HARLINGEN —The annual State of the City address might be changing.
City Commissioners Rene Perez and Frank Puente are calling on commissioners to place the mayor’s annual speech into the city’s code of ordinances, where it would be “regulated.”
On Monday, Perez said he wanted to change the time of the event, traditionally held at noon, after working hours so more residents could attend.
Perez said he wants the address held after 5:45 p.m. if city money or staff go into putting on the event.
“The working majority of Harlingen don’t have access,” he said. “This is something for the citizens of Harlingen. It shouldn’t be something for a select few.”
City’s costs
For decades, the Rotary Club of Harlingen, which sponsors the event, held the address at noon at Casa de Amistad.
Since 2019, the club’s held the noon event at the Harlingen Convention Center.
This year, the city spent $14,395 to help put on the event, City Manager Gabriel Gonzalez said.
Of the total, $6,795 went to pay for projection screens, microphones, sound and video recording along with linens, flowers and table-top “promotional items,” he said.
Meanwhile, he said, $7,600 went to buy meals for guests.
Every year, commissioners approve the expenditure as part of the city’s general fund budget, Mayor Chris Boswell said.
While the city live-streamed the speech, he said the public’s invited to attend the event.
“It’s open to the public — you don’t have to buy a ticket,” he said. “It’s posted on the city’s website, and it’s live-streamed.”
Boswell: Election politics in the air
Days before last month’s event, Puente expressed concern Boswell could use his April 18 State of the City address to boost his campaign as he runs for a sixth term in the May 7 election.
On Monday, Boswell denied he’s used the State of the City address to promote his record as mayor.
Noting the election’s a month away, he said he believed politics was behind the commissioners’ call to regulate the city’s annual event.
During last month’s event, former Commissioner Victor Leal, whom Perez narrowly defeated in last May’s District 5 election, served as sergeant-at-arms as he introduced guests.
On Monday, Leal, a Rotary Club member, said organizers picked him for the role.
“I didn’t have anything to do with selecting people,” Boswell said.
Background
Since about the time of its founding 99 years ago, the Rotary Club has sponsored the event, Lucy Cadenas, the club’s president, said.
“The State of the City address is something that goes back a very long time,” Boswell said. “It’s an annual event that has traditionally been sponsored by the Rotary Club of Harlingen. It’s evolved into a fundraiser for charities that the Rotary Club sponsors.”
Boswell said the speech aims to present the city’s condition, including its financial standing and projects.
“The room was filled with sponsors who wanted to be there to get an update on what is happening in the city and contribute to the charities that the Rotary Club sponsors,” he said. “It’s also an opportunity to distribute the city’s annual report that the city management produces.”
Like the president of the United State’s annual State of the Union Address, many cities hold State of the City events.
“Cities across the nation do State of the City addresses, all very similar, about the first quarter of the year,” Boswell said.
