The regional alliance aims to align communities in advocacy for infrastructure investments and economic development projects, address shared problems and prepare for the growth economists are predicting for the region.
Cowen said he thinks the organization, which his predecessor Trey Mendez had a hand in creating, will help Brownsville learn from other cities' growing pains as the Rio Grande Valley region is expected to double in population over the next 25 years.
Last month, research published in the Economist magazine pegged Brownsville as leading the U.S. in upward economic mobility. And with SpaceX moving its headquarters to the area, development for export of liquid natural gas, a busy seaport, more companies looking to "nearshore" work to Mexico and a growing community of entrepreneurs, Cowen said his role is to share those stories while doing what he can to accelerate the region's growth.
He's got a model in mind for the future of his region: San Antonio.
"That is eventually what the Valley is going to look like in terms of growth and development (the city) has experienced over the last 40 or 50 years," Cowen said in a recent interview. "I think that's where we're going. The Valley is growing into a metro area."
New neighbors
Growth in the Valley has come in stages.
"The upper Valley has always benefited from people in the Monterrey (Mexico) region" coming across the border for shopping and tourism, he said. Northern Mexico has "been a driving factor in our economy."
Recent investments in the Port of Brownsville and various multibillion-dollar projects including SpaceX, the commercial space company that's invested more than $3 billion in its Starbase operation near Boca Chica Beach, are elevating the region's economic stature.
The progress of such projects shows the region has the workforce and resources to support big business, Cowen said.
SpaceX is the area's highest-profile new neighbor. He called the company "great partners" with whom he shares open lines of communication and a "productive and open relationship."
While he hasn't met Elon Musk, SpaceX's CEO, he and the city manager meet regularly with Kathy Lueders, the longtime NASA engineer who's now general manager at Starbase, and Marisela Cortez, the facility's external affairs representative.
The company reached out after he was elected to meet for coffee monthly.
"They want to talk about what what's going on with them but also their pain points," Cowen said. "How Brownsville can help, but also how SpaceX can help Brownsville — I really appreciate that relationship because it is a symbiotic relationship."
As an example, he pointed to the Musk foundation's infusion of $10 million to redevelop downtown Brownsville in March 2021 after a Starship prototype exploded over Starbase. It has "ignited development" in the city, Cowen said.
"If you go downtown now, you'll see a variety of historic buildings that have been activated or reactivated, and just innovative, vibrant new restaurants and coffee shops, and we have a bookstore," he said. "It's really great to see the life that's being brought into downtown."
Talks are ongoing about future projects SpaceX may be able to help the city with.
Concerns
Cowen described community sentiment toward SpaceX and its desire to launch more Starships each year as "very positive." Residents also are pleased with development of the area's LNG industry.
"With regard to both projects, I do recognize and appreciate the environmental concern and the disruption of the day-to-day life we used to have down here," he said. "When you have a changing city, a growing city, you know it's not staying the same."
The companies are committed to mitigating their impact on both residents and the environment, but concerns remain. "It is a delicate balance to ensure that things are being done the right way," Cowen said.
Environmental concerns have led to several lawsuits against SpaceX over its operations' effects at Boca Chica Beach. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality recently fined the company $3,750 for illegally discharging wastewater into surrounding wetlands without a permit. Some observers see it as a continuation of local and state officials' history of permissiveness with the company.
Cowen disagrees.
"SpaceX has to comply with all federal and state laws and I think their intention is to, obviously, comply as well," he said. "They have to work through those issues with those agencies, and my hope is that they're able to come to a resolution on finding a path forward that complies with all environmental regulations."
Growth trajectory
Cowen planned to visit San Antonio last month with a delegation of Valley businesspeople who attended an Alamo Angels pitch event. The San Antonio-based investor network opened a chapter in Brownsville in May and the visit was a step toward its development.
A short-notice roundtable with U.S. Sen. John Cornyn about the region's water issues scuttled his travel plans, but Cowen sees the new relationship with San Antonio-area investors as a big win.
"I think the No. 1 barrier for for entrepreneurs down here is access to capital, and having a well-seasoned firm like Alamo Angels is going to be a huge asset for us moving forward," he said. "Our traditional banking system is not set up to support the entrepreneurship community."
As business grows in the RGV, so too are investments in hospitality and recreation.
Cowen said Brownsville now has six hotels in development. Among them is an Embassy Suites that will have a Starship launch viewing area on its roof.
"We are expanding our zoo as well, and that's a big project," he said. "There's just a lot of great things happening."
With economists calling San Antonio and South Texas the future of America, Nirenberg said he thinks the region, and especially the Valley, is starting to garner "its proper weight in the political landscape."
The South Texas Alliance of Cities as an important venue to continue advocacy for the region, he said, and federal and state officials' past inattentiveness to the region is giving way to a new interest in it.
"The growth and development and economic diversification that's occurred in San Antonio the last 30 years is beginning to happen in South Texas," Nirenberg said. "If you look at San Antonio's trajectory over the last 15 or 20 years, just put the RGV on the same timeline and maybe speed it up."
© 2024 the San Antonio Express-News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
