HEDC works to attract new business
By Anayancy Ulloa
June 8, 2022
German Rico, industrial development manager of the Harlingen Economic Development Corporation , announced the various actions that the corporation is developing and executing in terms of attracting new investments to the region.
He highlighted, first, what they have been observing in labor matters, and that is that everyone has been going through somewhat difficult times; For this reason, the Harlingen Economic Development Corporation team has developed ' Work Wednesdays,' where basically every month, both HEDC , the City of Harlingen , Workforce Solutions , and the Chamber of Commerce of the city have arranged one day a week to promote and publicize the vacancies available in the sectors that require the professional talent of the city.
Since August 2021, job fairs have been connecting employers and job seekers to fill openings in Harlingen and the region.
HARLINGEN INDUSTRIAL PARK
The Harlingen Industrial Park has more than 500 acres of licensed land ready for industrial development. This park has available land, sites and buildings with access to necessary public services. The city is currently working to make improvements to the park to attract new businesses and employees with the creation of a 140-acre park.
German announced that SOG Properties LLC will build a speculative warehouse in the Harlingen Industrial Park. The project consists of 142,500 square feet for manufacturing and distribution and it is estimated that it will generate 350 jobs.
THE HARLINGEN DISTINCTION
The city of Harlingen, located near the US-Mexico border in the Rio Grande Valley, has enjoyed steady growth over the years as more and more businesses realize the benefits of doing business near Mexico, the maquiladoras and the many tax benefits in South Texas. Harlingen is poised for an economic boom.
Maquiladoras is defined as a factory that imports duty-free materials and equipment for assembly or manufacturing and then re-exports the assembled product, usually back to the country of origin. There are a total of 247 maquiladoras located in Matamoros and Reynosa with 174,000 employees. Reynosa and Matamoros have renowned firms with maquiladora operations, including TRW Automotive, LG, Jabil Circuit, Bissell, Maytag, Nokia, Panasonic, Delphi, Brunswick, Emerson, and Black & Decker , among others.