by Legislative Media | Jun 28, 2017 | Politics
Featured, from left: J.J. Flores, Vice Chair of Special Events, Edinburg Chamber of Commerce, and representing Chorizo de San Manuel; Gus García, Executive Director, Edinburg Economic Development Corporation; Letty González, President, Edinburg Chamber of Commerce; and Ronnie Larralde, Director of Marketing & Special Events, Edinburg Chamber of Commerce. The Edinburg EDC, which is the jobs-creation arm of the Edinburg Mayor and Edinburg City Council, presented a $10,000 contribution to the Edinburg Chamber of Commerce to help cover expenses for Texas Cook ‘Em – High Steaks in Edinburg barbecue cook-off, which takes place on Saturday, July 1, 2017, at H-E-B Park. The national-level barbecue competition will occur on the second day of the annual two-day event, which kicks off Friday evening, June 30, 2017 as part of the city’s Fourth of July festivities. “This event is great for Edinburg. It gives area residents a family-friendly event with entertainment for all,” said Gus García, Executive Director of the Edinburg EDC. “It also brings in so many visitors from outside the region and they too will get to enjoy this amazing venue. H-E-B Park has become a trending spot for the hottest events coming to the Valley and it’s right here in Edinburg. It’s such a versatile park and it’s great seeing it being used in so many different ways.” On Friday, music fans will be able to purchase tickets ($30 apiece) for a major concert, to begin at 6 p.m. at the outdoor amphitheater, that will feature two of Edinburg’s many talented musical performers – Matt and the Herdsman (http://www.mattandtheherdsmen.com), and Southern Ashes (https://www.facebook.com/SouthernAshesMusic/) – followed by two national headline groups: Los Lonely Boys LosLonelyBoys.com and then the Eli Young Band (http://www.cmt.com/artists/eli-young-band).
Photograph By JENNIFER CABRERA
Featured promoting Texas Cook ‘Em – High Steaks in Edinburg (Friday, June 30, 2017 and Saturday, July 1, 2017) during the Edinburg City Council meeting held on Tuesday, June 20, 2017, are, from left, front row: Marty Martin, Immediate Past Chairman of the Edinburg Chamber of Commerce, representing Rio Valley Realty; Letty González, President, Edinburg Chamber of Commerce; Alex Ríos, Chair-Elect, Edinburg Chamber of Commerce, representing Kids College Learning Center and the Office of State Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg; and J.J. Flores, Vice Chair of Special Events, Edinburg Chamber of Commerce, and representing Chorizo de San Manuel. Back row, from left: City Councilmember David Torres; City Councilmember Richard Molina; Mayor Richard García; and City Councilmember Homer Jasso, Jr. With more than 1,000 people from outside of the Valley anticipated to show up for the upcoming Texas Cook ‘Em – High Steaks in Edinburg barbecue cook-off, which takes place on Saturday, July 1, 2017 – along with several thousand more in attendance from the city and the Valley – the community will continue to sizzle as a Destination City, the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation has announced. Adding to the wow factor for residents and visitors, the gathering for the first time will be held at the recently-opened H-E-B Park, located at 1616 S. Raul Longoria Road, which boasts a $16.8+ million, 9,735-seat professional soccer stadium as part of the 37-acre site, a sprawling park with all amenities, an amphitheater with a capacity of 2,000 people, well-lighted parking, and security and medical personnel for major gatherings (http://www.hebparkrgv.com). Now entering its 12th year, Texas Cook ‘Em – High Steaks in Edinburg will provide $30,000 in cash prizes, with the top winner in the day-long barbecue competition that will be held all day Saturday to take home $2,000, and qualify for other nationally-sanctioned competitions later this year.
Photograph By RONNIE LARRALDE
Featured, from left: Ringo Garza, drums/vocals, Jojo Garza, bass guitar/vocals, and Henry Garza, guitar/vocals, of Los Lonely Boys, an American rock power trio of brothers from San Angelo, Texas, who play a style of music they call “Texican Rock n’ Roll,” combining elements of rock and roll, Texas blues, brown-eyed soul, country, and Tejano. They will perform from 8:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday, June 30, 2017 at the amphitheater of H-E-B Park in Edinburg as part of the two-day Texas Cook ‘Em – High Steaks in Edinburg, which includes the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation as a major sponsor of the annual event. Their debut single, “Heaven”, was a number-one hit on the Billboard adult contemporary chart and reached the top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2004. In 2009, they signed to Austin-based indie label, Playing in Traffic Records, and released an EP, “1969” and three albums under their LonelyTone imprint, Keep On Giving: Acoustic Live!, Rockpango, and their newest release, Revelation. The performances start earlier that evening, with Edinburg country music bands Southern Ashes kicking off the concert at 6 p.m., followed by Matt and the Herdsmen.
