The Tom Green County Commissioners Court considered two real estate related items at the regular Tuesday meeting.

The court voted to authorize the sale of tax notes so the county can buy and renovate the former Wal-Mart building at 3020 N. Bryant Blvd.

“That’ll be used for two purposes to start with: The Community Supervision and Corrections Department — over half the building will be used for that — and we’ll also be building new offices for Justice of the Peace Precinct 3,” County Judge Mike Brown said.

Tax notes are a form of municipal debt similar to bonds except that they cannot be borrowed for more than seven years, said Larry Skiles, financial adviser to the county.

Steve Floyd, Precinct 3 commissioner, said that although members of the Concho Valley Community Supervision and Corrections Department are state employees, the county is tasked with finding them office space and facilities, hence the purchase of the old Wal-Mart building.

The Community Supervision and Corrections Department aids in the rehabilitation of offenders sentenced to community supervision. It encompasses seven counties.

Floyd said the department’s employees are currently spread out in three separate locations.

“They’re adding additional employees, so we’re trying to consolidate them,” Floyd said.

The court also considered acquisition of the parking lot on the southeast corner of College Avenue and Randolph Street. Floyd said the additional parking may later help expansion of the county jail.

“We’ve been attempting to purchase it for a number of years because it helps us complete that block where the Tom Green County Justice Center is located,” Floyd said.

Floyd said that in the meantime the parking lot will probably still be used for employee parking.

In line with capital improvements, the court accepted an allocation from the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Program of $50,000 to renovate heating and air conditioning systems.

Brown said the allocation would go to “electronic energy management controls for the county office buildings,” to make their systems more efficient.

The block grant program has $2.7 billion from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to disburse among cities, states, counties and American Indian tribes to “develop and implement projects to improve energy efficiency and reduce energy use and fossil fuel emissions in their communities,” according to the program’s Web site.

In other business, commissioners voted to proclaimed Oct. 28 as “Wear Red Day” and Oct. 25 through Oct. 31 as “National Red Ribbon Week” to raise awareness about the dangers of drug abuse.

“We’re doing a lot with schools throughout the county,” said Julie Alonso, prevention director for the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Council for the Concho Valley.

Alonso gave red ribbons to everyone at the court bench.

As part of the consent agenda, the court agreed to contract Tom Green County’s juvenile detention services to other counties.

“That’s something that we do every year this time of year,” said Mark Williams, chief juvenile probation officer. “There are a lot of counties out there who do not have detention centers. As long as we’ve got space available, as long as we have those empty beds, they pay us $95 a day for as long as that child is detained.”