We want you to thrive throughout the Rio Grande Valley with this endeavor, with all our partners that we have now.
McALLEN — A news conference was held Tuesday afternoon to announce plans to launch a $10 million fund intended to help digitize local small businesses.
The Texas Border Small Business Broadband Fund, a partnership between the city of Pharr, Connect Humanity and Region One Education Service Center, hopes to raise $10 million through philanthropic funds, government grants and Community Reinvestment Act investments to increase internet access, develop skills and boost economic growth in Hidalgo and Cameron Counties.
Julián Álvarez, senior vice president and director of business development for Lone Star National Bank, Jordana Barton-García, senior fellow with Connect Humanity, and Pharr Mayor Ambrosio Hernandez announced the fund during a brief news conference held on the fourth floor of the Lone Star National Bank Corporate offices.
“The fund, which has been seeded by the Ford Foundation with an initial $250,000 contribution, will offer a one-year subscription subsidy for high speed internet and no to low interest loan for hardware and software and digital skills training for micro and small businesses, entrepreneurs, as well as community health centers and nonprofits in the region that are serving low and moderate income communities,” Barton-García said.
The fund was introduced in partnership with the city of Pharr’s TeamPharr.Net, and other local internet service providers, VTX1 Companies, BTX Fiber and SmartCom.
“As we know, post-pandemic — even during the pandemic, many of us suffered of being locked up, so to speak,” Hernandez said. “We lost our connectivity with humanity, with our family, with our businesses, they suffered.
“So we know firsthand the importance now of having internet access. It is no longer a luxury as it was originally envisioned. It is now a necessity or utility, if you want to call it, for the municipalities.”
Hernandez said that the city has installed nearly 1,000 miles of fiber for TeamPharr.Net, the city’s high-speed fiber optic internet service. He said that the installation process is about 85% complete.
“We want you to thrive throughout the Rio Grande Valley with this endeavor, with all our partners that we have now,” Hernandez said. “We want every home to have it for not only education, financial literacy as well, but also for health care and for keeping an eye on what’s happening in your community. So to us, it’s very important that we come together as we’re doing now. We are going to make a difference.”
The first part of the new fund will be a $2 million pilot that aims to connect 50 businesses starting in Pharr and eventually the greater Hidalgo County area.
It is still in the very early stages, but those involved hope to have a plan ready for qualifying businesses to begin applying for the assistance.
“We’re setting that up right now. We just started the fund and we got the initial contribution, and we’re setting up all the rules right now — how to make it available to small businesses,” Barton-García said. “So there’ll be more announcements.”