Courtesy Photograph
Featured, from left are the members of the Eli Young Band: Chris Thompson, drums: Mike Eli, vocals/guitar; James Young, lead guitar; and Jon Jones, bass guitar. The Eli Young Band (EYB) is the final act scheduled to headline the two-day Texas Cook ‘Em – High Steaks in Edinburg on Friday, June 30, 2o17, with the country music stars set to come on stage at the amphitheater at H-E-B Park beginning at 10 p.m. EYB’s hit singles have been awarded Billboard’s #1 Country Song of the Year and ACM (Academy of Country Music) Song of the Year, in addition to garnering EYB numerous nominations from GRAMMY (https://www.grammy.org/recording-academy/awards), CMA (Country Music Association), CMT (Country Music Television), and Teen Choice Awards. They have performed on NBC’s TODAY, Conan, Late Show with David Letterman, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel Live! and Fox & Friends. The Edinburg Economic Development Corporation is a major sponsor the Texas Cook ‘Em – High Steaks in Edinburg.
Courtesy Photograph
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by Legislative Media | Jun 21, 2017 | Politics
Featured, from left: Councilmember David Torres; Councilmember Richard Molina; Mayor Richard García; Elías Longoria, Jr., Secretary/Treasurer, Board of Directors, Edinburg Economic Development Corporation; Gus García, Executive Director, Edinburg Economic Development Corporation; and Richard Hinojosa, Edinburg City Manager. The area leaders were gathered on Thursday, May 11, 2017, for the groundbreaking of the multi-million dollar Edinburg Transit Terminal. The facility also will serve as the new headquarters for the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation. The Edinburg EDC, which is the jobs-creation arm of the Edinburg Mayor and Edinburg City Council, is led by a five-member Board of Directors which features Mayor Richard García as President, Harvey Rodríguez, Jr. as Vice President, Elías Longoria, Jr. as Secretary/Treasurer, and Richard Rupert and Dr. Peter Dabrowski as Members. Mayor Richard García and Gus García, who is the Executive Director of the Edinburg EDC, are not related.
Photograph By RONNIE LARRALDE
The promising future for the community continued moving forward on Thursday, May 11, 2017, with the groundbreaking of the multi-million dollar Edinburg Transit Terminal, the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation has announced. The 15,000-square-foot, two-story complex, located on a 1.2 acre tract donated by the Edinburg EDC, will serve as a home for Valley Metro, which is the publicly-owned bus service for deep South Texas that is administered and operated by the Lower Rio Grande Valley Development Council. Valley Metro’s increased presence in Edinburg will have far-reaching benefits not just for the city, but throughout the region, according to local and area leaders. One of the many key needs the Edinburg Transit Terminal will fulfill when it opens for business in early 2018 will be to help handle the thousands of vehicles that converge into and near the city’s downtown during the work week.
Artist’s Rendition Courtesy of NEGRETE & KOLAR ARCHITECTS, LLP
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by Legislative Media | Jun 20, 2017 | Politics
Featured: Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, looks out at the Texas Capitol grounds in Austin as he handles calls from constituents during a break from legislative debate on the floor of the Texas House of Representatives earlier this spring 2017.
