Eduardo Campirano has been the chief executive officer at the Port of Brownsville for 16 years. For the majority of those years, one grand project has rattled around as a possibility during his administration. He recalled that 12 years ago, the earliest discussions began of a liquefied natural gas plant at the port. What began as both a distant dream and remote possibility has evolved over the years to one…
Brownsville’s band of brewery brothers is inching closer to opening the city’s first soup-to-nuts craft beer business. The Pluton Brewery Company is nearing completion of its 5,280-square-foot building on 805 E. Elizabeth in the city’s downtown. It’s a long time coming for Daniel Arizpe and Joey Martinez along with their partners and team of employees. They are taking their dream from making beer in the garage of a west Brownsville…
Edinburg is the state’s fifth fastest-growing city, a fact borne out by a drive around town in any direction. For Mayor Ramiro Garza, the surge in both brick-and-mortar development and street expansions is much appreciated. The former city manager and economic development director knows, however, that a city needs more than material growth to provide it with a sense of being and place. It’s why the mayor joined in recent…
Arturo Leon had never been to the Rio Grande Valley when he came here in 2014 to scout for a place to locate his specialized painting business. He had already been to southern California, where his father lived after relocating from Mexico. Warehouse space there was hard to find and what was available didn’t meet his needs. Visiting the Valley, Leon liked the cultural fit and immediate proximity to Mexico.…
As a child, Kendra Chyann Hernandez tried to negotiate with the tooth fairy for an increase in the rate paid for what was placed under her pillow. Kendra left a handwritten note, saying the teeth she was offering were worth more than $2. She asked for a raise to $4. Her mother, Josie Ann Hernandez, smiles at the memory. She calls up an old photo of the note on her…
South Padre Island is seeing rapid growth in its vacation rental industry and enjoys high average occupancy rates as compared to its Texas Gulf Coast competitors. It was a strength highlighted at a recent conference hosted by the Vacation Rental Managers Association of South Padre Island. There was also a list of challenges and areas of improvement cited at the mid-February meeting at the South Padre Island Convention Center. The…
Walk into The Roast House in downtown Brownsville and the first impression is how much space it occupies. The formerly cozy coffee shop on Alton Gloor Road in north Brownsville has grown dramatically since its move to downtown in the latter half of 2022. There’s 5,700 square feet of space put to use for community events, group meetings and of course, great coffee. The Roast House is a “full-blown coffee…
Christina Vasquez in her 15-plus years of being a school counselor believed in getting out of the office. “Be visible, be out there,” Vasquez said, recalling how she greeted students in school hallways. “I always felt that it was important to be out there and to have that visibility with the kids.” Vasquez was initially a teacher before settling into working as a counselor for students at every grade level…
South Padre Island with its soothing feel and leisurely coastal vibe is as good a place as any to start over again. It has been that and more for two massage therapists who came to the Island years ago after divorces required them to start anew. Pippa Brooks tells of coming to South Padre in 2008 with nothing. Fellow therapist Mina Amesquita recalls getting to SPI “with $60 in my…
Kimberly Avila had a college degree in hand, a bachelors in cognitive psychology, and worked in law offices and as a car sales manager among a variety of jobs tried. Nothing in those employment fields, or others she could think of, felt or sounded fulfilling. Avila then decided to go way outside of her comfort zone and venture into something her parents warned had little chance of being successful. Avila…