The three-day MXLAN Festival 2023 returns this month from July 28-30, celebrating Latino influence on popular culture. Hosted by the City of McAllen and city partners, the art and music festival is expected to draw more than 65,000 attendees with 18 unique experiences. New experiences this year include a Gala to kick off the festivities on July 27 with proceeds benefiting the newly formed McAllen Performing & Cultural Arts Foundation,…
Reynaldo Avila was nothing if persistent and so was his cause to find a proper home for a vast collection of conjunto music memorabilia. Avila toiled for over two decades to locate a permanent home for the Conjunto Music Hall of Fame & Museum. In the 2010s, the museum was shoehorned into a 650-square-foot space in a San Benito city-owned building shared with other historical collections. Avila was promised that…
The McAllen Police Department is now accepting applications for its next Citizens’ Police Academy. Starting Aug. 17 and running through Oct. 19, the 10-week academy will meet every Thursday, from 6-9 p.m. This academy will be the 17th McAllen PD Citizens’ Police Academy. There is no cost to apply and selected applicants must be 21 years of age or older; must be able to attend all classes; work or reside…
The Port of Brownsville, held a groundbreaking ceremony on June 22 for its latest economic development project, a 118-acre shovel-ready business park. This new industrial project leverages the port’s logistical advantages to support manufacturing companies and industry clusters with a base of operations that combines access to efficient multimodal transportation and robust storage capabilities. This development will provide a dynamic ecosystem for companies to collaborate, innovate and flourish. “The business…
The South Texas College Library Art Gallery is hosting a call for artists to submit artwork on the theme of economics and money. For inspiration, the gallery looks to Oxford-trained economist E. F. Schumacher’s book “Small is Beautiful: Economics as if People Mattered,” which is celebrating its 50th anniversary. This New York Times bestseller teaches that economic growth must be responsibly balanced with the needs of communities and the environment.…
The McAllen Chamber of Commerce recently announced the South Texas Chess Federation has selected McAllen as its host city for the 2024 Pan American Intercollegiate Team Chess Championship. Organizers expect the January 2024 tournament to draw more than 400 visitors to the McAllen Convention Center, potentially generating an economic impact of over $315,000. Throughout the year, the McAllen Chamber’s Tourism Department ‘Convention & Visitors Bureau’ diligently facilitates conferences that attract…
StartUp Texas, a seed fund and accelerator program under the Brownsville Community Improvement Corporation, will hold Demo Day 2023 on Aug. 10. The capstone event showcases the innovative steps made by seven startups in its Quality of Life Ventures cohort competing to win anywhere from $40,000, $20,000, or $10,000 in seed funding. BCIC partners with visionary entrepreneurs and passionate leaders through the program, helping them bring groundbreaking products or services…
The Texas Association of Municipal Information Officers announced the 2023 winners of its state-wide TAMI Awards Competition during a ceremony at the annual conference recently in Arlington. The City of McAllen Office of Communications earned a total of four awards for its video production work and photography series. This year, 547 entries from 70 different municipalities submitted entries for the competition. “Being recognized by a state organization for the great…
UTRGV held a special event June 11 to kick off its new AgDiscovery Program, in which 12 area high school students will engage in hands-on learning workshops, behind-the-scenes tours, laboratory and field exercises, and a variety of character- and team-building activities. The event was the beginning of the free summer outreach program, introducing students to the potential of careers in plant and soil sciences, food inspection and distribution, natural resources and…
In fourth grade, Victoria Rivera moved in with her grandparents. Despite financial struggles, they provided their granddaughter with a home, stability and love. In 2017, Rivera graduated from Brownsville Early College High School. She took advantage of the opportunity to take college courses while in high school, graduating with a high-school diploma and dual-enrollment credit from The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. Unlike many high-school graduates today, Rivera did…