Photograph By HOUSE PHOTOGRAPHY
Gov. Greg Abbott on Thursday, June 15, 2017, approved House Bill 351 by Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, which will help do away with a decades-old injustice which results in hundreds of thousands of Texans going to jail every year because they are too poor to pay fines for traffic tickets and other Class C misdemeanors. HB 351 was one of 12 measures passed by Canales which were approved by the Texas Legislature and the governor following the five-month regular session, which ended on Monday, May 31, 2017. Those 12 now-enacted state laws covered a wide range of issues, from protecting veterans and victims of family violence, to advancing medical education, creating more jobs, and promoting open government. In addition, Canales also served as a joint author or co-author of 24 other bills. The legislator who files a bill and guides it through the legislative process is the author (also called the primary author). The Senate allows multiple primary authors for each bill or resolution. The House of Representatives allows only one primary author, the house member whose signature appears on the original measure and on the copies filed with the chief clerk. Both chambers also have coauthors, and the house of representatives has joint authors. Canales said HB 351 represents a “sweeping reform” of the state’s criminal justice system. “In Texas, at the rate we are going, we were going to eventually be throwing a million poor people in jail every year for failure to pay tickets, fines and fees arising from court cases,” explained the House District 40 lawmaker, who is an attorney. “We have too many Texans statewide who are struggling to pay rent and groceries, then they wind up getting ticketed and getting jailed for the most minor offenses, such as traffic violations.” For Class C misdemeanors, there is no jail time, and the fine is limited up to $500. But a person can be put in jail for not paying the fines, and other related costs, such as failure to appear in court. Canale added that the border of jailing all these people for petty crimes ultimately falls on the shoulders of taxpayers. “This whole system of putting poor people in jail has become a convenient cash cow for our government, which wants to squeeze money out of indigent Texans,” he said. “HB 351 provides a much better way for minor offenders to pay their debt to society without unjustly putting them behind bars.” Canales is the primary author of HB 351 while Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, D-McAllen, by carrying HB 351 in the Senate, is the primary sponsor of the legislation. The measure, which won final support in the House of Representatives on a huge, bipartisan vote of 132 Yeas, 11 Nays, and 2 Present, Not Voting.
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by Legislative Media | Jun 9, 2017 | Politics
Featured: Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, and Rep. Barbara Gervin-Hawkins, D-San Antonio, during a meeting at the Capitol of the Jurisprudence Subcommittee on Asset Forfeiture on Wednesday, March 29, 2017.
Photograph By HOUSE PHOTOGRAPHY
State lawmakers on Friday, May 26, 2017, approved House Bill 351 by Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, which will help do away with a decades-old injustice which results in hundreds of thousands of Texans going to jail every year because they are too poor to pay fines for traffic tickets and other Class C misdemeanors. Canales said HB 351 represents a “sweeping reform” of the state’s criminal justice system. “In Texas, at the rate we are going, we were going to eventually be throwing a million poor people in jail every year for failure to pay tickets, fines and fees arising from court cases,” explained the House District 40 lawmaker, who is an attorney. “We have too many Texans statewide who are struggling to pay rent and groceries, then they wind up getting ticketed and getting jailed for the most minor offenses, such as traffic violations.” For Class C misdemeanors, there is no jail time, and the fine is limited up to $500. But a person can be put in jail for not paying the fines, and other related costs, such as failure to appear in court. Canales added that taxpayers wind up paying more because through the costs it takes to look after people who are in local jails for petty crimes. “This whole system of putting poor people in jail has become a convenient cash cow for our government, who want to squeeze money out of indigent Texans,” he said. “HB 351 provides a much better way for minor offenders to pay their debt to society without unjustly putting them behind bars.” Canales is the primary author of HB 351 while Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, D-McAllen, by carrying HB 351 in the Senate, is the primary sponsor of the legislation. Hinojosa, also an attorney, agreed with the need for Canales’ legislation. “Our current system is counter-productive, and it traps people into a cycle of debt when they cannot pay their tickets and other low-level, fine-only citations. Our current practice also leads to license suspensions and arrest warrants,” said Hinojosa. “In 2015, fines in over 677,00 cases were satisfied through jail credit and over 230,000 Texas were unable to renew expired licenses until their fines and fees were paid off.” HB 351 allows courts to ask about a defendant’s ability to pay during the sentencing phase, Hinojosa explained. “After making that determination, courts would be allowed to reduce or waive fines and costs and offer community service as an alternative. In 2015, judges resolved fine-only cases with community service just 1.3 percent of the time,” Hinojosa said. “HB 351 seeks to put the justice system’s time and resources to more efficient use by holding people accountable while saving money and increasing public safety.”
