Series Of Groundbreakings Highlight Mercedes’ Growth

For Mercedes, groundbreakings have kept shovels in dirt as city leaders and business owners have welcomed a surge in growth with every indication of more to come.

Just in recent months, groundbreakings have been celebrated for a Sonic CRUSH Drive-In, a Valley OMS Dental Center, and most recently, for a Gateway travel center development along Expressway 83. The latter will include a Wendy’s and Chick-fil-A. A new Starbucks is also currently under construction.

And it’s not only retail. Another July groundbreaking marked the beginning stages of Valley Ranch Estates, a 185-lot development on Mile 1 E Road.

“Centrally located,’’ the project’s website states, “only two minutes away from the Rio Grande Valley Premium Outlets,’’ adding, “this is the Mid-Valley’s hottest subdivision since it is only 12 minutes from Harlingen, 25 minutes from McAllen, and you can get to South Padre Island in less than an hour.’’

The heart-of-the-Valley location that Mercedes has long touted is now an even stronger drawing card as developers eye open space along Expressway 83. The McAllen/Pharr expressway corridors are about built out and saturated with development. As the region continues to grow into one mega-sized metro area, there is no better community than Mercedes to be in the middle of it all.

“What we’re seeing is that people are seeing the Mid-Valley location as becoming even more advantageous,’’ said Fred Gonzalez, the president of the Mercedes Area Chamber of Commerce who is also the president of the board of the Development Corporation of Mercedes. “One project has spearheaded the next one for us. Our EDC office with Melissa (Ramirez, executive director), has been really busy. The calls and visits are coming in.’’

Entering New Era

Gonzalez said city leaders have become more strategic in recent years in pursuing expressway corridor development.

The outlet mall is a prime example. It’s not a new development but its opening in the early 2000s set the stage for what followed. Hotels were built in close proximity to the mall for Mexican nationals who came to shop at the Valley’s only outlet mall. Restaurants like Chili’s and Whataburger followed. The latest era features the travel center and its connected restaurants, but there is diversity in the developments.

Gary Schwarz, a Mercedes native, is bringing his OMS dental facility to his hometown to serve his Mid-Valley and Harlingen-area patients. The South Texas Independent School District is converting a former furniture store space into its spacious regional administrative headquarters to serve campuses across the Valley.

Gonzalez is also a Mercedes native and said his community has waited for years to see the growth it’s experiencing, adding the city is “in its infancy’’ when it comes to the development he sees coming. There is no bigger piece to this trend than the Gateway center, which is being developed by Victron Energy, Inc., one of the nation’s premier fuel distribution companies that is also a major retail and property developer in Texas.

“They are major players,’’ Gonzalez said of Victron, while at the Gateway groundbreaking in July. “They have been so positive in coming to our community. We’re very grateful for the opportunity they have given us.’’

Victron’s entrance into the Mercedes market is sure to spark other developers who will follow their lead. The long stretches between business and residential growth in Mercedes are over, Gonzalez said.

“No more 15-year gaps,’’ Gonzalez said of the years between the Chili’s and Sonic openings. “Every year will see new developments and more business growth.’’

• Ricardo D. Cavazos