photos courtesy Pct 3 Commissioner’s Office
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Williamson County is currently home to about 697,000 residents and is set to almost double that number for a total of 1.3 million by 2045. The Commissioners Court has worked tirelessly to plan for a future that thoughtfully balances the area’s inevitable, continuous growth with the evolving needs of the community. One of these dedicated leaders is Precinct 3 Commissioner Valerie Covey, who has been serving Williamson County for nearly two decades and ensuring it is ready to tackle growth-related challenges, especially when it comes to two crucial areas: community safety and family services.
COMMUNITY SAFETY
One of Commissioner Covey’s top priorities has been making sure that Williamson County remains a safe place to live. “The residents of Williamson County expect to live and work in a safe area. Keeping our justice system at the forefront of our future planning, it vital to continued community safety,” says Covey. Commissioner Covey says she spent a lot of time on what the county’s community safety growth plan will look like. At the August 20 meeting of the Commissioners Court, Covey shared a presentation that showed that the county would not be able to expand its jail and justice center to meet the county’s ultimate buildout. “This means that we are going to have to look at different locations around Georgetown,” noted Covey. The county currently owns an extensive amount of land in downtown Georgetown and a move will allow this property to go back to the tax rolls.
Also, because of the county’s strategic planning efforts is the recent acquisition of a 70,000-square-foot facility owned by the Texas Department of Transportation. Located on 28 acres off State Highway 183 in the southern Williamson County portion of Austin, the space would potentially house a medical examiner’s office, back up emergency communications and training, IT, and law enforcement. Covey was a proponent of purchasing the property with cash and not issuing debt.
CPS CHALLENGE
Another pressing issue facing Williamson County is the current state of Child Protective Services (CPS). Although CPS is a function and department of the State of Texas, it is affecting citizens of Williamson County. With a severe shortage of case workers – only four of 21 positions are filled right now – Commissioner Covey has made it a priority to address the gaps in service that impede families from being reunited. To alleviate the strain on the overwhelmed CPS system, she worked to secure American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to create an additional legal assistant position in the County Attorney’s office to ensure that court-ordered services are documented and signed in a timely manner. The court also approved ARPA funding for two contract care coordinators who will facilitate court ordered services like counseling and parent coaching. This initiative is a response to the needs expressed by local judges who have seen a lack of follow-through in cases due to understaffing of CPS case managers. “When the judge issues orders, the goal is that those orders are implemented timely in the hopes of helping families fix what is broken and get children back with their families in a safe environment,” Covey says.
Searching for solutions has been at the heart of Commissioner Covey’s four terms as county commissioner. Whether that has meant balancing the conservation of a threatened Georgetown salamander species with development or working with the Texas Department of Transportation to change laws so road projects could be completed more efficiently with less taxpayer dollars. “Commissioner Covey, a CPA, is willing to go outside the box for Williamson County. It’s commendable that we’ve had a public servant at the county level so willing to keep the county and its citizens at the forefront, even at a state or national level,” said Rachel Arnold, Covey’s executive assistant.
Decades of Dedication
Elected in 2006, Commissioner Covey has been an integral part of the county’s growth management, spearheading major infrastructure projects across Georgetown like the Southwest Bypass, Ronald Reagan improvements at Sun City Blvd and Silver Spur, and the Westinghouse Road expansion. She is currently ushering through improvements at Ronald Reagan Blvd and State Highway 195, the expansion of Ronald Reagan Blvd, and the connection of the Brushy Creek Regional Trail to Southwest Regional Park, among other road projects. She has also been focused on mental health issues throughout the county and the state, working alongside the county’s mental health professionals, law enforcement, judicial branch of the county, and the county’s mental health authority to garner state recognition for Williamson County’s jail diversion programs.
Commissioner Covey is deeply rooted in the community on and off the dais, participating on various boards and committees including the Williamson County Regional Animal Shelter Board, the Williamson County Mental Health Task Force, the Williamson County Conservation Foundation, the Williamson County Audit Committee, the Williamson County Investment Committee, and the Texas Indigent Defense Commission appointed by Governor Greg Abbott. She is also an active member of the Williamson County Republican Party, Georgetown Area Republican Women, The Republican Club of Sun City, Georgetown Chamber of Commerce, and First Baptist Church of Georgetown, where she serves as a trustee.
Commissioner Covey and her husband Mark of 39 years have lived in Georgetown since 1994 and are blessed with three sons, two daughters-in-law, and two grandchildren.