San Juan for years was on the periphery of the growth that came to define the McAllen-Pharr-Edinburg metro area. It was a stop of little notice when it came to business, heading east on Expressway 77/83. The feel began to change in the late aughts, around 2008, when H-E-B left Pharr to build and open one of its superstores in San Juan right along the expressway. It added a buzz…
The Weslaco Economic Development Corporation has a new executive director and its new leader comes from within the organization. Steven M. Valdez was selected as the executive director by the EDC’s board on May 19. Valdez formerly served as the EDC’s director for nearly five years. He comes into his new job with an understanding of the organization’s key functions. He also knows how it interacts with city government. Those…
The Rio Grande Valley’s real estate market currently has a scarcity of existing homes for sale. Residents holding on to properties as the region and country exits out of an economy influenced by the pandemic. This analysis was among the views offered recently during a 2021 Rio Grande Valley Economic Forecast & Market Incentives virtual summit co-hosted by the Harlingen Economic Development Corporation. The event, which spanned over three hours,…
There are stories of rock bands and software engineers getting modest starts working out of their garages on their first steps to success. It worked for Van Halen and Steve Jobs. In Brownsville, there’s a hometown brewery that got its start among friends in a westside neighborhood off the Military Highway. Pluton Brewery Company was named after a street by that name in the Galaxia neighborhood. This is where some…
Jason Cano as a young homebuilder learned the business from his father. He could have taken a traditional path in being employed by a construction company and working his way up. The Harlingen native, as a fresh college graduate in 2004, went through several job interviews with national home building companies. He was offered various positions. It wasn’t for him, Cano decided. He wanted the freedom and latitude to take…
Valley International Airport last spring resembled a high school campus in June. “Empty hallways” is how Jose Mulet, the airport’s director of air service and development described it in looking back to the start of what would be a difficult year for the U.S. aviation industry. In McAllen, City Manager Roel Rodriguez said McAllen International Airport “went through the worst year it has ever seen, maybe, and will ever see,…
The road back to tourism recovery in McAllen leads through its youth soccer, baseball, softball and football fields in the view of a city official who has spent years cultivating relationships that have brought teams and visitors by the thousands to local parks. Robert Lopez, the vice president of Visit McAllen, is hardly allowing the setbacks of 2020 to temper his ambitions to bring more youth sports events and tournaments…
Avi Gonzalez and Karina Vela have plenty to do with their day jobs as public school music educators. In early 2020, they added even more to their duties in opening a business with a connection to what they know best. The Armonia Music Academy & Store in San Benito is their version of the School of Rock with an emphasis on violins, acoustic guitars and vocals. The partners have turned…
Growing up in Weslaco, Zeke Reyna had big dreams growing up during the glory years when Tiger Woods dominated the golf world. “I always thought I’d win the Masters,” Reyna said. He didn’t quite get there although he was an outstanding high school golfer. Reyna was good enough to compete collegiality at SMU in Dallas and then the University of Oregon. He went on to spend some time on the…
Thomas and Ashley Garcia were aspiring entrepreneurs in the summer of 2018 and looking for the right spot to start their coffee shop business. The location they chose to open their Bandera Coffee seemed unorthodox at the time. It was on Van Buren Avenue in the La Placita section of downtown Harlingen. Thomas described it as part of town that had “a rough reputation,” but he and his wife decided…