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SENATE RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, The Senate of the State of Texas is pleased to |
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welcome residents of McAllen who are gathering at the State |
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Capitol on February 4, 2025, to celebrate this vibrant South |
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Texas community; and |
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WHEREAS, McAllen traces its history to 1797, when Spanish |
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settler Jose Manuel Gomez founded the Santa Anita Ranch in what |
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is now southern Hidalgo County; the ranch grew in size and was |
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eventually inherited by Mr. Gomez's great-granddaughter, Salome |
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Balli, who married John McAllen; together, they continued to add |
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to the property and renamed it McAllen Ranch; and |
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WHEREAS, In 1904, the Saint Louis, Brownsville and Mexico |
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Railroad arrived, and that same year, Mr. McAllen and other early |
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settlers formed the McAllen Townsite Company and established a |
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community named for John McAllen; other developers founded East |
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McAllen in 1907, and the two towns eventually merged and became |
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home to a growing number of businesses, churches, residences, and |
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a newspaper; by 1920, the city had a population of some 6,000 |
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residents; and |
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WHEREAS, Over the last five decades, McAllen has grown |
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into a thriving center in the Rio Grande Valley for commerce, |
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government, and business and ranks among the top 10 best cities |
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for small businesses nationwide; as a result of its retail tax |
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strength, it ranked second in sales tax per capita allocation in |
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Texas for cities over 100,000 in population in 2024, and the city |
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has one of the lowest property tax rates in the region; it |
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continues to be listed among the fastest-growing metropolitan |
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statistical areas in the country and U.S. News & World Report |
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ranked McAllen in the top 50 best places to live in the United |
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States and as the second-best place to live in Texas for |
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2024-2025; the McAllen National Incident-Based Reporting System |
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crime report recorded the lowest crime rate in the last 37 years |
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at the end of 2024; and |
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WHEREAS, McAllen is renowned for its natural beauty and is |
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home to Quinta Mazatlan, a Spanish revival estate set amid |
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sprawling tropical gardens; this unique conference and events |
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center encompasses quiet trails winding through more than 15 |
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acres of birding habitat featuring more than 500 visiting bird |
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species; and |
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WHEREAS, The city also features a rich array of cultural |
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attractions and prides itself on being a destination city with |
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more than 800 events held annually, and in 2024, the city was |
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named an IFEA World Festival and Event City for the third time; |
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the McAllen Holiday Parade, presented by H-E-B and powered by |
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Bert Ogden Auto Group, has been a popular and highly acclaimed |
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event for many years, and other world-class events held in the |
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city include the McAllen Public Library's World Languages |
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Festival and South Texas Book Festival, the South Pole |
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Illuminated Festival, MXLAN Music and Arts Festival, the McAllen |
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Marathon Scott Crane Running Series, Planta Nativa at Quinta |
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Mazatlan, and the McAllen Convention Center's CarFest; and |
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WHEREAS, McAllen has built a reputation as an outstanding |
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place to live, work, and raise a family, and its citizens may |
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indeed take great pride in the prominent role that their city |
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continues to play in the Lone Star State; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas, 89th |
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Legislature, hereby recognize February 4, 2025, as McAllen Day at |
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the State Capitol and extend to the visiting delegation sincere |
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best wishes for a memorable visit to Austin; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be prepared in |
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honor of this special occasion. |