Val Verde County commissioners weigh flood mitigation, mental health month declaration

Flood mitigation and neighborhood safety sit near the top of Val Verde County’s May 6 agenda, where commissioners will review properties tied to drainage planning, proclaim May as Mental Health Awareness Month and decide whether to approve six new LED street lights on Cienegas Road for $3,985.84.

The flood item carries real weight in a county shaped by the Rio Grande and the San Felipe Creek basin. FEMA’s Flood Insurance Study framework is used to identify flood hazards in Val Verde County, including Del Rio and the unincorporated areas, and the memory of the deadly August 1998 Del Rio flood still hangs over local planning. That storm destroyed about 2,000 homes and left much of the city underwater, which is why drainage and stormwater decisions remain one of the county’s most consequential duties.

Lighting on Cienegas Road is also more than a cosmetic upgrade. The county says the new LED fixtures would improve safety near the duck pond and surrounding area, and the request would draw from Precinct 4’s operating budget. County leaders already approved smaller work there on Jan. 29, 2025, when three transformers and three LED lights were authorized at a total cost of $2,271.86.

Health and human services take up a large share of the same agenda. Commissioners will consider a donation to Val Verde Regional Medical Center for its cancer center, along with a proclamation recognizing May as Mental Health Awareness Month. They will also weigh requests for the Del Rio Mental Health Group to use the Tony Faz County Annex for monthly committee meetings, for the Texas Department of State Health Services to use the annex for weekly gardening lessons, and for the Del Rio High School Eco-Action Club to use the space for planting and beautification work.

The court will also revisit public defense, an issue that has become harder for rural Texas counties as attorney shortages slow cases through the docket. Commissioners are set to consider hiring a public defender for Val Verde County after pursuing an interlocal agreement in 2025 with Culberson County for Far West Texas Regional Public Defender Office services. The Texas Indigent Defense Commission awarded a grant to extend those services into Val Verde County, giving local officials another option as they look for a more durable way to handle the caseload.

Other items include replacing windows at the 83rd/63rd Courthouse building, office space for the Migrant Clinicians Network at the Val Verde Community Center and a resolution tied to the 2027 Operation Lone Star Warrants Program. The courthouse, an 1887 Larmour & Watson design altered in 1915, adds a preservation layer to a meeting already packed with decisions that could shape daily life from Del Rio to Comstock and Langtry.