A.D. Ibarra
-Union Pacific Depot
US Congressman Will Hurd met with Mayor Ramsey English-Cantú, Jim Ryan, Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs for Constellation Brands and Ivan Jaime of Union Pacific on Monday morning to review the different routes UP is looking at in reference to the growing amount of commercial traffic Eagle Pass is seeing as what UP officials have termed the #1 commercial hub on the border.
"We have a strong voice in Washington," stated Mayor Cantú who thanked the congressman for taking time out of his busy schedule to see first hand what Union Pacific has seen in the overall growth of commercial traffic in Eagle Pass, "Congressman Hurd has been touring several forms of industry assuring that commerce has a stronger flow within the region now that industry is now taking Eagle Pass much more seriously."
"The relationship between the United States and Mexico is an important relationship the more we see that commerce grow. We've got to see that the infrastructure meets those needs," said our legislator, "I want to see the lines, whether it's trucks, commercial vehicles or individuals move faster. I'm here to try to understand some of the problems and figure out how we can have some solutions in Washington DC so we can have a 21st Century infrastructure."
When asked for some initial ideas and concepts he's seen in his visit, the congressman added, "We need more blue shirts in customs, there are not enough people inspecting the goods clearing customs at the point of origination. There's a program called preclearance which makes it a lot quicker to get through."
Eagle Pass has quickly and somewhat quietly become the #1 hub for commercial traffic. Hurd weighed in on this issue, "I'm looking forward to returning to Washington and bragging about Eagle Pass to my friend Henry Cuellar. Henry always talks about traffic going through Laredo, but I can say now there's more rail traffic going through Eagle Pass. It's only going to continue. The amount of goods and services UP is transporting across the border is only going to increase so we've gotta make sure that we're prepared for that.
"Creating efficiency is important for everyone. You have to look at combined leadership at these ports of entry. When I sit in the Department of Homeland Security, and see how they operate, you've gotta have a common leadership structure and those are some of the conversations that are ongoing."
When we mentioned the recent interview we had with GM's newest director of Hispanic Communications, Patrick Hernandez and the possibility of their coming into South Texas and the immense growth of Constellation Brands and their $2 billion investment in creating the largest plant of its kind in the world, the congressman was asked if he felt the necessary infrastructure was in place to handle this, "Right now today, I don't think our infrastructure is ready.
The private sector has been very good in communicating what their need will be down the road. They've been great at planning and letting customs and the federal government know about the increased demand. The federal government has not been responsive the way they should to meet those demands. Again if you decrease the amount of wait time at the border, you decrease cost and guess what? You're going to attract more investment into northern Mexico, into South Texas from China and from other places and these are great trends for Eagle Pass."
"We're really glad to host US Congressman Hurd and Mayor Cantú here today. Eagle Pass is a key component of our company and from our CEO all the way down we talk about everyday," stated Ivan Jaime, Public Relations Director for UP who introduced us to Jim Ryan of Constellation Brands.
Combined with the $2 billion investment right here as Jaime eloquently put it "in our own backyard", Union Pacific has also invested $80 million.
"I think if you look at who's investing on the border, there's no greater example than Union Pacific and Constellation who will continue to be here providing jobs for our youth."
"We're thrilled to be here as far as our location here," concluded Ryan, "As far as the partnership that we have both public and private. As the congressman, the mayor and Ivan said there are challenges, but we're excited to be a part of the conversation, the discussion and being a part of the solution. This is going to our brewery here that's twelve miles away, the largest in North America and will be one of the largest in the world. Our business is growing all over the United States, so this gateway, the Eagle Pass gateway is critical to our success today and to our future."
The private sector has been very good in communicating what their need will be down the road. They've been great at planning and letting customs and the federal government know about the increased demand. The federal government has not been responsive to the way they should to meet those demands. Again if you decrease the amount of wait time at the border, you decrease cost and guess what? You're going to attract more investment into northern Mexico, into South Texas from China and from other places and these are great trends for Eagle Pass."
"We're really glad to host US Congressman Hurd and Mayor Cantú here today. Eagle Pass is a key component of our company and from our CEO all the way down we talk about everyday," stated Ivan Jaime, Public Relations Director for UP who introduced us to Jim Ryan of Constellation Brands.
Combined with the $2 billion investment right here as Jaime eloquently put it "in our own backyard", Union Pacific has also invested $80 million.
"I think if you look at who's investing on the border, there's no greater example than Union Pacific and Constellation who will continue to be here providing jobs for our youth."
"We're thrilled to be here as far as our location here," concluded Ryan, "As far as the partnership that we have both public and private. As the congressman, the mayor and Ivan said there are challenges, but we're excited to be a part of the conversation, the discussion and being a part of the solution. This is going to our brewery here that's twelve miles away, the largest in North America and will be one of the largest in the world. Our business is growing all over the United States, so this gateway, the Eagle Pass gateway is critical to our success today and to our future."