Edinburg economic leaders spat over how to lure DPS headquarters

EDINBURG - Local leaders are divided about how to lure the Texas Department of Public Safety's new regional headquarters to the city.

Mayor Joe Ochoa wants to donate a $4 million 20-acre tract of land along Trenton Road just west of Business 281.

But former mayor Richard Garcia - now head of the city's economic development corporation board - would prefer to sell that land to a private developer and squeeze in the DPS hub elsewhere.

DPS leaders have shown interest in the property Ochoa is dangling, as they work to decide on a Hidalgo County site for their new $44 million headquarters and crime lab, said Maj. Artemio Garza, commander for the local DPS region that stretches from Brownsville to Del Rio.

But "several" other locations are also under consideration, Garza said.

"We still haven't identified anything," he said. "The city of Edinburg is entertaining the thought of selling that piece of property to us, but we have not made any decision yet."

Ochoa and Garcia oftentimes sit at opposite sides of local issues in Edinburg.

Each man defeated the other in the past two mayoral elections. And in Saturday's City Council election, Garcia backed the two incumbents - both of whom were re-elected - while Ochoa supported their challengers.

Now, Ochoa says the city should step up and give DPS the Trenton Road property, just as it donated land at the corner of Trenton and Expressway 281 to the U.S. Border Patrol for its regional headquarters several years ago.

Donating that land to Border Patrol helped stimulate other sectors of the local economy, Ochoa said.

"You'll see the agents in our restaurants," said Ochoa, who also sits on the economic development corporation board. "They're bringing people from all over the state to their facilities.

"The faster we can turn around and create jobs, the faster it would be for economic development for this community. When you look at the big picture, this is great for our community."

On the other end, Garcia said he believes the city would reap greater benefits from selling the land to a developer who would build retail or office space on the land.

"I don't think it's the most lucrative thing for our city," Garcia said of donating the property to DPS. "It's not like we're paying a loan on it. There's no reason for us to be in a hurry."

The economic development board would likely consider the proposals during its next meeting set for the end of the month, Garcia said.

Garza, who said he hopes a location is acquired within the "next couple of months," said DPS would be able to move quicker on the project if land were donated to the state.

The current DPS headquarters in McAllen takes up about 30,000 square feet. The proposed 110,000-square-foot facility would centralize the agency's operations, housing the more than 240 employees in McAllen and other offices throughout the county, Garza said. Voters approved its funding, as well as for other projects, in a statewide referendum in November.

Garcia said he wants DPS to stake its regional headquarters in Edinburg - just not at the Trenton Road property.

"I would love to have them in our city, but I think there may be better locations for them," he said.

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Jared Taylor covers Edinburg, the Delta region and general assignments for The Monitor. You can reach him at (956) 683-4439.