McAllen Hires New Planning & Zoning Director

Rio Grande Valley native has experience in various personnel areas

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McAllen Hires New Planning & Zoning Director

Edgar Garcia
Edgar Garcia

Edgar Garcia is the new director of Planning and Zoning for the City of McAllen. The Rio Grande Valley native has over eight years of experience in municipal work. His service most recently includes being the director of Planning and Community Development for Baker County, Fla.

Garcia has a broad range of expertise in project management and development. This includes long-range and short-term project planning, grant writing and federal funds management.

“The City of McAllen is proud to have Edgar as our planning director, leading the growth and expansion of our city in a smart, strategic direction to maximize the city’s attributes and promote economic development,” said McAllen City Manager Roel “Roy” Rodriguez.  “He stood out amongst a strong pool of applicants based on his understanding of not only planning and zoning, but the role and function of municipal government in a city’s development.”

While director in Baker County, Garcia led an update of the County’s Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Code. He also led its transition to an electronic permitting system.  Additionally, he was a key member of an executive team focusing on economic growth, while simultaneously serving as the County’s Floodplain administrator.

Prior to Baker County, Garcia was the assistant director of Office of Grant Management and Community Development for the City of Brownsville. He began his career as a planning assistant and then senior projects coordinator with Cameron County, gathering and analyzing date to support community development grant applications and managing infrastructure projects totaling over $17 million in federal grant funds.

Garcia possesses a Bachelor of Arts in Government from the University of Texas at Brownsville. He also has a Master of Public Service and Administration from Texas A&M University and a Master of Urban and Regional Planning from the University of California at Los Angeles.

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