by Legislative Media | Feb 21, 2017 | Politics
Featured: TownePlace Suites by Marriott in Edinburg, whose owners, the Qube Hotel Group of Carrollton, Texas, hosted a grand opening on Friday, February 10, 2017, is the first of its type for the famous Marriott International brand, considered one of the top hospitality companies in the world, according to Ron Stewart of Dallas, Area Vice President, Lodging Development for Marriott International, Inc. “We have been watching Edinburg for a while. I have heard a lot of interesting things about what is happening with the growth, and among the most impressive things now, there have been some really big changes, not just in the economic, housing and retail environments, but some of the projects I saw today were so impressive, such as Bob’s Steak & Chop House, with the Bert Ogden Arena construction finally going vertical, the soccer stadium complex (H-E-B Park). Those, to me, were very, very impressive.” Ideal for travelers who need accommodations for longer stays, this new property offers studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom suites with fully equipped kitchens, as well as separate living/working and sleeping areas.
Photograph By JERI DEATHERAGE
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Featured: Mayor Richard García on Friday, February 10, 2o17, applauds the grand opening of the 95-room, TownePlace Suites by Marriott, located at 502 W. Trenton Road in Edinburg. The new hotel, a $10 million investment, is owned and managed by Qube Hotel Group of Carrollton, Texas. Along with the mayor in this image are, from left: Agustín “Augie” Lozano, Jr., Public Relations Manager, Bert Ogden Auto Group, and two-time Ambassador of the Year for the Edinburg Chamber of Commerce; Himesh M. Jeram, Chief Executive Officer, Qube Hotel Group; Mayor García, who also serves as President, Board of Directors, Edinburg Economic Development Corporation; Hiren M. Govind, Chief Operating Officer, Qube Hotel Group, holding son Zaylen Govind; Mohan Tewani, Chief Financial Officer, Qube Hotel Group; René Flores, Ambassador, Edinburg Chamber of Commerce, and Owner of The X-Factor; Brenda Garza, General Manager, TownePlace Suites by Marriott; and Shekhar Gianchandani, Chief Development Officer, Qube Hotel Group. The Edinburg EDC, of which Agustín García, Jr. is Executive Director, is the jobs-creation arm of the Edinburg Mayor and Edinburg City Council. In addition to the mayor, the Edinburg EDC Board of Directors is comprised of 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 Edinburg EDC Executive Director Agustín García, Jr. are not related. “Such a major investment, the most recent of many outstanding businesses growing in our community or moving to our city, with more to come, is a reflection of the strong confidence that business owners, from independent, small family-owned stores to global corporations, have in our city, its future, and especially in our citizens,” the mayor said. “As I predicted during my State of the City Address less than a year ago, together, we are transforming Edinburg into a ‘Destination City’, a city that offers the best education, superb residential options for every level, and world-class cultural and sporting venues.”
Photograph By RONNIE LARRALDE
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by Legislative Media | Feb 6, 2017 | Politics
Featured: Rep. Eddie Lucio, III, D-Brownsville, with former Rep. Verónica Gonzáles, D-McAllen, observing, on Thursday, January 26, 2017, addressed lawmakers and their staffs from upstate, renowned Valley health professionals, and area leaders at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine in Harlingen as part of the Rio Grande Valley Partnership tour for state legislators to answer questions about the state of medicine in the Valley.
Photograph By DAVID PIKE
The Mayor and City Council will part of a delegation that will be meeting with state lawmakers in Austin on Tuesday, February 7, 2017, helping promote the community’s and region’s top priorities for the ongoing 85th Regular Session of the Texas Legislature at the Capitol, the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation has announced. Since the mid-1990’s, the mayor, city council, and Edinburg EDC leadership have played active and successful roles in promoting the legislative priorities for their community at the State Capitol. Their efforts have resulted in passing state laws and policies that have had a huge beneficial economic impact on the city. From lobbying on behalf of the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and its School of Medicine in Edinburg, to helping secure funding that has converted U.S. Expressway 281 into Interstate Highway 69, the mayor, city council, Edinburg EDC Board of Directors, and their respective staffs, have worked with the city’s state legislative delegation on behalf of their constituents. The Edinburg EDC, of which Agustín García, Jr. is Executive Director, is the jobs-creation arm of the Mayor and 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 Rupert and Dr. Peter Dabrowski as Members. Edinburg EDC Board Vice President Rodríguez, Edinburg EDC Executive Director García, and Letty Reyes, Director of Business Development & Public Affairs for the Edinburg EDC, are scheduled to be in Austin as part of Rio Grande Valley Day. Mayor Richard García and Edinburg EDC Executive Director Agustín García, Jr. are not related.
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by Legislative Media | Jan 27, 2017 | Politics
Featured, from left: Alex Farías, Miss Teen Edinburg 2017; Jacob De León of Memorial Funeral Home, and Chairman of the Board, Edinburg Chamber of Commerce; Letty González, President, Edinburg Chamber of Commerce; J.J. Flores of Chorizo De San Manuel, and Vice Chair, Edinburg Chamber of Commerce; Johnny Rodríguez, Public Relations, Bert Ogden Dealer Group; Bert García, President, Rio Grande Valley FC Toros Football; Edinburg City Councilmember Richard Molina; Robert Lucio, Executive Manager, Bert Ogden Dealer Group; Richard Hinojosa, Edinburg City Manager; Alex Ríos of Kids College Learning Center and District Office Manager for Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, and who is Chairman-elect of the Edinburg Chamber of Commerce; Lee Castro of Legacy Funeral Home, and Member, Board of Directors, Edinburg Chamber of Commerce; Agustín Lozano, Jr., Public Relations, Bert Ogden Dealer Group; Mario Lizcano, Administrator of Community Engagement and Corporate Affairs; and
Lexi Esparza, Miss Edinburg 2017.
