AMERIQUE:


A NOTE FROM THE EDITOR: It is the unspoken statistic, but it is as real as anything to do with the lingering U.S. war efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan. According to the military, 1,800 American servicemen have killed themselves since the initial invasion of Baghdad. That is in addition to the more than 4,000 who died in battle. This week, families of the soldiers who committed suicide asked President Barack Obama to change the government policy of not forwarding letters of appreciation to mothers and fathers of these servicemen. By week's end, the White House had reversed the policy and agreed that such letters are needed, as well... - Eduardo Paz-Martinez, Editor of The Tribune

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

In Harlingen, A Crippling Blow For Passive Mayor Chris Boswell...

By ELIOT ELCOMEDOR
Staff Writer

HARLINGEN, Texas - They voted for a new city manager here last night, and the lingering result isn't so much that the favorite got the job, but that the unanimous vote said something big about the local mayor's standing in town. Mayor Chris Boswell awoke this morning with Carlos Yerena as the new city manager, a man he did not exactly endorse - at least not publicly.

Boswell, often characterized as a lame-duck political figurehead with insular ideas from a bygone time, is said to have wanted Interim City Manager Gabriel Gonzalez. It did not happen,as the Harlingen City Commission, in rare consensus action, voted 5-0 for Yerena, the city manager of Kingsville until last night.

As expected, Yerena, a native of nearby San Juan and a former city manager of Donna, said what many expected him to say: “I just wanted to come back to the Valley. I want to be a community wide oriented city manger. I want to serve all the citizens of Harlingen with no dividing lines."

Welcome to a new dawning in town. That, at the very least, is the dream, here in a town often polarized by a battle between those who wish no change and those who wish a myriad of changes. For Boswell (shown in photo above this story), always aligned with the so-called Old Guard, the selection of Yerena looms as a crippling blow to his power in local politics. Even his staunchest ally, the novice Commissioner Kori Marra, voted for the 40-year-old Yerena. Boswell, as mayor, only votes when an issue draws a numerical tie. He reportedly took the vote in guarded stride, saying only that he hoped things would go well for Yerena and for the city.

Not lost on the struggling community that has seen itself fall in the area's standings on tax revenues is the perception that Boswell simply is not exhibiting any sort of leadership. His passive, Hugh Beaumont-style has seemed at odds with the many high-publicity problems that have danced into town in recent months. Boswell has largely ignored Harlingen's long, hot summer.

For Yerena, the challenge will be to rally an entire town. As is usually the case in appointed positions that rest on the whims of a vote, his job will go smoothly so long as he has the backing of a majority of the city commission. There are issues to resolve and Yerena jumps in feet-first, seemingly ready and able to tackle such issues as a police department in disarray, a lack of promotion of the city to big business and a perception in town and the area that Harlingen suffers from terminal malaise.

And so Yerena begins his moment in the loneliest cantina between McAllen and Brownsville. Will he take the little lady out on the dance floor, or will he assume the wallflower position at the far end of the bar? Much is riding on his ability to flirt, to parry, to move to the music...

- 30 -

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Good post, some of us involved in local politics hope this silly town gets moving, like the rest of the LRGV. There is nothing to do in Harlingen, nothing.

Anonymous said...

There are a lot of people in Kingsville who are really glad that Yerena was selected. GOOD LUCK!!