A message from Jesús A. Garza, the City Manager of Victoria

It takes a village: The many faces of downtown’s success

This week I had the honor of speaking at the Chamber of Commerce Luncheon about my first five years serving as your city manager. As part of that hour-long presentation, I had an opportunity to provide a broad overview of the successes and challenges of the past five years: the tremendous work of our amazing executive team; our ongoing efforts to invest in our employees during that time; our progress toward becoming a more modern, efficient, accessible, transparent and results-orientated organization; and milestone projects such as the duck pond renovation, the new dog park, the De Leon Plaza expansion and the upcoming public safety headquarters, just to name a few.

I took a moment during that presentation to specifically highlight a few success stories that have only been possible due to partnerships with existing nonprofit organizations, including the partnership between the City and the Victoria Main Street Program.  I am extremely proud of the success our beautiful downtown has seen over the past five years, and I am thankful for the efforts of Economic Development Director Danielle Williams, Main Street Manager Kate Garcia and all Victoria Main Street Program board members and staff who have played a role in downtown’s success, as well as the contributions of Joel Novosad and Discover Victoria, Texas, in promoting tourism downtown. In addition, I recognize that this success would not have been possible without the support of community and business leaders who, for decades, have helped bring people downtown for business and entertainment.

There is no doubt that the success of our downtown is due to many individuals and organizations whose efforts go beyond the past five years. Our downtown is fortunate to have many longstanding employers and businesses who have had and continue to have a strong presence, including Prosperity Bank, Fossati’s, Greeks 205, Victoria College (which owns and manages the Welder Center), One O’Connor Plaza and its tenants, all the professional service offices and numerous government and religious organizations.

Furthermore, downtown revitalization efforts have been led for many years by longtime community leaders like Torin Bales; Louise Hull Patillo; JP Hull; James Gietz; James Wearden; Cliff, Cathy and Ashlie Thomas; Jimmy Burns; Bill Wendlant; Robby Burdge; Cliff and Magdalena Kuykendall; and many others. The City’s investment in downtown also began before my time; one example is the streetscape improvement project that began in 2010 and included the addition of nicer paved sidewalks and enhanced greenery downtown.

In 2011, a group of local business leaders visited Paducah, Ky., to experience firsthand what a more thriving downtown might look like. They included Dale Fowler, Amy Mundy, Randy Vivian, Jennifer Yancy, Robert Briggs and several others. Upon their return, they, along with other leaders including Louise Hull Patillo, Constance Filley Johnson, Gary Dunnam and Joni Brown, led the formation of the Victoria Main Street Program in 2012. Since that time, the Main Street Program has spearheaded many new events and assisted many new business startups in downtown.

When I came to Victoria five years ago, I knew that I wanted the City to do more to build on these efforts to help our downtown thrive. The million-dollar questions I asked myself were: How can we reinvigorate downtown Victoria so that businesses have a better chance at long-term, sustainable success? What can we do to help our downtown be more vibrant in the evenings and on weekends?

In 2021, we adopted a Downtown Master Plan that outlined transformational efforts that will bring more people downtown to live, work and play. Since that time, the City has worked to bring about several of the recommendations of the downtown master plan. These include the expansion of De Leon Plaza; the establishment of a tax increment reinvestment zone that included Victoria College and the Victoria County Navigation District, which will encourage investment in downtown; the new Building Improvement Grant (BIG) Program; and the creation of a downtown entertainment district and cultural district.

Another recommendation of the downtown master plan is to expand event programming, and this goal has come to fruition thanks to local event organizers who have made downtown the go-to place for markets, live music, performing arts, 5K and half-marathon events, networking, community outreach and much more. Downtown has also benefited from art exhibitions such as the First Friday Art Show hosted by Beau Buchholz (Moonshine Drinkery), Josh Vega and Gen Robles, which was the precursor to other artistic events such as the VTX Art Walk, managed by Claire Santellana (Crossroads Art House).

None of this would be possible without the support of longstanding nonprofits that have had a presence in downtown such as the Victoria Symphony Orchestra, Victoria Art League, Victoria Ballet Theatre, Theatre Victoria, Bach Festival, Kiwanis Club, Victoria Fine Arts Association, Victoria County Long-Term Recovery Group and Victoria Preservation Inc., amongst many others, along with the Victoria Public Library and other City departments.

The last five years have also seen a resurgence of a new generation of community leaders who have stepped up and accepted the challenge to build on the efforts established before them. These leaders include Karissa Winters (Innovation Collective), Jennifer Heibel and Jackie Winstead (Mother Cluckers Downtown), Lascena Milner Simmons (Peaches & Tortilla Mercantile), Brenda Tally (Ballet Academy of South Texas), Claire Santellana (VTX Art Walk), David and Tammy Murphy (Chik-Fil-A), Jane Williams (Things that Match and Dr. Boom Studios), Jennifer Rubio King (Water Well Café 361), Kinsey McGrew (Junek Consulting) and Melissa Flores (Blume and Flour), amongst many others. We have also seen an increase in restaurant investments from the likes of Blake and Merri Truax with Another Pour Decision and from out-of-town restaurateurs, like Roy Chavez and Andres Mendoza with El Paso Tacos & Tequila.

It is impossible to single out every person and business that has played a role, but the data over the last five years tells the complete story around the recent success of downtown. 106 new businesses have opened downtown since 2020 (including pop-ups inside incubators), nearly $11 million has been invested and 136 jobs have been created. This has been a historic five-year period thanks to all of our downtown residents, visitors, employers, retail shops, restaurants, nonprofits, local investors, out of town investors, promoters, event organizers, volunteers and many more.

To better recognize those who have contributed to downtown’s success, the City and the Victoria Main Street Program will soon launch an annual awards and appreciation dinner for our downtown businesses and stakeholders. More to come soon!

Everyone at the City, including myself, understands and appreciates that it has taken and will continue to take a village to move our downtown forward. I apologize to anybody who was offended by my remarks at the Chamber of Commerce luncheon, in which I specifically mentioned one business that has contributed to our downtown’s growth. My remarks about downtown were only a small part of the speech, and my intent was only to give an example of the impact an additional restaurant has on the success of downtown by creating additional opportunities for dining in the evenings and on weekends. Even this column is by no means a comprehensive list of all the businesses and individuals who have contributed to downtown’s success.

I appreciate everyone’s passion for our downtown and all who have been involved. If you are reading this column on social media, please help me thank every person, organization and business that has played a role by tagging them in the comments! Thank you!

Jesús A. Garza is the city manager for the City of Victoria.

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