New Parks Director Brings Vision & Experience
Armando Villela often starts his workday by driving around Mercedes and inspecting the city parks he oversees.
The city’s new parks and recreation director has been busy in recent months, surveying the task he has undertaken. Villela had a10-year stint in the Harlingen parks department. He was more than ready to take on the leadership of his own department in a community he sees as being on the rise.
“We’re a small city that can do big things,” Villela said. “I see so much potential in this community and the city manager and (City) Commission are very supportive of parks and seeing the opportunities here.”
Villela is realistic in acknowledging the challenges he faces. The city’s seven parks while not neglected in the past did not receive specialized attention for years in being part of the public works department. The athletic fields where softball and youth baseball play have been largely inactive with local residents going to neighboring cities to participate in league play. Open park space like the amount of area behind the FEMA Dome on Vermont Avenue is being underutilized and could host a number of park-related activities.
“It’s all very intriguing to me,” Villela said. “We can build something from the ground up.”
To Do List
Villela’s first order of business was to take an inventory of the city’s park in cleaning up and improving what currently exists.
“Sprucing up what we have,” is how he described it.
He did a safety inspection of all parks in drawing on certifications and training he received in those category areas while working in Harlingen. The experience Villela gained in Harlingen is deep. He worked his way up there, starting in parks maintenance and then superintendent of parks before being promoted to assistant parks director. At one point, he had supervision of public park buildings and the city’s golf course.
In Mercedes, he would begin working with and developing the six-member staff he inherited. Villela complimented the parks team for their previous efforts and overall work ethic.
“We’re going to chip away,” Villela recalled telling his staff on the challenges and projects they face. “We’re starting from the bottom up. Before, they didn’t have someone focusing on just parks.”
His to-do list includes:
- Building up community engagement and working with the city manager and City Commission to form a parks advisory board.
- Improving the lighting of parks so residents feel more at ease in using parks and walking trails during nighttime hours.
- Applying for state and private sector grants in improving and constructing additional hike-and-bike trails.
- Improve athletic fields to bring back youth leagues to Mercedes in baseball and softball and boost the number of soccer fields in city parks.
- Do community surveys to gauge local opinions of what is most valued by local residents when it comes to parks.
“We’re working to finalize a master plan for parks,” Villela said of his department’s overall efforts.
Going Through Parks System
Villela grew up in Bakersfield, California, about an hour from Los Angeles.
His parents have Rio Grande Valley roots so settling in the region is like being a second home. Villela describes himself as someone who “went through the parks system.” His own teen-aged children have done the same in Harlingen. It’s an aspect of the job he finds to be the most fulfilling.
“It’s great to be doing something that so directly affects kids in a positive way,” he said. “Giving kids good parks gets them outdoors and off their phones. It’s what drives me the most to do a good job for the community.”
Don’t be surprised if while at a local park you see the local parks director approach with a few basic questions in gathering community input.
“I introduce myself and there’s a few things I really want to know,” he says of his impromptu surveying. “What have you seen? What can we do better?”
- Ric Cavazos