To News Archive 2001

november 21, 2000

As of December 1, 2000 FUTURO will no longer be located in the AEP/CP&L building at 330 North Getty. The office is moving to 100 West South Street (the old Middle Rio Grande Workforce Board building) behind the post office, the south west town square. We would like to thank AEP/CP&L for their generous donation of space, furnishings and utilities that supported our organization for more than a year. We look forward to working with them in the future, continuing our partnership for the betterment of our region.

september 6, 2000

On September 6 at 11:00 a.m. in its offices in the CP&L building at 330 North Getty, FUTURO Communities, Inc. hosted a meeting of the South Texas Future of the Region Conference Coordinating Committee to, among other items, finalize the agenda for the conference that will take place October 4 through 6 at the Radisson Hotel in San Antonio.

The committee discussed the availability of speakers for the conference and the necessity of having representatives of state agencies whose focus is those areas of need that are the top priorities of the conference and the South Texas region, and that those representatives be available to address the concerns of the communities in the region. The committee also recommended that these representatives be included in the working sessions for comments and directed questions from the audiences.

The committee also the conference brochure that includes the tentative agenda for the conference and that has been distributed to those individuals who attended the June conference in South Padre, as well as Councils of Governments, Chambers of Commerce, Economic Development Corporations, workforce board members, city officials, mayors, city judges, and others on individual lists whose attendance is considered critical to the areas of need being acted upon.

Also discussed was the fact that some needs areas lack participation and that all committees must have full participation to produce adequate and useful information; participants are more important than moderators at this point, though without a moderator who has sufficient contacts and who can get things done, the ultimate effectiveness of the committee will come into question. When the committees do meet, they concluded, the main issues must be kept to a minimum to avoid to broad a discussion that will end with no easily quantifiable solutions. As the regional Council's of Government have committees for many of these subject areas, they will be good sources of information and should be utilized for this purpose. The purpose of the conference, then, is to bring together those people who represent the region and know the problems there with others within federal and state government who can find solutions and make them happen. The purpose of the breakout sessions is to specifically address the priority problems that came out of the first phase of the conference in South Padre and discover for them some useful and reasonable solutions, goals and recommendations.

According to the committee, another purpose of the second phase of the South Texas Future of the Region Conference is to expand upon the priority areas of need developed at the phase one conference in South Padre in June of this year; to continue to develop an action agenda that focuses on the areas of quality workforce development, sustainable economic development, regional environmental issues, regional infrastructure needs, and health care issues. The audiences for these sessions - each of which should contain at least one person from each of the forty-seven counties - will help to shape the agenda, and so participation from them is critical to achieving the end goal of the entire conference - a working action plan. The resulting action plan in the form of the Conference Report will then be distributed to legislators, public officials, business and civic leaders, and others throughout the region in an effort to increase the amount of attention focused on the needs of our region by state and federal government. Also, the Conference will seek to expand the regional and bi-national dialogue between the U.S. and Mexico concerning issues in the region that impact both countries.

The majority of the conference time will be spent in three breakout sessions spread over the last two schedule days wherein leaders and individuals from throughout the region who are interested in one of the previously mentioned areas of need will separate into individual groups and work out specific goals, objectives, priorities and strategies to address the needs of that particular problem area. For instance, the goal of the breakout session in the area of Quality Workforce Development will be to concentrate on ideas and suggestions directed toward solving the problem of transforming the region's workforce into one that will make South Texas a major player in the global economy of the 21st century; specifically by discussing the changing workforce needs of the region, creating a high-skilled, high-wage workforce, and enhancing the regional workforce development boards to carry out their missions more effectively.

The next meeting of the Coordinating Committee will take place on September 22 at St. Phillips College in San Antonio from 11:00 a.m. to 2 p.m. and will be concerned with training the facilitators for the breakout sessions that will occur during the last two days of the conference, and finalizing the conference agenda including the speakers who have committed to attending. A meeting of the chairpersons for the separate breakout sessions will scheduled prior to the 22nd, but after all those chairpersons have been chosen, as many are still needed.

American Electric Power/Central Power & Light has been asked to sponsor the reception prior to the start of the conference for legislators and individuals involved in the South Texas Future of the Region Conference.

More information about the Future of the Region Conference or a conference registration brochure, please contact the Center for Economic Development at the University of Texas at San Antonio, 210-458-2476. The contact for the Conference Coordinating Committee is Ernest Gerlach, Director of the Center for Economic Development, who can be reached at 210-458-2479. The deadline for registration for the conference is October 4.

august 25, 2000

FUTURO Communities, Inc. was presented with a $5,000 grant from David Cardwell, Project Manager, and Marga Lopez-Baker, Manager of Community Services, on behalf of American Electric Power/Central Power & Light on August 15 at the FUTURO Board of Directors meeting at the Middle Rio Grande Development Center on West Main.

