Pharr Bridge and Pharr EDC are collaborating a lot more these days

PHARR, Texas – Pharr Economic Development Corporation and the Pharr International Bridge have been asked to work more closely together by Mayor Ambrosio Hernandez and the City Commission.

Evidence of the new collaboration was on show at the Viva Fresh show in Fort Worth and the more recent 3rd Industrial Warehouse Summit held at the Pharr Development and Research Center.

“We have been talking about working in collaboration for years and we were finally able to start sitting down in 2023 and talk about how it would work,” said Luis Bazan, director of the Pharr International Bridge. “It has taken a bit of back and forth because we are not really used to it. There are two teams. There is talent there. There is talent over here. But are combining our strengths. We are combining our efforts, and it is going to make the biggest difference in the world. We are going to be the trendsetters going forward.”

Another example of the newfound collaboration is the development of a new 20-acre truck park that will have around 300 truck parking places.

“That has been in the works for several years now. We started it at the bridge, but we have handed it over to the EDC. They are finally getting ready to start construction. There will be roughly 300 truck parking places,” Bazan said.

The new truck park is being constructed adjacent to East Military Highway and Juniper Avenue, behind the TransMaritime facility.

“We are also talking to some folks from IdleAir to see about having that type of a service at the truck park. It will be for sustainability purposes because what the IdleAir does, or that type of system does is, it allows the long-haul truck driver to rest but by turning off the truck. So, the truck is not running emissions into the environment. But they are still able to get connected to air conditioning, cable TV and Internet.”

Bazan said there is a deficit of truck parking spaces across the state of Texas.

“As soon as this new truck park is built, we know we are going to need another one. We did the research, and we know 300 parking spaces is not enough. We need to start planning for second one, maybe through a public-private partnership.”

In an in-depth interview with the Rio Grande Guardian International News Service, Bazan also spoke about DAP 15 and DAP 16.

Under the Donations Acceptance Program (DAP), the federal government can accept donations of real property, personal property, and non-personal services from the private sector and government entities.

Asked about DAP 15, Bazan said:

“DAP 15 is finally complete. They finally got the automatic transfer switch in place. It is ready to roll but it is contingent on TxDOT opening their side of things. That is the Border Station Inspection Facility. When we started talking about DAP 15, back in the day, there was no connectivity between the federal side and the state side.

“The Border Station Inspection Facility provides that connectivity. We are hoping to get it open here in the next couple of months. Sometime this summer for sure.

“That will divert a good 25 percent of traffic that is going to be going gate-to-gate, because that is what it is, it is a gate-to-gate system, and it will allow all those conveyances that are certified to go through and circumvent the import lot.”

Asked about DAP 16, Bazan said:

“We have been talking about DAP 16 for years. We are finally getting ready to start that this year as well, along with our bridge expansion. It will consist of three components. The expansion of the dry dock, the expansion of the cold inspection facility, and, also, most importantly, a state-of-the-art regional training center and laboratory.

“It is going to improve capacity and allow for more products that we have not even ventured to cross through this bridge before. It will allow us to have all the bells and whistles, all the major components. Everything we need to be able to have that cargo-release authority here locally without sending it elsewhere.”

Asked what new products might start crossing at Pharr, Bazan said:

“A lot of organic products being grown in Mexico. A lot of products being grown in greenhouses. There are other items, liquor, beer, textiles. So, we are looking at getting with CBP (Customs & Border Protection) to see if we can start running some pilot programs. At the end of the day, we have the bridge expansion coming soon so we are going to open it up even further for more commerce.”

Asked if he had any wrap-up remarks, Bazan said:

“Manufacturing continues to grow (in Mexico). The automotive industry continues to grow (in Mexico). Everything is growing but the volumes have lessened. If you look at the overall spectrum of things, the volumes are lower. Overall, I think U.S. and Mexico trade dropped two percent within the first three months of this calendar year. But it is going to continue to grow.

“As I said earlier, 2024 is a test year for trade. It is a test year for all of us, for the economy. But if we start building the necessary infrastructure, if we have the services, if we have the funding, if we have all those components in place as a city, we can attract way more business.”

Editor’s Note: Here is a video the City of Pharr produced about Viva Fresh:

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