Continue reading »]]> By MARTHA McCLAIN
Special to the PRESS

Laguna Vista’s Veterans Memorial Park stands in quiet stillness at dusk earlier this week while the park’s lights beautifully illuminate its centerpiece monument. (Staff photo by Ray Quirgoa)

The Laguna Vista community will observe Memorial Day on Monday to commemorate the men and women in the US military who gave their lives in defense of their country, and to honor all veterans who have served.

In what has become an annual event, the “Always Honor, Never Forget” parade down FM 510 is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. at the Laguna Vista Library.

“We encourage everyone to decorate their golf carts, vehicles, bikes, boats and trailers for the parade,” City Manager Rolando Vela said. A police escort will lead the parade to the Veterans Memorial Park where the parade will conclude.

The ceremony starts at 4:30 p.m. at the Memorial and will feature various speakers and the performance of Taps. It is located between Taylor Avenue and Santa Isabella Blvd

Engraved bricks to honor the service of all veterans have been installed at the Memorial and may be purchased on Memorial Day at the site. The bricks measure 8 by 8 inches and cost $50.

Space allows for 750 bricks to be placed in the park.

Certain guidelines for wording on the bricks will have been imposed to ensure respectful tributes. Veterans may purchase the bricks, or non-veterans can buy a brick to honor a friend or loved one. Wording on the brick could include the name, military rank, branch of service and possibly the war or campaign in which the honoree served.

The brick tribute was initiated by the Laguna Vista Parks Board, which recommended implementation of the plan to the Town Council. Brick may also be purchased by calling Laguna Vista City Hall at 943-1297.

The Memorial is one of the recently upgraded Town parks in the $1.5 million certificates of obligation program over the past year.

Continue reading »]]> By SASHA HELLER
Managing Editor
edi...@portisabelsouthpadre.com 

The Point Isabel Independent School District (PIISD) Board on Tuesday approved a five percent general pay increase for teachers and a five percent from midpoint raise for administrative, professional, clerical and paraprofessional employees and auxiliary personnel.

“It’s the first general pay increase in three years,” said superintendent Dr. Lisa Garcia.

Discussions about a raise initially began at two percent. However, that figure continued to rise during the Board’s talks and they ultimately settled on the five percent figure.

Garcia explained how the negotiations unfolded. She said the Board contracted earlier in the school year with the Texas Association of School Boards (TASB) to conduct a review of the district’s overall salary structure. Garcia said the goal of the study was to ensure PIISD’s salaries were competitive with comparable school districts.

“We started in February in meetings with the Board,” Garcia said, adding that the Board members wanted more for the district’s employees. “The Board of Trustees felt like a robust general pay increase was necessary to retain and attract the best teachers.”

In other business, the Board approved:

• Contracting architectural services with Gignac Architects of Harlingen at a fee of six percent

• Contracting with Gignac Architects to develop a plan for concession stand/restroom facilities and security booth/storage facility

• Contracting with TREMCO Incorporated Weatherproofing Technologies Inc. of Beechwood, Ohio for roof repairs and maintenance program at Darry Elementary

• Purchasing 30 iPads for use by teachers and students

• 2013-14 optional flexible school day program

• PIISD staff to attend and present at the National Council for Community and Education Partnership/GEAR UP Conference in San Francisco, Calif. on July 14-17

• Port Isabel Junior High School’s junior class to visit Texas A&M campus in Kingsville, Texas A&M at Corpus Christi and a Corpus Christi Hooks baseball game.

Continue reading »]]> By CHRISTINA R. GARZA
Staff Writer
pre...@portisabelsouthpadre.com 

William Thomas Edwards, Jr.

A man is behind bars for allegedly kidnapping and raping a local woman.

On May 16, South Padre Island police officer Manuel Ochoa responded to a call to a convenience store on the 2900 block of Padre Boulevard, where a woman with bodily injuries alleged that a William Thomas Edwards, Jr. – a man whose place of residency has yet to be determined – held her captive for two days while raping and assaulting her.

