BROWNSVILLE — Mayor John Cowen Jr. wasn’t alone in presenting his 2026 State of the City address Wednesday night, where a theater filled with city and state leaders were treated to special guests as news of anticipated high-tech projects that could boost the local economy were announced.
Vince Young, former quarterback for the 2006 national champion Texas Longhorns, was among the surprise special guests at the event, held at the Texas Southmost College Performing Arts Center. U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-TX, and U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-Brownsville, also shared sentiments via pre-recorded videos.
There are moments in football where you can feel something big is in the making, said Young, and that’s what Brownsville’s growth and momentum feels like for him.
Preceded by a standing ovation, the mayor began the evening discussing the city’s forward-momentum “with prosperity and purpose.”
At nearly 200,000 people, the largest city in the Rio Grande Valley is continuing to grow. For every one person who leaves Brownsville, three people are moving in, said Cowen, who also noted that the area was rated the fourth top metro area this year.
Cowen spoke about the first large-scale U.S. oil refinery that would be built in nearly 50 years. The $3 billion America First Refining project would bring 300 new jobs to the area.
The night’s presentations included a video appearance from U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-TX. “Brownsville’s export facility will deepen and broaden America’s energy dominance,” he said.
The port is preparing to get the America First Refining designed to run on clean power, said Cowen, with salaries expected to exceed the median income.
After the address, Cowen acknowledged that many were surprised by the oil refinery announcement and that there is an opportunity for this company to engage with the community.
“We understand the community’s (environmental) concerns, but also what the project really means,” Cowen said, curious about what a new oil refinery in the U.S. would look like given improved technology.
During the address, Cowen evoked other potential projects that would increase economic and job growth. He mentioned a potential $3.2 billion investment at the Port of Brownsville for a next-generation shipyard.
Saronic Technologies secured a $392 million production contract with the U.S. Navy for the construction of automated ships.
He said that other locations are being considered in Louisiana and Virginia, and that the company is expected to announce the location of the shipyard in the next few months.
City officials consider themselves strong contenders which is why they mentioned the project, he said later.
Cowen, who met with the executive team of Saronic Technologies, believes that the company is focused on investing in local talent. It plans to invest in schools, add 10,000 jobs, and have an average salary of $90,000 for employees.
The company would invest on a similar scale as SpaceX and would advance national defense, he said.
The Port of Brownsville itself is contributing $11.9 billion to Texas gross domestic product, according to Cowen. The port, which is celebrating 90 years, is supporting over 101,000 jobs and is working to deepen its ship channel, which would allow for larger freights.
In Cowen’s speech, interlaced with videos from city commissioners and other local officials detailing Brownsville’s improvement projects, he spoke on the continued investments from NextDecade’s Rio Grande LNG project, SpaceX, TexasLNG and more.
SpaceX has contributed $13 billion to the economy and South Texas. The company’s presence has created a ripple effect on the city, he said.
SpaceX plans to expand launches to 25 a year, which will boost tourism, continued Cowen.
In the address, Commissioner At-Large Tino Villareal noted that the city is currently in conversation with the United Soccer League to bring the first professional team to Brownsville.
Other projects cited included the repairs at Old Alice Road and more than 47,000 roadway improvements, new flights to Orlando at the Brownsville-South Padre Island International Airport, an Amazon distribution center, and the construction of the largest liquid nitrogen plant of its kind in the Valley.
Cowen also discussed the city’s various 10-year master plans, expanding health and safety, doubling the size of the Gladys Porter Zoo, and growing Brownsville’s downtown area.
Cowen spoke about the improvements in priority response calls for the police department, currently under six minutes. He said that the city would soon have new drones that would be able to reach a scene in an average of two minutes.
With concerns over water use from SpaceX and LNG projects in the Valley, the city is working to accommodate growth and water needs, Cowen told reporters after the event.
“We’re very fortunate to have a very ample supply of brackish water in the city of Brownsville,” he said, adding that the city is using its desalination plant to provide 30% of local water needs.
With work on a $34.5 million Banco Morales water shortage reservoir project, Cowen said that the city will be able to retain more water currently going into the gulf. “There’s a lot of different strategies,” he said.
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