Monitor plans move after AIM Media Texas sells Nolana property to UTRGV

McALLEN — AIM Media Texas is in the process of selling its 1400 E. Nolana Ave. location, where The Monitor has operated for more than 21 years, to the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, the company announced in a news release Friday.

Parent company of The Monitor, Valley Morning Star, The Brownsville Herald and MyRGV.com, AIM Media Texas referred to the plans as a “multi-step sales process” and a purchase the UT Board of Regents authorized during a board meeting Thursday.

“Subsequently, the final sale and closing of the transaction is dependent on the full and complete agreement of a sale contract between the parties and the successful completion of all feasibility studies by UTRGV,” the release read.

Stephan Wingert, regional vice president and publisher, spoke with associates Friday to share more details and issued the following statement.

“The Monitor has been a part of this community for well over 100 years and continues to be a strong pillar within the community,” says Wingert. “I can’t think of a better use for the Nolana property than in the support of higher education in the Rio Grande Valley through UTRGV. As the process moves forward, we will begin looking for a new location for our office and reviewing our options with our printing facility.”

Previously located at 1101 Ash St. in McAllen, The Monitor has called its Nolana location home since January 2004, “and it has served us well,” Wingert said, adding that its current headquarters was one of several since its birth in 1909.

“Changes in technology allow us to work differently than in the past, we simply don’t need as much space,” Wingert added, further noting that departments such as editorial, digital and design have a combined schedule that splits work between at-home and in-office requirements.

This began during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 for health restriction purposes, and remains a practical and effective means for several roles in the company, such as digital demands requiring more mobile reporting efforts.

This is also representative of the company’s recent shift prioritizing its digital presence and relevance via MyRGV.com, publishing its news first on the newspapers’ website before hitting print.

“We’re not changing what we do. We still believe in the print product that we produce two times a week, and we’re really focused on building our digital audience in accordance with reader habits, who want this. We’re not changing that either. We’re just changing where we do it from,” Wingert said. “What our readers need to know is that selling the building allows us to move to a more adequately sized workspace and invest in transitioning our product to where readers are and continuing to put out a printed newspaper. It’s a business decision like any other.”

He said details will be shared in the future about The Monitor’s press and where it may be located once all other details are ironed out. Asked for the price of the purchase, Wingert said that the cost will not be disclosed.

“This building (Nolana location) means as much to us as it means to the community. I even helped design it,” Wingert added. “But as I’ve said in the past, and as evidenced by MyRGV.com producing the best video, infographics, comments and criticism, editorials, investigative report and reporter of the year at this year’s highly coveted Texas Managing Editors awards, what hasn’t changed is that our journalism packs the biggest, hardest punch in South Texas. And we’re here to stay.”

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