen volunteers that oversees the operations of the county appraisal
district.
•
Court takes no action following discussion of property easements
• Commissioners court members took no action following a discussion of easements
being sought across a property in southern Val Verde County owned by Commissioner
Pct. 4 Gustavo “Gus” Flores. Flores, who spoke during the discussion as a private citizen,
said he did not wish to sell the property, as he “does not want to make money off county
taxpayers.” He did, however, dispute the amount of land being requested for the
easement, which is for the city of Del Rio’s planned wastewater trunk line. County Judge
Lewis G. Owens Jr. said discussions involving the county engineer, city officials and
Flores would continue, and County Attorney David Martinez informed the court it did not
need to take any action at this time.
•
Court ratifies acceptance of additional grant money for new target range
• Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to ratify the acceptance of a federal grant in
the amount of $2,316,420 for the construction of the planned Val Verde County Target
Range Facility, which will be built on land located between U.S. Highways 90 and 277
north of the Del Rio city limits. County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. said the county had
previously received a previous grant for the new facility and was recently awarded an
additional $800,000 toward construction of the target range.
•
Court approves new agreement for public defender office
• Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to rescind an existing interlocal agreement
between Val Verde County and Culberson County for public defender services, which
had been approved during the court’s July 30 meeting. The court then voted 5-0 to
approve a revised interlocal agreement between Val Verde County and Culberson County
for public defender services. The Texas Indigent Defense Commission earlier this year
awarded a grant to Culberson County to extend public defender services offered by the
Far West Texas Regional Public Defender Office to Val Verde County.
•
Court approves use of SE Ranch for Laughlin training exercise
• Commissioners court members voted 5-0 to allow Laughlin Air Force Base to use a
portion of the county’s SE Ranch property adjacent to the base on Oct. 16 “to conduct a
downed pilot simulation,” and it authorized the county judge to sign an agreement for use
of the property, based upon a review by the county attorney’s office.
•
Court approves seeking grant for LAFB facility
• Commissioners court voted 5-0 to submit an application for a Defense Economic
Adjustment Assistance Grant (DEAAG) for the construction of a Tactical Aircrew
Fitness Complex (TAFC), formerly called the Human Training Performance Center, at
Laughlin Air Force Base. County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. said the city had informed the county last Monday that they would not be applying for the grant and asked the
county to apply instead. Owens noted that between the past several courts, the county has
applied for about $20 million worth of grants on behalf of the base.
•
Court hears update on tax assessor collector audit
• Val Verde County Tax Assessor Collector Elodia “Loly” Garcia gave an update on the
work she and her staff are doing to remedy deficiencies written up by the state in an
election audit report earlier this year. Garcia said representatives of the Texas Secretary
of State visited her office last week, but she has not heard back from them. Garcia said
she and her staff have done fieldwork to verify addresses in the county’s voter
registration rolls. Garcia said she has also written up procedures on how her office
handles statements of residence and other aspects noted in the audit. The court took no
action following the update.
The writer can be reached at delriomagnoliafan@gmail.com
