Texas Border Business
By Roberto Hugo González
It takes forward-thinking leaders to navigate urban development challenges in a city growing as fast as McAllen, Texas. Edgar Garcia, the Director of Planning for the City of McAllen, has embraced this challenge enthusiastically since taking on the role in 2019. With five years of experience guiding McAllen through rapid growth, Garcia’s latest project—a complete overhaul of the city’s development code—promises to reshape its future, making it more efficient, responsive, and developer-friendly.
McAllen’s growth is no accident, and Garcia quickly acknowledges the excitement of managing such a fast-paced city. “The challenge I wanted to face was working in a fast-growing city. I like fast-growing cities and the challenges that come with them,” he shares. Being at the forefront of McAllen’s expansion is demanding and rewarding for Garcia. “They keep me on my toes and are certainly fun to navigate.”
Born and raised in nearby Brownsville, Garcia understands the region’s unique dynamics and the pressures McAllen faces as it grows. His goal, however, is not just to manage that growth but to guide it in a way that aligns with the city’s long-term vision—a vision that’s about to take a significant step forward by introducing a new city code.
The most significant project Garcia has led in recent years is the development of a brand-new city code—a move aimed at modernizing McAllen’s regulatory framework for growth, which hasn’t been updated since 1973. “Whenever you make changes to the code, our current one is from 1973, showing its age,” Garcia explains. The existing system, he admits, is out of sync with modern development needs and has been creating bottlenecks in the approval process.
The new code spans 360 pages and is designed to make development faster, more efficient, and less bureaucratic. “We will cut off time and processes that cost money,” Garcia says, emphasizing that one of the code’s primary goals is to reduce the lengthy delays developers face when trying to get projects off the ground.
Under the new system, for example, a subdivision’s plat could be approved within 30 days, reducing the need to wait for the Planning and Zoning Commission, which can often take months. “A subdivision’s plat could be approved within 30 days by the planning director,” Garcia explains. This is a game-changer, especially during holidays when securing a quorum for meetings can be challenging. Developers, he adds, will also no longer need as many conditional use permits as possible or variances, reducing the approval process from several weeks to just a few days in some cases.
Garcia emphasizes that the changes in the new code are not just about efficiency—they’re about responding to the concerns of the local development community. Over the past few years, McAllen has prioritized listening to feedback from developers and engineers who often deal with the city’s planning department.
“We’ve been listening to developers,” Garcia says, explaining that the city holds an annual developers’ conference where builders and engineers can openly share their concerns and suggestions. “A lot of the ideas that came up there will be reflected in the plan,” he notes, highlighting the importance of collaboration in shaping the new code.
The city’s outreach doesn’t stop with developers. Starting Monday, September 9, 2024, the new code will be open for public comment. Residents, business owners, and developers can review the proposal on the city’s website, mcallen.net, or McAllen2040.com. Printed copies will also be available in Garcia’s office for anyone who prefers a hard copy. “We plan to reach out extensively,” Garcia says, adding that the goal is to ensure that everyone understands the changes and has a chance to provide feedback, especially regarding zoning updates that could affect commercial properties.
One of the most complex aspects of the new code is the plan to rezone the entire city over the next year. Garcia assures residents in single-family homes that they won’t be drastically affected— “If they live in an R1 residential single-family zone, they shouldn’t have to worry about it,” he says—but commercial properties are another story.
The new zoning framework will better fit the city’s modern needs. While classifications like R1, R2, and R3 will remain, their definitions will evolve. “We’ll still have R1, R2, and R3, but they’ll mean something different,” Garcia explains, emphasizing that these changes will make zoning more flexible and responsive to the current market without diminishing the value of any property classification.
While Garcia has taken the lead on pushing the new code forward, he credits the city’s leadership for recognizing the need for change and providing the necessary funding to make it happen. “It was one of those things that you need to do. You’re supposed to do it every 10 or 15 years,” Garcia says, noting that the last comprehensive plan had been in place for nearly 20 years.
Initially, the focus was on updating the city’s comprehensive plan—Envision McAllen—which was adopted two years ago and has already won awards for its forward-thinking vision. However, as city management and the commission worked through the plan, it became clear that McAllen’s entire regulatory framework needed an overhaul. “The code makes sense with the plan,” Garcia explains, stressing that the city’s rules and regulations must align with its long-term goals.
McAllen is entering a new era of urban development, one shaped by an ambitious and comprehensive approach to planning. Under city planning director Garcia’s leadership, the city is preparing to roll out a new code that will make development easier, faster, and more responsive to the needs of developers and residents alike. By cutting through bureaucracy, modernizing zoning classifications, and ensuring that a clear, cohesive vision guides the city’s growth, McAllen is well-positioned to continue its trajectory as one of Texas’s fastest-growing cities.
“We’re excited to see what the future holds,” he says, eagerly anticipating the public’s feedback and the new opportunities with McAllen’s updated code.
