Bill DeBrooke’s family referred to him as a “Grandpa Grumpy Pants” with a scruffy appearance and coarse demeanor who was unconventional and yet highly successful in making projects flourish. DeBrooke’s look and style could be misleading. He possessed a genius for problem solving and built “a Monopoly-like real estate empire from scratch.” The empire in this case refers to Downtown Harlingen. It’s where he and his family acquired dozens of…
The walk up to La Sal Del Rey gives hints of what lays ahead in glimpses of white between the thick and thorny green stands of South Texas brush. Then it opens in full view, a stunning expanse of an ancient lakebed with four million-plus tons of salt under shallow waters that reflect like mirrors to the clouds above. In dry months, the water recedes and then is completely gone.…
The rampant online speculation about the construction of a data center in Harlingen has come into clearer focus as the Cameron County judge and the city’s mayor acknowledged such an interest exists while emphasizing no formal proposals are under consideration. The property site for a possible data center is an 1,800-acre space adjacent to Valley International Airport and just outside of Harlingen’s city limits. This means any possible approval of…
McAllen Mayor Javier Villalobos gave his fifth State of The City Address in February and described his community as having “movement, energy and success.” Villalobos was exuberant in giving the address before a crowd of 1,300 at the McAllen Convention Center. The mayor walked around a large stage with a wireless headset microphone and enthusiastically ran down a list of accomplishments and projects achieved in 2025. Villalobos often cited the…
It was more the opportunity to restore a historic building than starting a business that was the initial inspiration for Hector Zavala when he saw a 1860s-era building in Downtown Brownsville. Zavala was in his mid-20s at the time when spotting an old botica building on the corner of 11th and Washington streets. The over 160-year-old pharmacy building that also housed doctors’ offices and a clinic had been left vacant…
The Arroyo Colorado at its historical core is an ancient channel of the Rio Grande that formed during one of the main river’s many flood events. The Arroyo is 90-miles long. Its headwaters are located south of Mission. From there it winds east – most prominently through Harlingen – in crossing through three counties before flowing into the Laguna Madre. The Arroyo cuts through the heart of the Rio Grande…
The growth of a small business can come from the result of well-crafted planning – or sometimes by happenstance. Norma Ozuna and her husband Eddie, with years of experience in working for corporate restaurant chains, made the move in 2021 to open their own business along Expressway 83 in Mercedes. O’s Burgers & More is located adjacent to the emerging Shops At Mercedes. The latter is a 250,000-square-foot retailing development…
The City of Brownsville made a $3 million-plus decision 10 years ago that it was going to invest in and revitalize its Market Square. It is the historic heart of Brownsville with its origins going back to the early 1850s when it opened as an open-air market. In the years that followed it would house city offices and later become a hub for its bus system. Market Square looked worn…
The RGV Hispanic Chamber of Commerce at its launch nearly 30 years ago had to overcome the perception that it was needed in a region full of similar-named organizations. Local chambers then and now are commonly found across the Rio Grande Valley. Why would a new chamber that was then known as the McAllen Hispanic Chamber of Commerce be needed? “It was business owners in downtown McAllen who voiced the…
Leo Rivera left the Rio Grande Valley to get his art training and education at a Denver-area design school. It was in Colorado where the Harlingen native did his first large-scale wall mural. Rivera was active in the Denver arts scene for 11 years after graduating from the Rocky Mountain College of Art & Design. Returning home in 2020, Rivera set off to work as what he calls an “artist…