Texas Border Business
By Roberto Hugo González / Texas Border Business
EDINBURG, Texas — Manuel Cruz, Executive Director of the Lower Rio Grande Valley Development Council (LRGVDC), described the years of planning, public investment and intergovernmental cooperation behind the Edinburg Transit Terminal during the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Edinburg Economic Development Corporation’s new headquarters.
Cruz said the facility represents a long-term effort to combine public transportation services with economic development activities in one location.
He traced the project’s origins to approximately 2009, when discussions began about developing a transit-oriented facility. Construction followed several years later with support from the Federal Transit Administration.
“Over $6 million of local and federal funding was put together to make this dream a reality,” Cruz said.
The building now accommodates the Edinburg EDC, the Rio Grande Valley Metropolitan Planning Organization and Valley Metro, which operates bus services connecting communities throughout the region.
Cruz identified Edinburg as one of the Valley’s major transportation hubs, serving residents, commuters and University of Texas Rio Grande Valley students.
He said Valley Metro connects Edinburg to McAllen and Brownsville, although improvements are still needed to strengthen regional transportation services.
Cruz also discussed the council’s longer-term objective of establishing a regional transit authority to expand services and develop additional transportation facilities.
He identified approximately 24 to 27 acres acquired in Weslaco about two years earlier as a possible location for a similar project, subject to securing funding.
The proposed development would support the council’s goal of connecting communities across its three-county service area.
Cruz said construction challenges, including labor shortages and supply problems, complicated efforts to complete the Edinburg facility.
He credited the City of Edinburg, Valley Metro, the LRGVDC and EDC staff for continuing the project through those difficulties.
“This is a great example of what Valley governments can do when they work together,” Cruz said.
Edinburg Mayor Omar Ochoa recognized the EDC’s longstanding involvement in local economic development and its contributions to the city’s growth.
“The economic development corporation has been at the heart of the momentum and the growth that our city has been experiencing for the last 30 years,” Ochoa said.
EDC Executive Director Raudel Garza described the new headquarters as a centrally located workplace near City Hall, UTRGV and other institutions.
“We talk to businesses every day. We talk to folks who are looking to invest in Edinburg every day,” Garza said.
Cruz said the transit terminal demonstrates how local governments can develop transportation facilities that also accommodate other public services.
He said the Edinburg project could serve as an example for addressing infrastructure needs elsewhere in the Rio Grande Valley.
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