Bicycles can stir up memories of the fun and freedom of childhood or trigger daydreams of pedaling with the pros in the Tour de France peloton. Popular bike trails in Brownville, Harlingen, Mission and McAllen reflect the demand for safe places to ride. At the same time, the trails encourage more people to bike for exercise, health, socializing and alternative transportation. Of course, everyone on a bike wants to look…
Approximately 60% of U.S renters — that’s 56.8 million people — live in multifamily housing. A smaller percentage of Texas’ population lives in apartments compared to most states, but that’s still amounts to about 3.6 million. In 2014, Texas added 64,000 new apartments units with a median rent around $880. The apartment market in the Valley is strong, with more than 23,000 apartments, counting only those that are in the RGV…
Best boys, key grips, gaffers, cinematographers, location scouts and pieces of talent: these film industry jobs are being filled by local residents more than ever before. Movies, documentaries and commercials filmed in the Rio Grande Valley have begun tapping an expanding pool of talent. Commercials, pilots for series, movies, and documentaries that are being shot in the Valley are providing jobs and business opportunities. Finding talent “I connect people. That’s…
For 20 years, the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge has been known as the longest bridge connecting two countries. It recently gained the title of the international crossing which forms the shortest route between Mexico’s west coast and the United States’ eastern and midwestern markets, via the Mazatlán-Matamoros superhighway. Mexican produce gets to its destination faster, which in turns means lower transportation costs (fewer miles) and higher quality fruits and vegetables (less…
See them sparkle and gleam: silver, gold and gemstones brighten the holidays and every day. Glorious jewelry can warm any heart with its beauty. You can choose pieces with classic elegance or with enough bling to blind the front row. Jewelry can make a statement, create an image or be just for fun. When you go seeking a piece as a gift for someone special or as a gift to…
Paul Hajjar swung open the ornate gate of the Kowalski-Dennett House, built in Brownsville in 1893, to admit a busload of architects and associates onto the brick-paved patio and into his home/attorney’s office. The historic house, shaded by palms, kumquats, bougainvillea and bananas, was designed to catch the southeast breeze. The house’s long windows reach from the floor to near the 12-foot ceiling, Rice University architectural historian Stephen Fox pointed out.…
The 110,000-plus Winter Texans who migrate to the Valley for two to six months each year represent an economic bonanza for the region. These visitors help keep everyone’s taxes lower and support expanded retail. McAllen alone collects $35.4 million in local retail sales tax from visitors (including Mexican nationals). Winter Texans shop and eat out frequently, visit attractions, and pay for repairs or upgrades on their RVs. A significant portion…
If you had left the Valley five years ago, the biggest surprise on your return this month might be San Juan’s cluster of luxury car dealerships: Mercedes-Benz, Jaguar, Land Rover, Audi and Acura. Across the Valley, luxury car dealers are selling BMWs, Maseratis and more Mercedes at a surprising pace. One Mercedes dealership moves 60 new cars monthly. Luxury car buyers, who are spending between $30,000 and $100,000, seem to…
Agriculture accounts for just over $1 billion dollars of the Valley’s economy, according to economists at Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Service in Weslaco. That is about 2% of the four-county total of $53 billion, but agriculture remains a vital and diversified industry which is the most widespread in terms of land use. Agriculture is an industry where so many things are out of the producers’ control, that farmers…
In one sense, the Rio Grande Valley has long had food trucks, if you count ice cream trucks, portable raspas stands and the food sellers who wheel into festivals and market days. But the national trend for food trucks has finally taken root here, proven by the six-spot McAllen Food Park which opened in June with the support of the McAllen CVB and Chamber of Commerce. At least 75 compact…