In This Issue
South Texas Booms
TEXpansion: Edinburg lands major Brazilian denim maker
How to bridge international commerce
Tips on partnering for development
Partnering for Impact:
Sources for job-training funds
Texas job growth takes off
Web Exclusive
Joining Forces
Cities combine economic development efforts for bigger payoff.
Blandina Cardenas, president, University of Texas – Pan American*
In the early 1990s, cities in the McAllen metropolitan area decided to join their economic development efforts and market their entire region to business and industry. The resulting South Texas Border Partnership was born.
Janice Wiley, deputy director of Instructional Support, Region One Education Service Center*
“We found out that companies have established a population criteria for new company locations. In many cases they won’t look at a city with less than a quarter of a million people,” says Keith Patridge, president and CEO of the McAllen Economic Development Corp. “If each of the cities in the metro area tried marketing ourselves individually, we would never get on the radar screen of those companies. By marketing our region, we’re now a major player and a major metropolitan area, with over 723,000 people.”
Jack Lloyd, director, Rapid Response Manufacturing Center*
The partnership originally included the cities of McAllen, Edinburg, Pharr, Mission and Weslaco. In 2004, the group changed its name to the Greater McAllen Alliance (GMA) to help better define the region in South Texas and its members, says Patridge. GMA also expanded to include the city of Hidalgo, and Hidalgo County is an ad hoc member. Pat Townsend Jr., president of the Mission Economic Development Authority, is chairman of the GMA.
Local Government
Tools that Made
the Difference
Keith Patridge
Keith Patridge, president and CEO of the McAllen Economic Development Corp., gives the following advice for communities seeking to form partnerships for economic development.
Communication is key. Maintain open communication with members and partners so everyone is included. “You really have to consider the position of all the members,” Patridge says.
Keep your focus. Identify the greater good you’re trying to accomplish. “In a regional organization, you’ve got to look at what’s in the best interests of the entire region,” he says. “If you keep those concepts and that focus in mind, you’ll be successful.”
Miguel Gonzalez, associate dean, School of Engineering and Computer Science, University of Texas – Pan American*
The GMA is not incorporated or set up as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, Patridge says. Members pay annual assessments based on their population.
Shirley Reed, president, South Texas College*
“We fund it by cities’ contribution into the pool for funding regional economic development marketing projects,” Patridge says. “It’s an association of cities.”
Members vote on all actions and must unanimously agree on all activities.
“If someone has a problem, we will sit down and discuss it until we reach unanimity,” Patridge says. “Everyone has a say.”
Wanda Garza, executive officer for Workforce Development and External Affairs, South Texas College*
Leading the Charge
GMA’s regional focus made it the natural lead agency for wooing the Rapid Response Manufacturing Center, which opened at the University of Texas-Pan American campus in April 2008. GMA also supported the North American Advanced Manufacturing Research and Education Initiative (NAAMREI), a collaboration involving education, industry, government, workforce boards and finance entities in South Texas.
Other projects GMA has taken the lead on include transportation mobility projects, including the planned Interstate 69 corridor and a regional rail study. TR
For more information on the Greater McAllen Alliance, visit www.greatermcallenalliance.org.
For tools and resources on economic development, visit the Comptroller’s Local Government Assistance and Economic Development Division Web site at www.TexasAhead.org or call (800) 531-5441, ext. 3-4679.