Engineering firm Garver has opened a new $5 million regional office and Water Design Center in Harlingen, consolidating its local operations into a 25,000-square-foot facility and setting up what city and company officials say could be as many as 50 additional jobs in the coming years. The firm cut the ribbon on the building on October 13, with Harlingen Mayor Norma Sepulveda, state Rep. Janie Lopez, Harlingen Economic Development Corporation CEO Orlando Campos, Water Design Center manager Ernie Flores and Garver CEO Brock Hoskins all on hand for the ceremony.
The new facility currently employs 54 people, according to the RGV Business Journal, which also reported the office has room for up to 100 employees — though the Harlingen EDC had earlier described the building as designed to accommodate 100 to 130 employees. As for location, the RGV Business Journal and the Harlingen EDC both placed the project at the southeast corner of Ed Carey Drive and Hale Avenue, while myRGV.com described the finished building as sitting at Victoria Lane and Hale Avenue.
Garver first established its Harlingen Water Design Center in 2017, according to Texas Border Business, and the company's workforce there has grown from 49 employees when the project broke ground to the current 54, the RGV Business Journal reported. The new regional office is meant to support infrastructure projects throughout South Texas and beyond, and it formally consolidates Garver's existing Harlingen operations under one roof, according to the Rio Grande Guardian.
A Push for 50 More Jobs, Tied to Wage Commitments
Garver has committed to hiring up to 50 new engineering and technical employees over the next five years in the area, per the Rio Grande Guardian. Those new hires would come with wage commitments attached: the same report's account of the expansion aligns with myRGV.com's reporting that Garver pledged wages of at least $15 an hour and salaries of $50,000 or more as part of the deal. In exchange, the Harlingen EDC offered the company an incentive package worth up to $550,000, myRGV.com reported.
At the ribbon-cutting, Harlingen EDC CEO Orlando Campos praised Garver's continued commitment to the region, saying the investment demonstrates confidence in the city's community, workforce and future, according to the Rio Grande Guardian. Water Design Center manager Ernie Flores said the new office allows the firm to grow while continuing to serve clients and support the community, the Guardian reported. Mayor Sepulveda, for her part, emphasized the role public-private partnerships play in bringing high-tech engineering jobs to the Rio Grande Valley, saying the investment reflects what public and private sectors can accomplish with a shared vision.
Water and Wastewater Work Anchors the New Hub
The Garver Water Design Center focuses on planning, design, construction and operation of water and wastewater treatment facilities, according to the Rio Grande Guardian, and the center's own description, per Garver's website, says the model unites multidisciplined teams of engineers dedicated solely to water and wastewater projects across multiple company locations. Garver has used a similar playbook elsewhere: in Greenville, South Carolina, the company's Water Design Center was expected to create close to 100 downtown jobs, according to the Post and Courier, with the firm hiring 25 employees there before expecting to reach 30 to 40 by year's end on its way toward a goal of 100.
Beyond the jobs pipeline, Garver has contributed more than $59,000 to local schools, colleges and nonprofit organizations, with most of that giving focused on boosting STEM education for K-12 and postsecondary students across the Valley, Texas Border Business reported.
Office Anchors a Larger 70-Acre Development
The new Water Design Center sits within a larger 70-acre mixed-use development near Harlingen's medical district, according to Texas Border Business. The master-planned area, developed by the Harlingen EDC in partnership with the City of Harlingen, is slated to include retail, medical and professional office space, high-density residential housing and roughly 312,000 square feet of commercial space, per the Rio Grande Guardian. Officials project the broader development would be completed by 2035, myRGV.com reported.