According to the police report the woman was hobbling due to back pain from injuries she says she suffered at Edwards’ hands.

The woman displayed severe bruising to the right side of her face. The woman alleged that 6 foot, 1 inch-tall Edwards inflicted the injuries on her when Edwards held her captive at her residence starting on Tuesday, May 14.

The woman alleged that during the two-day period Edwards beat her, held a gun to her head and made her fear for her life while he continuously assaulted her. After speaking to the woman, officers made their way to her residence and arrested Edwards. He faces charges that include aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, kidnapping, and aggravated sexual assault. Edwards was transported to the city jail before being transfer to county jail.

Continue reading »]]> By AARIN HARTWELL
Special to the PRESS

Parking issues on the Island dominated the City Council meeting last Wednesday, March 15, at City Hall on South Padre Island.

Discussion of the city’s convention center renovation and expansion and proposed seasonal parking permit brought many spectators to the audience of the meeting.

Business owners and members of the community waited patiently as the mayor and council attended to each item on the schedule with the majority of the onlookers anticipating agenda item 12, the discussion and action regarding the city’s proposed beach user fee (paid parking) and guidance to amend Chapter 22, Dune Protection, Beach Re-nourishment, and Access Plan to include the proposed beach user fee.

According to an interview with Council member Sam Listi, city manager Joni Clarke, and Coastal Resources Manager Reuben Torres, Listi said, “The city is considering paid parking because both county parks have paid parking. This causes guests to bypass the county parks causing overflow parking on Gulf Boulevard.”

Kerry Schwartz, owner of Island Native Surf Shop and President of The South Padre Island Business Owners Association (SPI BOA) spoke Wednesday to the council about the Business’ Owners opinion of the beach user fee (paid parking).

“SPI Business Owners Association is very committed to providing SPI visitors a very friendly, enjoyable, relaxing experience while visiting SPI. Tourism is the only industry on SPI and it is tourism that fuels our economy. It is important for the Island to embrace tourists and provide a very welcoming experience. Anything less it not acceptable,” said Schwartz.

The local BOA’s position against the parking proposal presented to the City Council was believed not to be consistent with what they deemed “promoting tourism.”

Schwartz requested that the Council allow the Business Owners Association to be involved in creating solutions for the parking problem. The issue was tabled pending a meeting with the Business Owners Association.

SPI BOA plans to work with the Property Owners Who Care, Surfrider Foundation and the city to come up with a viable solution.

However, this is no new issue for the City of South Padre. The City Council has sought solutions for the parking problem, such as parking meters and ticket kiosks, for the last four years. After ruling out the options for logistical reasons, the GLO granted permission to charge a beach user fee, pending the details as to the rate and method of implantation. The council proposed its first beach user-parking fee to the GLO in February.

After being denied by the GLO for the plans’ high rates resulting in potential discrimination to the day-trippers, the city discussed new options for rates and general logistics of the parking permit at Wednesday’s meeting.

“The funds collected from the proposed plan will be used for beach walkovers, beach maintenance and improvements for Gulf Boulevard,” said Listi.

Under the Texas Open Beaches Act, it is required that all fees associated with access to the beach are re-invested into maintaining the beach.

“The City Council is looking at all the options and how to best implement the program because our situation is unique being a coastal community, and we have to take into consideration safety issues as well,” said city manager Joni Clarke.

Council member Listi suggested multiple passes can be used.

“If a solution can be reached its going to have to be a daily, three-day or yearly pass, or a combination of those somehow,” said Listi.

According to Councilman Listi, others prefer a flat fee.

Clarke said the Council has already restricted overnight cul-de-sac parking and parking on residential side streets so to ensure safety vehicles have access.

Community member Nikki Charvat, disagreed with the restriction and is concerned that paid parking will worsen the problem.

