By DUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ
BROWNSVILLE, Texas |...He's taken a page out of Harlingen Mayor Norma Sepulveda's "Coffee With The Mayor," and we would bitch at him for being a copycat but must concede that Mayor John Cowen is at last finally doing something he's neglected.
Hanging with the community is not his strength.
Cowen, shown in photo above at the microphone during his session with locals at Luby's Cafeteria (Sunrise Mall), is something of a friend of Miss Sepulveda, who began her "Coffee With The Mayor" offerings soon after being elected earlier this year.
This from the City of Brownsville's official website: [ Brownsville Mayor John Cowen Jr. held his inaugural Coffee with the Mayor where he provided community members with the chance to engage in an informal conversation with him.
Dozens of community members attended.
"I think it’s important to be able to connect with the community and be able to have to have those face-to-face conversations. I know some people are commenting that elected officials sometimes aren’t there to answer their questions and I want to have that face-to-face approach," first-term Mayor Cowen said.
Cowen discussed several topics at the event such as SpaceX, Rio Grande LNG, economic growth in the City of Brownsville, industrial development, and the revitalization of downtown Brownsville.
Cowen told the audience that 85% of the individuals employed by SpaceX are Brownsville residents which is an example of the talent that can be found in the community.
The mayor said Rio Grande LNG is expected to provide between 350 to 400 long-term jobs with salaries at about $70,000.
Cowen also spoke about some of the projects the city is working on including road improvements, the Lit-Fiber BTX, and the expansion of the Gladys Porter Zoo.
"Our zoo is one of our most valuable assets that makes us really special in Brownsville. It’s the biggest tourism driver South of Corpus Christi. Over half a million people come and visit us here every year," Cowen said.
The mayor said he was pleased by the large turnout (Editor's note: "Dozens" not quite fully visible in the photo, however, so...) and to address the questions posed by the community members. "Part of my vision for this office is to be more approachable and to have that direct face-to-face relationship with the community," Cowen said.
Cowen plans to hold Coffee with the Mayor events quarterly throughout the city’s four districts. ]
It's long been suggested here that the new mayor do something like this. We believe the coffee session took place this morning. The COB website dated its post today, Dec. 14th.
Not exactly an outgoing, extroverted dude, Cowen seems more the reserved sort of public servant. His fellow mayors in Harlingen and McAllen are outgoing personalities out & about in their communities, visible in all sorts of settings.
Perhaps Cowen is now working on it...
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Cowen is not a natural politician. It shows, doesn't it?
ReplyDeleteHe's a quiet guy.
DeleteIt's funny but his Uncle Ralph is the opposite of John. But you're right, he'll grow into the job.
ReplyDeleteI notice there isn't much about Cowen in the blogs. They all used to rave over and then rag former Mayor Trey Mendez. Is it because Cowen is Anglo? That would be shitty. Too much deference, I say.
ReplyDelete