by Legislative Media | Jul 14, 2016 | Politics
Featured: The cast of Peter and The Starcatcher. Top row, from left: Daniel Garza of Edinburg; Jonathan Taméz of McAllen; and Priscilla Perales of Stuard, Florida. Second row, from left: Annemarie Alaníz of Alamo; Óscar Camacho of Cadereyta Jiménez, Nuevo León, Mexico; and Zebastian Duchene of McAllen. Third row, from left: Mauricio González of Mission; Immanuel García of Alton; and Micaela Cantú of Mission. Fourth row, from left: Selena Flores of La Victoria; Joshua Duazo of McAllen; and Alan González of Mission. Bottom Row: Gerrad García of Edinburg; Diana Furman of McAllen; and Ricky Godínez of McAllen.
Featured, from left: Zebastian Duchene of McAllen; Joshua Duazo of McAllen; Immanuel García of Alton; Daniel Garza of Edinburg; Mauricio González of Mission; Selena Flores of La Victoria; Jonathan Taméz of McAllen; Annemarie Alaníz of Alamo; and Micaela Cantú of Mission.
Photographs By JASON BARRERA
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by Legislative Media | Jul 13, 2016 | Politics
Featured: Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, at the rostrum (large desk) facing the Texas Senate chamber at the State Capitol Building. The portrait behind her is of Stephen F. Austin, known as the “Father of the Republic of Texas”, done shortly before his death on December 27, 1836.
Photograph By SENATE MEDIA SERVICES
Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, is one of six 2016 inductees into The Daily Texan Hall of Fame, the non-profit Friends of The Daily Texan announced recently. The organization was established in 2013 to support quality journalism and a strong future for the student newspaper of The University of Texas at Austin. While a UT undergraduate, Zaffirini served as a reporter, feature writer, copy editor, headline writer, assistant editor and special issue editor for The Daily Texan. “This award is especially meaningful to me because working for The Daily Texan was an amazing experience that strengthened my resolve to pursue a career in communication and public service,” Zaffirini said. “What’s more, I am grateful to the Friends of The Daily Texan not only for this honor, but also for their work to promote quality journalism and to ensure the success of The Daily Texan in the digital world. I share their belief in the power of student journalism, and, equally important, their commitment to freedom of speech and freedom of the press.”
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by Legislative Media | Jul 9, 2016 | Politics
Featured, from left: Daniel Rivera, Founder, Grindstone Coworking of Edinburg (www.TheGrindstone.co) and Agustín García, Jr., Executive Director of the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation, reviewing key data about the strength of the Edinburg economy prior to a broadcast interview on Tuesday, May 10, 2016 on KURV710 Talk Radio.
Photograph By DIEGO REYNA
For the second consecutive month, Edinburg’s retail economy during May 2016 had the best rate of improvement – 10.78 percent – over the same month last year among the Valley’s major cities, while by comparison, cities statewide reported a combined average improvement of 2.7 percent in May 2016 compared with May 2015, the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation has announced. These figures are based on sales made in May 2016 by businesses that report tax monthly. For May 2016, Edinburg’s retail economy generated $1,730,440.77 in local sales taxes, compared with $1,561,948.68 during the same time in 2015, representing the improvement of 10.78 percent, according to the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. The local sales tax is used in Edinburg to help pay for many city services, while the Edinburg EDC uses its one-half cent local sales tax to help generate economic development in the city.
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by Legislative Media | Jul 5, 2016 | Politics
Featured: Eric Soza, the first quarterback for the University of Texas at San Antonio, which set a record for the highest-attended game, with an attendance of 56,743, for an NCAA Division 1 FSC start-up program on September 3, 2011 at the Alamodome.
Photograph by JEFF HUEHN, UTSA ATHLETICS
Fresh from announcing the selection of a football feasibility consultant group, the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley is set on Wednesday, July 13, 2016, to hold the second meeting of a 22-member, blue-panel committee that will help determine the possibility of a college football team being created for UTRGV, which is the state’s largest public university south of San Antonio. The location and time of the meeting, which will be closed to the public, and the agenda for UTRGV’s football feasibility study committee will be announced at a later date by university officials. But the selection of College Sports Solutions, LLC, to conduct the university’s football feasibility study is sure to be among the top items to be discussed when the special UTRGV advisory panel meets later this month.
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by Legislative Media | Jun 28, 2016 | Politics
Featured, from left: Mayor Richard García, Councilmember Homer Jasso, Jr., and Mayor Pro Tem Richard Molina on Thursday, February 27, 2015, during groundbreaking ceremonies for the Bert Ogden Arena, the future home of the Rio Grande Valley Vipers professional basketball team, which is part of the NBA Development League. In May 2016, the first building permit, for work valued at $3.5 million, was issued by the city for construction of the 189,000 square-foot multi-events complex, whose total value will approach $90 million. The Bert Ogden Arena is located at the corner of Interstate 69-Central and Alberta Road in Edinburg.
Photograph By DIEGO REYNA
Construction and related building activities in Edinburg from January through May 2016 have passed the $100 million level, the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation has reported, with the month of May 2016 accounting for almost $18 million of that amount. The most valuable projects, not including the value of the lots, which led the way in May 2016, were: $3,500,000 –Cantú Construction, 429 S. I-69C, Edinburg Arena Subdivision; $3,481,532 – Edinburg Regional Medical Center, 1102 W. Trenton Rd., Trenton St. Subdivision; $1,560,000 – Jeff Knits, 1010 E. Chapin, Tex-Mex Survey Subdivision; $633,559 – R&E Villarreal & Sons, 2945 Regency Drive, The Boardwalk Subdivision; and $510,000 – Chris Ryan Homes & Investments, LLC, 2502 Hampton Avenue, Bentley Estates Subdivision.
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by Legislative Media | Jun 23, 2016 | Politics
Featured: Edinburg Mayor Richard García, who also serves as a member of the Board of Directors for the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation, speaking with journalists after delivering his State of the City Address at the Edinburg Conference Center at Renaissance on Thursday, May 19, 2016.
Photograph By ROBERTO GONZÁLEZ/Texas Border Business/Mega Doctor News
Edinburg’s unemployment rate for May 2016 of 4.5 percent marked the eighth consecutive month that the city posted a figure lower than five percent, with McAllen, with a 4.4 percent unemployment rate for May 2016, being the only other Valley city under five percent, the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation has announced. The May 2016 figure of 4.5 percent is the best showing for that month since May 2007, when the city posted a 4.3 percent unemployment rate. In addition, Edinburg’s unemployment rate has been under five percent during 10 months out of 17 months since January 2015. According to the latest data, which was released on Friday, June 17, 2016 by the Texas Workforce Commission, there were 36,727 people employed in Edinburg during the month of May 2016. That performance represents an increase of 615 jobs in Edinburg when comparing the employment figures for May 2016 (36,727) and May 2015 (36,112).
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