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…
The front gates of the Yturria ranches along U.S. Highway 77 represent a contiguous network of brush lands with a history that dates back to the pre-Civil War era. The patriarch of the Yturria ranchlands is Francisco Yturria, a close business associate of Charles Stillman and who would become known as Richard King’s banker. The former is considered one of Brownsville’s founders and the latter became a rancher of legendary…
The head football coach of a brand-new college football team had a blank slate as his UTRGV Vaqueros kicked off their football season in late August 2025. Travis Bush had been through this before as an assistant coach when UT-San Antonio launched its first football season in 2011. Now Bush was the head man of a new football venture further south in Edinburg. “Coming in there weren’t too many expectations,”…
The welding industry is a growing field as it experiences a strong demand that is driven by big infrastructure projects and increasing manufacturing needs. Retirements in an aging workforce are creating a need for younger replacements as one industry estimate says there are over 82,000 jobs to be filled annually in the field. It remains a male-dominated industry but some shifts are being seen. The percentage of women welders has…
There were three things that Steven Aguilar was sure of when he graduated from Donna High School in 2014. One, he was going to college out of the area. Aguilar was also certain that he would never return to the Rio Grande Valley to live permanently nor go into the family business of pest control services. The Texas A&M graduate was ultimately but happily proven wrong on all counts. In…
The city of boots has refreshed its look with paint and repairs that are making it shine anew. The City of Mercedes over the last 13 years has highlighted the city’s western heritage with 30 boots – each standing six feet tall – that are placed on street corners and major intersections. The boots bear the names of colleges and universities in Texas and the United States. The city’s big…