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EDINBURG — Transformational. Unprecedented. Tremendous. A new era.
Those were the words that local and state leaders used to describe a pivotal moment in the Rio Grande Valley’s history — one where elected officials from across the four-county area committed to representing the region through one unified voice.
As such, mayors from the Valley’s 47 cities gathered at Bert Ogden Arena in Edinburg on Thursday for an RGV Economic Summit. There, they made public their commitment to work collaboratively toward one common goal — the economic development and prosperity of the entire region.
And joining local leaders in that commitment — which was immortalized in a resolution signed by all the Valley’s mayors, was Gov. Greg Abbott, who traveled here Thursday to endorse the regional alliance, which he called “the future of Texas.”
“The Texas of tomorrow is going to be built right here in the Rio Grande Valley,” Abbott said before a crowd of nearly 600 local policymakers and business professionals who had gathered at Bert Ogden Arena to witness the historic resolution.
“When you all come together as one unit, you are extraordinarily more powerful,” the governor added.
The compact, called the “One Region One Voice” initiative, is being led by the RGV Partnership
While leaders here have embraced an increasingly regionalized mentality over the last decade when it came to issues such as securing highway or flood mitigation infrastructure funding, Thursday’s resolution marked the first time in the Valley’s history that officials have taken that philosophy further.
The resolution lays out five goals as part of the alliance. They include:
>> Working “together to attract, retain, and expand business development opportunities” that provide well-paying jobs.
>> Leveraging “unified assets” for regional infrastructure, including transportation, water management and public safety.
>> Presenting a “genuine image of the Rio Grande Valley” culture, economy and quality of life.
>> Work with the business community to form policy, foster development and public-private partnerships.
>> Actively model the “One Region, One Voice” philosophy.
Alejandro “Alex” G. Meade III, a Brownsville native whom Abbott appointed to the Texas Transportation Commission earlier this spring, referred to the paradigm shift as the Valley at long last shedding its “Friday Night mentality” wherein one town competes against another.
“We’re gonna put everything behind us, everything we’ve ever talked about how we were better than the other. … All of that changes today with this new era,” Meade, who also serves as executive vice president for economic development of Texas Regional Bank, said.
For too long, leaders in the Rio Grande Valley have competed against themselves for economic and industrial investments, rather than leveraging the strengths that would come from collaborative advocacy efforts, Meade explained.
And he would know.
Prior to working for Texas Regional Bank, Meade made a career in local economic development through stints at the Mission Economic Development Corporation and Harlingen Area Chamber of Commerce, as well as during his tenure as Pharr city manager.
“Many small communities have this Friday night mentality,” Meade said of what he learned while working in municipal government.
But with those attitudes changing, the Valley is poised to become “the next economic powerhouse” in the state, Meade said.
“We are now going to be a force to be reckoned with — but, it can only happen if we speak with one region, one voice. … Today can be the beginning of that era,” Meade said.
Already, the Valley’s shift toward more regionalized thinking has had a noticeable impact on the rising star that is the Texas economy, which is now the eighth largest in the world, Abbott told the summit’s attendees.
“The RGV is the future of Texas. I’m glad to see that so many mayors have joined together… to sign an alliance to focus on making the future brighter of this entire region,” the governor said.
“The Texas of tomorrow blooms right here in the Rio Grande Valley,” he said.
To see more, view Monitor photojournalist Joel Martinez’s full photo gallery here:
