Edinburg’s city commission voted on Oct. 6 to adopt more than 60 staff‑recommended changes to the Unified Development Code. The revisions require any data center to obtain a special‑use permit and ban such facilities in 11 zoning districts, limiting them to light‑industrial or general‑industrial zones. Mayor Omar Ochoa said the updates also reduce minimum lot sizes for homes, a change that could affect future neighborhood density.

Sandcastle Days 2026 took place on South Padre Island from October 2‑4, where world‑class carvers built large hand‑carved sand sculptures that are now slowly eroding on the beach outside the island’s biggest bar. Organizer Lucinda “Sandy‑feet” Weirenga said rain forced a schedule shift but the artists, including her nephew Emerson Weirenga Schreiner, used spray‑glue and sealed work to protect pieces, keeping the event’s spirit alive.

On Sunday evening poets such as Chuck3Deesus, Diana Joe, Carolina Monsivais and former Texas Poet Laureate Jan Seale gathered at Bentsen‑Rio Grande Valley State Park for the ‘Celebration of the Land and the People of the Rio Grande Valley.’ Organized by the RGV Women’s Poet Society and Poets Against Walls, the event blended original readings with live bird song, featuring the only Valley poets ever named Texas Poet Laureate.

The Port of Brownsville will hold a free Grand Community Celebration on Saturday at its Brownsville Business Park, with doors opening at 7:30 a.m. and activities until 4 p.m. Port chairman Sergio Tito Lopez invites Rio Grande Valley residents to enjoy guided boat and bus tours, a Kids’ Port area, live entertainment, free food and exhibits; tour spots must be reserved on Eventbrite and adults need a government‑issued photo ID.

RJ Mitte, a 34‑year‑old disability‑rights activist and president of the Mitte Foundation, died in Brownsville. The Mitte Cultural District announced his death, noting his leadership in promoting arts, inclusion and the recent designation of the area as a Texas Cultural District. Residents will note that his loss removes a key figure in Brownsville’s cultural and philanthropic community.

Physicians Dr. Muhammad Khan and Dr. Ameer Hassan at Valley Baptist Medical Center in Brownsville and Harlingen performed a world‑first bilateral Onyx 12 MMA embolization to treat a subdural hematoma on Aug. 21. The procedure uses a low‑viscosity liquid embolic glue to block blood vessels causing the bleed, and the doctors said it brings advanced care directly to patients in the Rio Grande Valley.

Brownsville police reported two fatal crashes over the weekend that killed three men. On Sunday at about 4:14 p.m., a Jeep Compass ran over 52‑year‑old bicyclist Jesse Nector Torres after he failed to stop at a stop sign on Olmito and Tulipan Streets. The previous day, a silver Chevrolet Tahoe suffered a medical emergency, collided with a Chevrolet Trax carrying 82‑year‑old Ricardo Guajardo Sr. and 47‑year‑old Jorge Arturo Guajardo, both of whom died.

The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed on Thursday the conviction and death sentence of 31‑year‑old Victor Godinez of Edinburg for the 2019 shooting of DPS Trooper Moises Sanchez. Godinez ran a red light after a drunk‑driving crash on April 6, 2019, fled, and then shot the trooper, who later died in a Houston hospital. For Rio Grande Valley residents, the ruling confirms the ultimate penalty for a local defendant.

Country singer‑songwriter Kris Kristofferson returned to the Rio Grande Valley on October 5, 1997, when he visited Brownsville for the first time since 1952. He appeared at the Gladys Porter Zoo to help publicize a fundraiser for the Brownsville Junior Service League, the organization that later became the Junior League of Brownsville.

The Cannery Public Market opened in Brownsville on Thursday, marking the completion of a four‑year renovation of the 1940s dome‑topped building at 1700 E. Sixth St. City Manager Alan Guard and other officials highlighted its new spaces for the weekly Brownsville Farmers Market, a Food Bank hub, a commercial kitchen and outdoor cooking area, with a grand‑opening celebration scheduled for Saturday.

About ten school‑district races will decide more than twenty board seats on the November 3 general election in Hidalgo County. Voters in Edinburg, Pharr‑San Juan‑Alamo, Weslaco and Donna districts will choose among incumbents and newcomers, with several open seats such as Edinburg Place 5 and Weslaco Place 4, making these contests especially relevant for local families.

During the 1847 U.S.–Mexico War, Irish-born deserter John Riley fought for Mexico at Fort Brown, helped form the Batallón de San Patricio and was captured at the Battle of Churubusco on Aug. 20, 1847, receiving fifty lashes and a D brand. Over 160 years later, New York native Eric Ellman heard the San Patricios story on the Rio Grande in Brownsville from musician Adrian Foncerrada while promoting a kayaking grant, and they bonded over Irish music.

Bank and city officials announced Thursday that Lone Star National Bank and McAllen are extending their partnership to sponsor the Wild Brite South Pole Illuminated Festival and the McAllen Holiday Parade. The new LSNB Kids Free Days will let children under 12 enter the festival free on selected Wednesdays, aiming to draw more families to the holiday attractions.

Former Hidalgo County detention officer Luis Enrique Vega, 30, was charged Thursday with official oppression after an investigation showed he struck a handcuffed inmate’s face multiple times on Sept. 8 at about 8:30 p.m. in the Hidalgo County Detention Center. The sheriff’s office said Vega was placed on leave, terminated Monday, and released on a $2,500 bond.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers seized nearly $800,000 worth of alleged cocaine at the Hidalgo International Bridge on Sept. 27 after a black Chevrolet truck from Reynosa was sent to secondary inspection. Non‑intrusive equipment and a K‑9 team detected anomalies and the scent of narcotics, leading officers to recover 22 packages totaling about 60 pounds. Homeland Security Investigations agents opened a criminal investigation.

The Brownsville City Commission unanimously approved the first reading of an ordinance to pause permitting of data centers, moving toward a 90‑day moratorium that would begin the day after a second reading on Nov. 4. Mayor John Cowen Jr. and Commissioner Linda Macias emphasized protecting water resources, and the moratorium would halt acceptance, processing and approval of high‑intensity data‑process facilities within the city and its extraterritorial jurisdiction.

The Brownsville Community Improvement Corporation revised its 2025‑2029 Strategic Plan after a June workshop, aligning it more closely with the city’s Downtown Renaissance Master Plan and clarifying its role as a connector for businesses. The amended plan retains its five overarching goals and adds a new focus area that links aspiring and existing entrepreneurs with education, mentorship and technical assistance, aiming to strengthen local entrepreneurship.

Weslaco Mayor Adrian Gonzalez announced that the city’s property‑tax rate for fiscal year 2026‑27 was cut to .6678 per $100 valuation, a reduction of roughly two cents from the previous .6867 rate. The change, approved at the regular commission meeting on September 15, is intended to keep overall tax revenue steady while maintaining city services such as drainage and street improvements.

Emails obtained from a September 2025 open‑records request reveal that Roy Rodriguez, then interim general manager of Harlingen WaterWorks, and former assistant manager David Sanchez discussed with John Metz, senior vice president of Eneus Energy, whether the WaterWorks agreement could be kept out of the public arena. The deal would provide Rio Grande Valley Property Group up to 4.7 million gallons of treated sewer water daily in exchange for roughly $1.2 million a year.

A Cameron County jury spent three hours and 15 minutes Thursday finding 21‑year‑old Rogelio Martinez guilty of capital murder for the Oct. 17, 2023 shooting that killed San Benito police Lt. Milton Resendez, a 27‑year veteran, after a chase that began on South Padre Island. Mario Perea thanked District Attorney Luis V. Saenz, said justice was served, and noted prosecutors are seeking the death penalty; Martinez showed no emotion.

Jurors began deliberating at 11:10 a.m. Thursday in the capital‑murder trial of 21‑year‑old Rogelio Martinez, accused of fatally shooting San Benito police Lt. Milton Resendez on Oct. 17, 2023, after a chase from South Padre Island to Brownsville. Martinez has pleaded not guilty; prosecutors are seeking the death penalty, while his co‑defendant Espinosa Valdez previously pleaded guilty to a lesser murder charge.

Four men—Mario “Chencho” Alejandro Sanchez, Orlando Olaguer Rabadan, John Phuc Phan and Hector “Cuatro” Jesus Martinez Jr.—were arrested Monday for the murder of Eric Garcia, who was found with multiple stab wounds in a San Juan parking lot on North Veterans Boulevard Saturday around 2:21 a.m. Police noted a blood‑stained white Ford Expedition and a red Cadillac driven by Phan at the scene, and surveillance footage matched the suspects.

State and defense attorneys rested their cases Wednesday in the Rogelio Martinez death‑penalty trial after jurors viewed an interview in which the 21‑year‑old defendant admits to the Oct. 17, 2023 shooting that killed San Benito police Lt. Milton Resendez. Martinez tells Texas Ranger Patrick O’Connor he fired only to scare officers and protect children in the red GMC truck, while the chase spanned South Padre Island, Brownsville and San Benito.

The Brownsville City Commission advanced a 90‑day moratorium on new data‑center projects on Tuesday after its second of three public hearings, with a final hearing and the first vote scheduled for Wednesday. Commissioners also appointed the last member to the Environmental and Conservation Task Force, which will issue a preliminary report in December and a final report by March 2027.