“I own a condo that was built before contractors were required by a building code to have a parking space for each unit. Before side street parking was restricted, I was able to park pretty close to my home. It’s frustrating that I have to park and walk five blocks to get to my home when I live across the street from both a parking lot and cul-de-sac that remains empty after 9 p.m.,” said Charvat.

Charvat also is concerned about the current building codes.

“They already don’t have enough parking in the town, but are still allowing new buildings to come up without legitimate parking spaces for them. They are not using the standard parking and building codes,” said Charvat.

Charvat suggests that current homeowners be grandfathered in to any new proposition that prohibits property owners from parking in these restricted areas.

Community member Mary Volz asked the Council, “What happens if you sell parking passes and there is no place for the people to park that have passes? Will they get a refund?”

The City has been actively searching for solutions to the parking issue.

According to Torres, there are three to four beach cul-de-sacs that could be improved by development, potentially resulting in 120 spaces if funding was available.

“The problem is we don’t have the funding to commit to this development now. We would first need to implement the paid parking to accrue money for this process,” said Torres.

The Texas Open Beaches Act requires one space per 15 linear feet, which translates to South Padre as 1,620 parking spaces. According to the Beach Parking System Draft sent to the GLO, South Padre has recorded 2,186 parking spaces available for beach goers, which is 34 percent more than what is required by the Open Beaches Act.

“The way we see it approximately 25 percent of the total identified parking spaces would have a beach user fee, leaving 75 percent of parking on the island free,” said Torres.

South Padre is one of the very few beach communities in Texas without a beach user fee. Galveston, Corpus Christi, Surfside, Nueces County and Port Aransas participate in beach user fee parking programs, according to Torres

“Three of the other cities’ beach programs share annual pass programs, which is what we are proposing,” said Torres.

Beginning June 1, the City’s free public transportation bus, The Wave, will begin a designated beach route that will circle remote identified parking lots to enable visitors to different beach accesses. Visitors would be expected to use this transportation to the beach.

Marcy Newman, Public Works Director for South Padre is currently in Florida attending the International Parking Institute Conference.

Continue reading »]]> By CHRISTINA R. GARZA
Staff Writer
pre...@portisabelsouthpadre.com 

Luis Garcia Marin

Yolanda Marin, wife of alleged domestic terrorist Luis Garcia Marin insists he is innocent of the charges.

The Port Isabel-South Padre Press reported online that Garcia Marin was charged with making terroristic threats after reporting a suspicious looking package to Fire Marshall Rodrigo Garcia on Wednesday, April 24.

According to Yolanda, she and her husband had taken one of their sons to the Boys and Girls Pediatric Clinic and her husband had remained outside to smoke a cigarette when he saw the free newspaper stand. He decided to get a free paper and noticed the package, Yolanda said, adding that her husband read “TNT” written on the package and feared for the safety of his wife and child inside the building and quickly alerted authorities. The clinic was evacuated and Yolanda said her husband was called a hero.

The investigators, however, turned their eyes to Garcia Marin. He went in for a polygraph test on May 10 and was sent to Cameron County Jail after investigators reported that he failed the test. It was also reported by police that enough probable cause to warrant the hero-turned-suspect’s arrested was obtained. “This is an injustice, he is innocent,” Yolanda said.

Garcia Marin is undocumented, according to Yolanda, and wouldn’t jeopardize his family, she said. The Marins have three school-age children together and two children from Yolanda’s previous relationship. Yolanda said the incident has affected her children.

“I talked to the Mexican Consulate and they advised me to get a lawyer and demand proof,” she said.

Yolanda also said this has led her to distrust the Port Isabel Police Department. “If I see anyone breaking the law, I will be afraid to report it because I don’t want to be charged with a crime,” Yolanda said.

Still, members of the PIPD Investigation Unit reportedly viewed a recording from the clinic which allegedly shows Marin walking by the front entrance while carrying a box underneath his right arm, that is before walking out of view. Minutes later, Marin is seen walking with Fire Marshal Rodrigo Garcia to the site of the box, according to authorities involved in the case.

