Brownsville, Texas

BROWNSV I LLE , TEXAS labor that Mexico has historically provided will be insufficient, so the city is creating industrial parks and business parks to support those industries, while continuing to open up new markets, such as energy. There are a couple of major LNG facilities on tap to be built, as well as the possibility of a steel company coming in to the port. There are also plans to deepen the channel at the port, which is currently 42 feet deep and could go down to 52 feet. “That would accommodate us supporting larger industry,” says Bernal, “because it really is a global port that’s open to international markets. So, overall, we see Brownsville’s growth becoming more robust, and grounded in an industrial base in manufacturing and also the space side of things. We believe those are the clusters that will transform Brownsville, and provide us the tax base and the revenue and the resources to further enhance the quality of life and standard of living here. We have some industrial parks but we see potential for improvement. We’re working on master planning for additional industrial park development. We need to work on improving the wealth by having a more substantial industrial presence.” Dealing with a lower socio-economic population and lifestyle issues directly associated with that, such as diabetes prevalence, has been challenging. So, the city is striking partnerships with local non-profit entities to create farmers’ markets and address food deserts to promote healthy eating. By accelerating the opportunities in public health, education, and economic growth, and making sure the Brownsville brand and message gets out, the city has fostered a great sense of optimism. On the infrastructure front, Brownsville was the only recipient in Texas of a TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery) grant. Over $5 million in federal funds were dispersed to improve the transit system, including improvements to the terminal, fuelling station, bus fleet, and bus shelters. The city had to match the funds, which have now topped $14 million in total. “That’s a major community development improvement in Brownsville,” says Bernal. “We’re also seeing a lot of historic downtown