Will the City Commission Use Common Sense Tuesday Or Give in to the Bullies?

City Commissioner Debbie Portillo

It is not beyond the skill set of the City Commission for Brownsville to protect the interests of the Palo Alto Battlefield, give cyclists a safe right turn off Paredes Line Road onto FM 511 AND allow truckers along the 511 industrial corridor a state-of-the-art truck stop.  

As Pastor Brad articulated at the August 5 City Commission meeting:

"Everyone wants what the trucks carry. No one wants the trucks or drivers," the minister stated.
"I know. I was a trucker before I was a pastor. The hardest thing was to find a place to park for the night. . . . Then, in the morning, you want to eat, but no restaurant can fit your truck. Brownsville needs a facility like this. If we treat truckers right, they can become tourists and bring their families."

On the agenda for the City Commission meeting August 19:
  

Pastor Brad

6. Public Hearing and ACTION on FIRST READING of Ordinance Number 235-2014-024-CO; to rezone from General Retail “X” classification (4CX) to Light Industrial “G” classification (7CG) for 13.84 acres of Espiritu Santo Grant, Share 22, located near FM 511
(Highway 550) and Paredes Line Road. (District 3) (Noe D. Puga – Planning) [TABLED 08/05/2014]

The request for the reclassification approved by the City's Planning Department, if from United Fuel, a company wanting to build a super truck stop on the south side of FM 511 at Paredes Line Road.  The project calls for several eating establishments, a theater, showers, a service bay and other amenities for truckers traveling the FM 511 industrial corridor to or from the Port of Brownsville.

Voicing his concern at the last commission meeting was Palo Alto Battlefield Park Ranger Mark Spears, since the proposed truck stop would be 600 feet as the crow flies from the entrance to the battlefield park.  If truck noise is the concern, then the Eddie Lucio, Jr. Toll Ramp to Nowhere, occupying the center lanes of FM 511 places trucks traveling 70 miles per hour as close as 150 feet.  Trucks traveling west, choosing not to use the toll road and ramps already use a service road adjacent to the park, thus even closer.  Whether or not a truck stop is built, FM 511 has been designated by a $454,000 study as an industrial corridor.  $180,000 has also been paid to Jacob's Engineering to "implement" Phase 1 of that plan.  

FM 511 is the main artery for trucks to and from the Port of Brownsville whether or not a truck stop accommodating the drivers is built.

Another concern voiced at the August 5 meeting by Commissioner Rose Gowen:



"Hundreds of cyclists make that turn off Paredes Line Road to FM 511 each weekend. Well, I know of 4 groups of at least 50 members each that do," stated Gowen unbelievably.

"No, I'm not talking about cyclists on Battlefield Trail, I'm talking about those using the street getting run over by a truck," stated the commissioner.

City Planner Michael Warrix

Actually, an accommodation, a shortcut, could be easily worked out by United Fuel with City Planner Michael Warrix to give cyclists a safer turn onto FM 511. No corporation would likely allow such a triviality to stop their multi-million dollar project, especially considering United Fuel has already purchased 72 adjacent acres for a hotel and other accommodations.   

In a previous story we suggested that a truck stop like the one proposed for FM 511 could actually employ more actual Brownsville residents than SpaceX, at least initially, without the $20,000,000 subsidy from Brownsville, Cameron County and surrounding entities.  Forget the preposterous and ludicrous claim by Gilbert Salinas of the BEDC that "SpaceX will provide over 1,000 jobs paying over $55,000 per year."  That's as bogus as the lie that "over 1,000 cyclists daily used the Battlefield Hike & Bike Trail." 

Elon Musk has promised 30 full time jobs in the launch's first year of operation, whenever that turns out to be.  Harlingen, with a minimal $450,000 contribution or 2.25% of the total subsidy, is asking presumptuously for 10% of the full time jobs to go to Harlingen residents at a "minimum of $9.00 per hour." If McAllen asks for similar consideration because of their contribution, that leaves only 24 actual jobs for Brownsville residents the first year.  Of course, Musk did not guarantee the full time jobs would go to local residents.  No one locally currently has SpaceX style skills without very specific training.  

A super truck stop with several restaurants, a full truck maintenance shop, a store, a movie theater could easily employ 3 times that many.  

As for stifling attendance at the battlefield, a nearby truck stop with truckers on a layover waiting for repairs or with down time could be the battlefield's primary guests.  I suspect a bare trickle of actual tourists besides the busloads of BISD school children actually visit the park.  I made it a point to ask Brownsville residents the past two weeks if they'd ever visited the Palo Alto Battlefield. None, including a resident with a degree in history had actually visited the park. The truck stop could easily stock brochures and advertising materials promoting the battlefield and increase park attendance and revenue significantly. 

Reasonable minds COULD work all this out to Brownsville's benefit if two bullies on the City Commission with a very specific agenda are not permitted to have their way.