Continue reading »]]> PRESS Staff Report

Sasha Heller

The Port Isabel-South Padre Press has hired award-winning journalist Sasha Heller to serve as the paper’s managing editor.

The Atlanta native joins the staff after working as the reporter at The Pampa News, a daily in the Panhandle. Heller has also worked as a news editor for The Enterprise-Tocsin in Indianola, Miss.; reporter at The Rio Grande Sun in Espanola, N.M.; and staff writer at the Daphne Bulletin in Daphne, Ala.

Heller won a Best Investigate Series first-place award in 2010 from the Mississippi Press Association. For that series, Heller wrote seven articles covering the Mississippi Department of Education’s (MED) historic audit of the Sunflower County School District (SCSD). The audit uncovered that SCSD had failed all 37 of the state’s accreditation standards. Heller interviewed school officials, teachers, students and parents to provide in-depth reporting of the monumental education scandal.

Most recently, Sasha won a Best Features second-place award in 2012 from the Panhandle Press Association. That award covered two feature articles: one was about a Pampa native who had spent the last few years in Afghanistan helping set up the wartorn nation’s medical infrastructure; and the second feature shared the story of a Vietnam veteran reuniting with a South Vietnamese translator he had served with during the war. The veteran had nearly shot the translator one night by mistake, thinking the translator was a member of the Vietcong. Forty years later, the veteran was speaking about the war with a lawyer from Chicago who asked if he could interview the veteran, to which he said of course. The lawyer later uploaded the video of the interview to YouTube. The Vietnamese translator saw the video on YouTube and then sought out the person who had uploaded it. The lawyer then connected the translator with the veteran and they rekindled their friendship.

Heller is a 2008 graduate of Georgia Southwestern State University.

“I bring a wealth of experience to this paper and am excited about the opportunity,” Heller said.

Sasha is a versatile young, creative editor who understands the meaning of community journalism.

“My journey of self-discovery has led me to your doorstep, Port Isabel and South Padre Island,” he said. “Show me what you have to offer.”

Continue reading »]]> By CHRISTINA R. GARZA
Staff Writer
pre...@portisabelsouthpadre.com 

Luis Garcia Marin

Authorities here have arrested a man whom they believe was at the center of an apparent bomb threat that caused panic in the community and temporarily shut-down a popular shopping center in Port Isabel in late April.

On Friday, May 10, authorities arrested Luis Garcia Marin, partly based on evidence gathered from a video surveillance camera, Port Isabel police said. Marin, police records show, was the person who initially reported the suspicious package.

On Wednesday, April 24 of this year, a suspicious package was reported to Port Isabel Fire Marshal Rodrigo Garcia by Garcia Marin. The package was placed on a newspaper rack near the Dollar Tree store located off of Hwy 100 in Port Isabel. The Brownsville Police Department Bomb Squad was also called in to investigate and detonate the bomb if needed. The package, however, was empty.

The Port Isabel Police Department Investigation Unit launched an investigation to determine who had placed the suspicious package at the location. After viewing a recording from the Boys and Girls Pediatric Clinic, investigators turned their attention to Marin, the man who had initially reported the suspicious package. In the video, Marin is allegedly seen walking by the front entrance of the clinic while carrying a box underneath his right arm, before walking out of view. Minutes later, Marin is seen walking with the Fire Marshall Garcia to the site of the box.

After failing a polygraph test, Marin was arrested on Friday, May 10, and charged with making terroristic threats, a third degree felony.

His bond was set at $5,000 and Marin was transported the Cameron County Detention Center. A hold for deportation has been placed on Marin by the federal investigators who assisted in the investigation. The reason behind this alleged threat remains unclear at this time.

Continue reading »]]> Special to the PRESS

Billy Joe Jeffers

Port Isabel resident Billy Joe Jeffers pleaded guilty Thursday to possession with intent to promote child pornography.

