By Karen Gleason
The 830 Times
Councilwoman Ernestina “Tina” Martinez recently represented the city and the Del Rio
Hispanic Chamber of Commerce at a Lubbock, Texas, ceremony marking the opening of
a four-mile section of Interstate 27 near the city.
The ceremony was held April 14.
“I went to represent the Hispanic chamber and of course, the city of Del Rio, and we
were able to network there with many different people. We had people there from San
Angelo, Lubbock and all over the state of Texas,” Martinez told The 830 Times in a
recent interview.
Martinez said Mary Mota, who serves as president of the Del Rio Hispanic Chamber,
accompanied her to the event. Mayor Pro-tem Jim DeReus also attended the ceremony. (See story here .)
Martinez said she felt it was important for both the Hispanic chamber and the city to be
represented at the event.
“We want to show them that people from Del Rio are interested and that we are also
working to bring transportation projects and businesses to Del Rio for the well-being of
Del Rio, to improve our quality of life here,” Martinez said.
She, Mota and DeReus attended the highlight of the event, a ribbon-cutting ceremony for
a portion of Interstate 27 outside of Lubbock, destined to become part of the future Ports-
to-Plains Corridor, a transportation artery that will further connect Mexico, the United
States and Canada.
“It was very interesting, and of course, one of our United States senators, Ted Cruz, also
attended,” Martinez said.
Martinez said she would like to see area elected officials focus efforts on local
transportation initiatives. One that she feels is most important is widening of U.S.
Highway 90 between Del Rio and Uvalde.
“I think that’s one of the main reasons we need to attend events like these, because
sometimes I feel like they forget about us down here. When we attend, they can see we’re
interested in having projects like that in Del Rio,” Martinez said. Martinez said she, Mota and DeReus were also able to speak with other elected officials
who attended the event, as well as with Lauren Garduno, president and chief executive
officer of the Ports-to-Plains Alliance.
The writer can be reached at delriomagnoliafan@gmail.com