Photograph By RONNIE LARRALDE
Local leaders are making final preparations for the 49th Annual Fiesta Edinburg, presented by the Edinburg Chamber of Commerce, which will also serve to showcase H-E-B Park, which is the latest in a growing number of impressive entertainment venues in the city, the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation has announced. H-E-B Park is a $16.8+ million sports and entertainment outdoor complex that features a 9,700 seat capacity soccer-specific stadium, a park with a playground, an amphitheater with a capacity of 2,000 individuals, and lighted parking. On Tuesday, December 20, 2016, Fiesta Edinburg officials announced the four-day event – set for Thursday, February 23, 2017 through Sunday, February 26, 2017 – would be moving to a new location, the H-E-B Park, located at 1616 S. Raul Longoria Rd. in Edinburg. In previous years, the popular fiesta was held at the Edinburg Municipal Park. “We are excited about the new venue and we know our festival fans are going to love it as well,” said Letty González, President of the Edinburg Chamber of Commerce. “The facilities are state-of-the-art and this is going to create a statement environment like no other. The amphitheater is going to be electric.” The Edinburg EDC is one of the major sponsors for Fiesta Edinburg 2017. The Edinburg EDC, whose Executive Director is Agustín García, Jr., 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.
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by Legislative Media | Jan 23, 2017 | Politics
Featured: Sen. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, D-McAllen, addresses fellow Coastal Bend members of the Texas Senate and House of Representatives, as well as university and community leaders, during an Appreciation Reception hosted for them by the Texas A&M System on Tuesday, October 15, 2016 at Texas A&M University Corpus Christi. On Thursday, January 19, 2017, Lt. Governor Dan Patrick announced Senate committee assignments for the 85th Legislative Session. Hinojosa will serve as Vice Chair of the Senate Finance Committee and as a member on the Senate Transportation Committee. He will continue his appointments to the Senate Committees on Natural Resources and Economic Development, and Agriculture, Water and Rural Affairs. He also continues to serve on the Sunset Advisory Commission. The Edinburg Mayor, Edinburg City Council, and Edinburg Economic Development Corporation Board of Directors lobby the Texas Legislature and Congress on issues that benefit and protect Edinburg citizens.
Photograph Courtesy TEXAS A&M CORPUS CHRISTI
As the Texas Legislature, Congress and President Trump begin the early days of their respective sessions and administration, the Board of Directors of the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation will meet at noon on Tuesday, January 24, 2017 to continue building their efforts to promote the Edinburg Mayor’s and Edinburg City Council’s priorities at the state and federal levels. As part of their agenda for the meeting, which will be held in the Council Chamber of Edinburg City Hall, Edinburg EDC board members also will have about a dozen items to review, including two matters set for possible action that deal with state and federal lawmakers. In open session, the Edinburg EDC Board of Directors are scheduled to discuss and consider authorizing the executive director to renew the lease agreement with Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, who through the Texas House of Representatives, maintains his House District 40 office in the city’s downtown. In executive session, where under state law the EEDC Board of Directors and its staff meet are allowed to meet behind closed doors in a conference room located behind the Council Chamber, officials will deliberate authorizing the executive director to enter into an interlocal agreement with the City of Edinburg regarding legislative services conducted by Holland & Knight of Washington, D.C. The Edinburg EDC, whose Executive Director is Agustín García, Jr., 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 Agustín García, Jr. are not related.
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by Legislative Media | Jan 20, 2017 | Politics
Featured: Dr. Havidán Rodríguez, Provost and Executive Vice President, The University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley, on Monday, December 12, 2016, speaks with Valley journalists about the 26 articulation agreements signed between UTRGV and South Texas College at a ceremony held at STC in McAllen. The partnership will provide a seamless pathway allowing STC students to move from an associate degree at STC to a bachelor’s degree in those programs at UTRGV.
Photograph By PAUL CHOUY
Almost $210 million in construction, not including value of building activities at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley and School of Medicine, took place in Edinburg in 2016, the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation has announced. New single-family homes and multi-family residences (duplexes to apartments) led the way in 2016, with building permits issued for a combined total of $128,328,117 in the value of their construction. That figure is more than double the $62,284,040 combined value of single-family homes and multi-family residences approved for construction in 2015. In 2016, building permits were issued for 478 single-family residences, valued at $62,768,702 compared with 340 single family residences, valued at $47,969,918 in 2015. Also in 2016, building permits were issued for 267 multi-family residences, representing 1,o21 units, valued at $65,559,415, compared with 63 multi-family residences, representing 197 units, valued at $14,314,122 in 2015. For the month of December 2016, according to the city’s Code Enforcement Department, 41 single-family residences, valued at $6,182,305 were approved for construction, compared with 33 single-family residences, valued at $4,317,674, during the same month in 2015. Combined, building permits in 2016 were issued for work valued at $209,189,249, compared with $139,559,411 in 2015. The top construction projects in Edinburg for December 2016, not including the value of the land, are: $800,000 – Dr. Jerry Alvarado, 2823 Puente De Paz St., Villa Las Fuentes Ph. 1 Subdivision; $750,000 – R&N Properties, 1814 E. Iowa Rd., Poco Bueno Subdivision; $425,000 – Chris Ryan Homes & Investments, LLC, 2508 Hampton, Bentley Estates Subdivision; and $400,000 – Provecho LP, 2111 W. University Dr., Wendy’s University Subdivision. The Edinburg EDC, whose Executive Director is Agustín García, Jr., 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.
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