Judge Rolando Olvera of the 445th state District Court sentenced Jeffers to eight years in prison.

Jeffers, 53, was arrested in November after FBI special agents found several images and videos of child pornography on desktop and laptop computers at his residence.

“These children are repeatedly victimized when individuals distribute child pornography,” District Attorney Luis V.

Saenz said. “His flagrant use of the Internet to distribute images to strangers should be a red flag for parents to monitor their children’s use. The Internet is a playground for pedophiles.”

An individual who had chatted with Jeffers contacted authorities after Jeffers sent a video of a child performing sexual acts.

Upon his arrest, Jeffers admitted to receiving and distributing child pornography via a private chat room on the Internet.

The amount of child pornography found did not meet the U.S. Attorney’s Office threshold for prosecution in federal court.

The case was transferred to the Cameron County District Attorney’s Office.

Assistant District Attorney Korina Barraza prosecuted the case.

Continue reading »]]> Special to the PRESS

City of Port Isabel officials and local residents will meet with representatives from Smart Growth America on May 21 and 22, 2013 as part of a free, grant-funded technical assistance program. The workshop will aim to give Port Isabel the tools it needs to leverage community assets and create a sustainable growth plan for the city.

“Port Isabel’s history and character set us apart, and the City works hard to maintain those assets,” said Mayor Joe E. Vega. “We want to make sure Port Isabel stays a great place to live and visit for generations to come and we want to do that in the best way possible. That’s what next week’s workshop is about.

City of Port Isabel residents are invited to join the workshop’s first day for an introductory presentation that will feature a broad overview of strategies for implementing smart growth strategies. The event will be held Tuesday, May 21, 2013 from 6:30–8:00 PM at the Port Isabel City Hall, 305 East Maxan Street, Port Isabel 78578.

“Smart Growth America is committed to providing training to help community leaders keep cities and towns livable, sustainable and vital places,” said Roger Millar, Director of Smart Growth America’s Leadership Institute. “Port Isabel has the potential to create and implement great sustainable plans for the future of their city. This workshop will give city officials the tools needed to start a conversation about smart growth strategies and the value it can bring to their community.”

In November 2012, the City of Port Isabel was one of 22 communities selected by Smart Growth America to participate in the free technical assistance program. Stretching from Maine to Washington State, these communities represent major cities, suburban centers, and rural towns alike.

The program, made possible through a five-year Building Blocks for Sustainable Communities grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Sustainable Communities, seeks to develop local planning solutions that help communities grow in ways that benefit families and businesses, while protecting the environment and preserving a sense of place. Three other nonprofit organizations—Forterra, Global Green USA and Project for Public Spaces—also received competitively awarded grants under this program to help communities get the kinds of development they want.

As a national leader in the field, Smart Growth America has accumulated extensive experience working with communities to help them use land strategically, make the most of existing resources and invest strategically to catalyze private development.

Continue reading »]]> Special to the Parade

The turtles have begun their 2013 nesting season on South Padre Island, and Sea Turtle Inc. organizers are hoping for another record breaking year.

To mark the start of the nesting season, the public is asked to join in this year’s Turtle Days “Shellabration.” The Annual Lighting of the Tiki Torches will take place on Friday, May 17, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

The King and Queen of Sargassum will be joined by their royal floatilla (any non-motorized vessel such as kayaks or sailboats), as they make their way along the banks of the Laguna Madre.

Individuals interested in joining the royal floatilla are being asked to meet at the Parrot Eyes’ dock at 5:30 p.m.

The floatilla will depart between 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. and arrive at Palm St. Pier, 204 W. Palm, at approximately 6:30 p.m.

Family entertainment at Palm St. Pier includes the Island Drummers, a beautiful performance by the Aloha Hula Dancers of McAllen, The Happy Band and a fire twirling exhibition at dusk.

For more information, call (956) 371-9120. Don’t miss this fun-filled “Shellabration” for the whole family.