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by Legislative Media | Jun 3, 2017 | Politics
Featured, from left: William Brock, Chief Medical Officer, South Texas Health System; Richard Hinojosa, Edinburg City Manager; Roxanne Godínez, Chief Executive Officer, Cornerstone Regional Hospital; Jennifer Garza, Chief Executive Officer, Edinburg Regional Medical Center/Edinburg Children’s Hospital, and Member, Board of Directors, Edinburg Chamber of Commerce; Anthony De Luna, TIS Total Imaging Solutions; Mayor Richard García; Precinct 4 Hidalgo County Commissioner Joseph Palacios; Cat Domian, Chief Nursing Officer, Edinburg Regional Medical Center/Edinburg Children’s Hospital; and Councilmember Richard Molina, Member, Board of Directors, Edinburg Chamber of Commerce. The group was on hand on Tuesday, May 23, 2017 for the groundbreaking of the $8.6 million STHS ER (medical emergency room), located in north Edinburg.
Photograph By RONNIE LARRALDE
Days after South Texas Health System held a groundbreaking on Tuesday, May 23, 2017, of its multi-million dollar, stand-alone STHS ER (medical emergency room) to be built in north Edinburg, the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation announced that total construction activities in the city reached more than $140 million from January through April 2017, including $23.1 million for the month of April. The year-to-date figure of $140.4 million continues to outperform last year’s pace, when total construction in Edinburg for the first four months of 2016 had reached almost $82.1 million. For the month of April 2017 – the latest figures available from the city – Edinburg saw construction permits issued for work valued at $23,146,234, with multi-family residences and single-family homes leading the way, at $11.8 million and $6.3 million, respectively. The building permits do not include the value of the land for the homes and buildings. Those totals do not include the value of any building-related activities at The University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley and the UTRGV School of Medicine in Edinburg because the state government, not the city, oversees all construction at the Edinburg campus. The Edinburg EDC, of which Gus García is Executive Director, is the jobs-creation arm of the Edinburg Mayor and Edinburg City Council. The Edinburg EDC Board of Directors is comprised of Mayor Richard García as President, Harvey Rodríguez, Jr. as Vice President, Elías Longoria, Jr., as Secretary/Treasurer, and Richard Ruppert and Dr. Peter Dabrowski as Members. Mayor Richard García and Edinburg EDC Executive Director Gus García are not related.
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by Legislative Media | May 29, 2017 | Politics
Featured: Dr. Havidán Rodríguez, Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs, the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, helped salute the estimated 2,401 graduates at the McAllen Convention Center on Saturday, May 13, 2017 as they walked the stage during the Spring 2017 Commencement Ceremonies to accept the degrees they worked so hard for over the years. More than 700 graduates also were honored during an evening ceremony on Friday, May 12, 2017 on the UTRGV Brownsville Campus. A combined total of more than 3,100 UTRGV graduates were celebrated in four ceremonies over a two-day period. Rodríguez is a former member of the Board of Directors for the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation, which is the jobs-creation arm of the Edinburg Mayor and Edinburg Council.
Photograph By PAUL CHOUY
With the month of May featuring graduation ceremonies from local and area high schools, South Texas College and The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, one of the most influential supporters of publication in the Valley – the Board of Directors for the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation – will hold its public meeting on Tuesday, May 30, 2017, at Edinburg City Hall. The session, which begins at 12 p.m., will be held at Edinburg City Hall, located at 415 West University Drive. The Edinburg EDC, of which Gus García is the Executive Director, is the jobs-creation arm of the Edinburg Mayor and Edinburg City Council. The Edinburg EDC Board of Directors is comprised of Mayor Richard García as President, Harvey Rodríguez, Jr. as Vice President, Elías Longoria, Jr., as Secretary/Treasurer, and Richard Ruppert and Dr. Peter Dabrowski as Members. Mayor Richard García and Edinburg EDC Executive Director Gus García are not related. According to the Edinburg EDC Board of Directors’ agenda, which is also posted online at: http://edinburgedc.com/meetings-agendas/, they will meet to consider the following: Open Session: Call meeting to order; Roll Call; Presentation by Capable Kids Foundation; Discuss and consider authorizing the Executive Director to renew the Professional Services Agreement with Signature Public Affairs, Inc.; Discuss and consider approval of termination of the Interlocal agreement with the City of Edinburg regarding Project Wildcat; and Discuss and consider approval of a sponsorship for the Valley Symphony Orchestra. Executive (Closed) Session: Deliberate the offers of financial or other incentives to business prospects; Deliberate authorizing the Executive Director to enter into a Development Agreement with Dennis Owens; and Consultation with Attorney.
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