WESLACO — In February 2020, elected officials, community organizers and other local dignitaries gathered here at the Knapp Medical Center Conference Center to hear Mayor David Suarez deliver a state of the city address filled with good news and promise.
Just one month later, however, the COVID-19 pandemic forced the shutdown of numerous businesses, government offices and more. It was the beginning of nearly two years of uncertainty — uncertainty about public health, the economy, jobs, everything.
On Wednesday, many of those same dignitaries gathered here in person for the first time since the pandemic started for what would turn out to be a story of triumph and perseverance.
“It’s exciting to be here in person, getting back to some type of normalcy,” Suarez said just before the 2022 State of the City address got underway.
“The resiliency of the citizens, the resiliency of the staff, our emergency management (department). … We were able to meet the challenge. It was hard times. We all went through the pandemic — city staff, elected officials and our residents. We were able to come and compromise and find solutions,” he said.
Despite the pandemic and its waves of economic uncertainty, the “city on the grow” has shown that it has not only come through the storm unscathed, but has thrived.
As Suarez addressed the 200 or so attendees Wednesday, he highlighted Weslaco’s successes in attracting new commercial and residential development over the last two years.
“Even though we were bracing for potential setbacks economically, that did not happen here in Weslaco,” Suarez said.
“Instead, our economy has only grown and it’s predicted to continue to grow and remains a strong foundation for our current and incoming citizens and business owners,” he said.
That growth includes generating strong sales tax revenues. Just five months into the current fiscal year, Weslaco has already generated more than $9.5 million in sales tax revenues, putting the city on pace to surpass last year’s $12.1 million, Suarez said.
Weslaco’s new development footprint has also expanded at record pace, with some 1,400 acres of new residential development that will see hundreds of single-family homes and tenant housing cropping up in new subdivisions throughout the city.
Suarez also spoke of the business boom currently underway, hinting at a new big project coming to Weslaco’s industrial park, which the city is also expanding to meet the demand for space.
“Our industrial park is so full that we are building a second industrial park. While we cannot provide details, our latest efforts will bring in a $20 million investment in the industrial park and over 180 jobs to Weslaco,” Suarez said.
The 225,000-square-foot facility, which the mayor described as a “distribution center” is expected to open in 2024.
Finally, Suarez touted the city’s multimillion-dollar investments in public infrastructure, from public safety, to drainage, to quality of life improvements.
Late last year, Weslaco officials broke ground on a new public safety building that will serve as the combined headquarters for the police and fire departments.
Suarez said additional plans to construct a new building for the Weslaco public library — whose patronage numbers are second only to the McAllen Public Library system — are already in the design phase.
Weslaco is also expanding its public parks, in some cases, killing two birds with one stone by combining park space with systemic drainage improvements.
Such is the case with a regional detention facility (RDF) the city, in partnership with the Weslaco Independent School District, plans to install between two WISD campuses along Sugarcane Drive.
Preliminary plans call for including walking trails along the perimeter of the RDF and playing fields that can be used when the RDF is dry.
But Suarez was perhaps most proud of the fact that Weslaco has been able to make all these improvements without raising taxes.
“I’m proud to say our city has grown to welcome new businesses and strategic change while staying committed to fiscal responsibility,” Suarez said.
“We’ve kept a close eye on our tax dollars and we have room to continue to grow now and into the future,” he said, calling Weslaco “the place to be.”
The mayor’s colleagues on the city commission echoed his optimism and sense of pride in Weslaco.
“I’m real proud of the work that our team of commissioners has done together — all the staff, all the line-level employees. … It’s the employees that make the city great,” District 3 Commissioner Jose “J.P.” Rodriguez said.
“It just brings a great feeling in my heart to see that our quality of life is improving for the citizens of Weslaco,” District 2 Commissioner Letty Lopez added.
