Pharr bridge expansion on track; border inspection facility to open March 1

Patricia Longoria, the city engineer, told the board the dock expansion was about 63% complete, the agricultural laboratory roughly 40% complete and the international bridge expansion was "108% on time," with an estimated completion date in July 2026. She flagged relocation of irrigation-district pumps as a current schedule driver and said the crossover work was complete, with a crane set to place the international span on Feb. 20.

Longoria said the commercial vehicle parking lot work was about 56% on time with a later estimated completion date in August 2026 and that construction management responsibilities had shifted to Brownstone following the departure of senior construction inspectors.

Separately, Director Luis Bassan said the border safety inspection facility (a DPS/TxDOT-built facility completed in 2012 but not previously operational) will open March 1. He said Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and transportation companies had recently met to review truck flow and that activation of the facility adds two commercial entry/exit lanes and is an early step toward implementing FAST lanes and boosting import-lot capacity by an estimated 35–40%. "So we're finally gonna be able to utilize that and become fully operational," Bassan said.

Bassan also announced Level 1 HAZMAT inspection training in partnership with DPS for Feb. 26, offered in two sessions (morning and afternoon) with registration required; staff encouraged trade-community participation.

Board members did not vote on construction contracts or change orders during the meeting; updates were informational and staff identified remaining schedule risks tied to third-party relocations and contractor staffing changes.