The President of the FUTURO Board of Directors, Judge Charles D. Johnson, and the FUTURO Executive Director, Tammye Carpinteyro received the check with great enthusiasm and appreciation for the continued generosity of AEP/CP&L toward FUTURO's efforts. The funds will be used in FUTURO's continued efforts to increase the economic potential and the spirit of cooperation in the communities within its five counties: Dimmit, La Salle, Maverick, Uvalde and Zavala.

At that time Lopez-Baker also acknowledged a further generous gift of $450 for scholarships to enable three people to attend the Grant Writing workshop August 17-19 taught by Dr. Don Udell, President of the Udell Foundation.

august 10, 2000

FUTURO Communities, Inc. will soon offer free technical assistance to grant writers working for nonprofit organizations and agencies of local government in each county within the FUTURO EC region. Every Wednesday, the FUTURO Grant Writer, Patrick Ogren, will spend at least half a day in different cities throughout the region counseling grant writers in the process of creating effective proposals and meeting the goals and objectives of the regional strategic plan.

All meetings will take place in the Middle Rio Grande Development Center offices in each city in the five FUTURO counties that includes Dimmit, La Salle, Maverick, Uvalde, and Zavala. The tentative schedule for each month is as follows: the second Wednesday in Eagle Pass in the morning from 8 a.m. to Noon, the third Wednesday in Uvalde in the morning from 8 a.m. to Noon, the fourth Wednesday in Big Wells from 8 a.m. to Noon and Cotulla in the afternoon from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., and the last Wednesday of the month (or first of the next month, as it falls) in Crystal City in the morning from 8 a.m. to Noon and in Carrizo Springs in the afternoon from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Other hours are also available if necessary and Ogren can be reached in his Uvalde office at any other time during the month for telephone consultation. This schedule is provisional, and may change depending upon demand.

The region's Middle Rio Grande Development Centers' locations are: Eagle Pass at 1200 Ferry Street, Crystal City at 315 North 1st Street, Carrizo Springs at 307 West Nopal Street, Cotulla at 707 Buckley, and Uvalde at 216 West Main Street. The meetings in Big Wells will take place either at City Hall or in the Multi-Purpose building.

The services Ogren will provide include assistance in searching for funds from Federal Notices Of Funds Available and Requests For Proposals, and private foundations for particular projects; verifying if a project meets the goals and objectives of the FUTURO Strategic Plan; tutoring in the proper format and types of attachments for a proposal; assisting in researching demographic and statistical data; and mentoring on the process involved in preparing a grant proposal. Full proposal preparation is also available on a fee-for-service basis.

august 9, 2000

FUTURO Communities, Inc. will host a Bidder's Conference on August 15 from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Uvalde Middle Rio Grande Development Center in the main conference room to be broadcast via interactive video teleconferencing to the Middle Rio Grande Development Centers in Crystal City, Eagle Pass and Carrizo Springs, and to the Cotulla ISD Distance Learning Facility in Cotulla.

The purpose of the Bidder's Conference is to review the Assistance to Agencies and Organizations RFP application - available from FUTURO after August 15th - to provide technical assistance for its preparation, and to answer any questions that may arise from it. Attendance at the conference is not mandatory to apply for the RFP, but the FUTURO staff cannot answer any questions about the application after the conference. We therefore strongly encourage anyone wishing to apply for the RFP to attend and ask his or her questions at that time.

To apply, eligible entities must be either agencies of state and local government or nonprofit organizations, and must have completed the RFP application. The application will be available at the FUTURO offices at 330 N. Getty in Uvalde or can be downloaded in PDF format from the FUTURO web site.

The purpose of the RFP is to better distribute set-aside funds from the award given to FUTURO with its designation as an Enterprise Community by the United States Department of Agriculture. FUTURO's Board of Directors has reserved from between $100,000 and $245,000 for years one and two to be designated for projects initiated by local agencies and organizations within each of the five counties that are part of the EC: Dimmit, La Salle, Maverick, Uvalde and Zavala. Each project must meet the goals and objectives of the FUTURO Strategic Plan (also available for download as a PDF from the FUTURO web site) that include housing, economic development, health, youth development and local government.

At least 51% of the beneficiaries of any program funded through this RFP must live within the FUTURO EC boundaries that include parts of Eagle Pass and Uvalde, developable sites in Maverick, Dimmit and La Salle Counties, and all of Big Wells and Crystal City. For more information about the boundaries of the EC, please contact the FUTURO offices at 830-278-6817.

The final decision for funding of each successfully chosen RFP application will be based upon a point system, points being based upon the appropriateness and strategic priority judged of the response to each question in the application. A score of 70 points or more is required for final approval.

The completed RFP applications are due by September 29th and will be reviewed by the Local Advisory Committee in each county with final recommendations passed on to the FUTURO Board of Directors who will ultimately choose which applications to fund. A final decision will be presented at the regularly scheduled Board of Directors meeting on October 17th. Assistance as a result of a successful application will be in the form of grants that will range from $2,000 to $30,000 with the average grant award being $5,000.

june 28, 2000

As part of the Southwest Border Initiative, FUTURO Communities, Inc. has been awarded the designation of Southwest Border Pilot Community. The affected counties include those in the FUTURO Region: Dimmit, La Salle, Maverick, Uvalde and Zavala, plus Val Verde County and the Kickapoo Traditional Tribe of Texas. The subsequent benefit to the region is not monetary in nature but rather focuses better the attention and response of federal agencies toward the needs of our region.

As quoted in the Pilot Program Application, "As part of its mandate, the President's Interagency Task Force on the Economic Development of the Southwest Border is establishing a demonstration project that will emphasize a well-coordinated Federal response to the economic development needs of several communities in the Southwest Border region. Under this project, Federal agencies will coordinate with state and local authorities, community leaders, the business sector, and non-governmental organizations in a small group of border communities to create the conditions necessary for sustainable economic development." This program is a direct result of the May 1999 White House Empowerment Conference hosted by the Rio Grande Valley Empowerment Zone and The University of Texas-Pan American wherein President Clinton signed Executive Order 13122 creating the Interagency Task Force on the Economic Development of the Southwest Border.

This program intends to create new jobs and increase the capacity of the economic infrastructure of the region, both of which are necessary to meet the economic needs of our communities today and far into the future. Already several projects have been assigned to the Pilot Community program for our region, including the Maverick County International Trade Center.

Judge Johnson, Dimmit County Judge and President of the FUTURO Communities, Inc. Board of Directors, said, "We are extremely proud of this historic federal designation which will provide a lasting benefit in our region. I congratulate the community leaders, planners, staff and residents who shared a positive vision for the future that resulted in this award."

The FUTURO / Middle Rio Grande Development Council Pilot Community is one of only four chosen throughout the nation.

june 9, 2000

FUTURO Communities, Inc. today received notification of funding through Housing and Urban Development's Rural Housing and Economic Development Program in the amount of $199,117. These funds will be used to build a Business Service Center in Uvalde to provide the small businesses within the FUTURO Enterprise Community region that includes Dimmit, La Salle, Maverick, Uvalde and Zavala Counties with services necessary to their long-range survival and prosperity.

In partnership with ACCION Texas, HUD and the Sul Ross State University - Rio Grande College's Small Business Development Center, FUTURO plans to install the Center in its offices within the next six months to serve the needs of small businesses. Services will include training, loan packaging (provided by an ACCION Texas Loan Officer who will reside in-house), outreach, marketing and promotion, peer/mentor assistance, research, resource and referral assistance. The center will be staffed by a full time Business Development Specialist/Trainer who will counsel small business clients, assess businesses and recommend plans of action, provide strategic planning, and assist small business in finding sources of financing, among others. This person will also plan for and provide training in such subject areas as how to develop a business plan, using accounting software, employee management and tax requirements. Many courses will be taught by professionals in the field hired on a contract basis. Four classes have already been committed to be taught by the staff of or faculty associated with the Small Business Development Center. Interactive video teleconferencing will be used to better reach the entire region.

In addition to training and direct assistance, the Center will also have a reference room containing materials such as census information databases, economic indicators, feasibility studies, How-To manuals, and grant source directories. The room will be equipped with two computers with internet access, which will also be used to track business statistics in order to better understand why businesses succeed or fail within our region. The ultimate goal of the Center is to produce business practitioners who are savvy, successful, and who provide good paying jobs to the region, in the long-range pursuit of greater sustainability within our communities.

june 8, 2000

It was announced today that FUTURO Communities, Inc. will receive a Rural Housing and Economic Development Grant in the amount of $199,177 from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. This seed support grant will be used to develop a Business Service Center to be located in the FUTURO Communities, Inc. office in Uvalde, Texas. Services to be provided by the center include training, loan packaging assistance, outreach, marketing and promotion, peer/mentor assistance, research, and resource and referral assistance. Cash and in-kind leveraging resources total $132,219 for this project. Key partners include: ACCION Texas and the Small Business Development Center. ACCION Texas will be providing loan counseling and packaging services to center visitors, while the Small Business Center has committed to teaching four classes related to small business development. As an incentive for small businessmen to utilize the benefits the center has to offer them, FUTURO agrees to pay the interest on any loans they may make with ACCION (provided they attend two classes offered by the center: business development and marketing strategies, and are in good standing for one year on their loan repayment).

The center will be staffed by a full-time Business Development Specialist who will be responsible for all activities conducted in the center toward revitalizing small business development in the five-county FUTURO Region. The center will also provide various resources that anyone interested in creating a new business or sustaining a current business will need to know.

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