GARIBALDI, GRINGO DE MAYO, MR. AMIGO SCAMS MERGE

By Juan Montoya
Some movers and shakers of the past strove to fashion Brownsville into the next New Orleans.

That didn't work. Brownsville was a border city with unique features not present in the Crescent City.

Other more recent visionaries continue to plow millions in good public taxpayer money after bad trying to turn the city into the "mecca" for so-called "active"  tourism - emulating Austin - and building unused bike and hike trails while ignoring the need for basics like a credible drainage system, sidewalks and bus shelters in the barrios.

Apparently, celebrating the qualities Brownsville possess are not enough so organizers "mimic" everything else.

Now it's a new group that has alighted on free public funds and facilities to push for an agenda that is run or the benefit of their socioeconomic group and drinking buddies. It started with the elitist Mr. Amigo Association composed of a self-appointed board, with fiscal accountability to no one, and staging fundraising events using city facilities to fund a week-long peda in Mexico City for their chosen pals.

Since then, new players have gelled to push for inane "new traditions" like the nonsensical "Gringo de Mayo" celebrated by delusional self-described elites to drink up a storm and celebrate the life of one of their drinking buddies.

With the completion of the city's Market Square at a cost of millions to city taxpayers, they have found a free venue to "fundraise" for their special needs. The utilities are also provided free as are the facilities. Pura papita!

The latest and best is this weekend's "Una Noche en Garibaldi," another effort to fantasize that Brownsville is the next best thing to Mexico City.

The purveyors of this dubious effort are the usual suspects, Rene Cardenas, Arturo Trevino, Eliseo Davila, et al. Davila, administrative assistant to Cameron County Pct. 2 commissioner Joey Lopez, apparently has plenty of free time left on his hands to hustle for the bunch.

Cardenas is a member of the Cardenas Klan and Trevino thinks he has hit the perfect schemes to string along city commissioners and administrators need to get behind his "new traditions" schemes or hazard losing these events to McAllen. He said that, not us.

Now these "new traditions" have a new wrinkle.

Now the Mr. Amigo Association in partnership with these fine fellows are asking the Brownsville Community Improvement Corporation  and Brownsville Convention Visitors Bureau to shoulder the bill  to celebrate Mexico City Culture  at Market Square,this Saturday at 7 p.m.

You remember the BCIC cash cow. It was used by a former board to throw money away at the Brownsville Sports Park under the mistaken notion that Brownsville would be the sports center of South Texas. Alas, the city had to take over the park maintenance and operation after the BCIC hocked its future budget and proved unable to shoulder the load.

Next in line for a handout was city commissioner Rose Gowen's pet project of  hike and bike trails for the hordes of "active" tourists that have yet to appear.

The group gets free everything, including free use of the $400,000-plus electronic billboard by the BCVB. Since the BCVB has no staff and now occupies a train scale building on Ringgold and 6th streets, they got money to burn on rackets like Garibaldi.

Have you ever gone to the real Plaza Garibaldi? There are hundreds of mariachis, blocks of Mexican antojitos and the iconic El Tenampa cantina spread over acres. Like the New Orleans and Austin ideas, this is but a poor facsimile of that venue. Nothing like half a block on Market Square. And it doesn't visitors anything to enter the plaza.

And it's not cheap,either. Like Gringo de Mayo, Beerfest, etc., the Trevino-Cardenas "fundraiser", Una Noche en Garibaldi Earlybird tickets were 1 for $25 or 2 for $40 until Oct. 31st. Ticket prices  increase to 1 for $30 or 2 for $50 from Nov. 1-15. On Saturday, the day of event, tickets will be $35.

Who will share in this "fundraiser?" Like the Beerfest and Gringo de Mayo, only Cardenas, Trevino, a few St. Joe's cronies, and their accomplices on the Mr. Amigo Association will really know.

Here's the pitch:

"Plaza Garibaldi is considered the “mecca” of the Mariachis and House of the National Tequila Museum. For one night, we plan to mimic those elements in Brownsville’s “plaza” at Market Square by featuring an array of mariachis, tequila, margaritas and antojitos from the most popular restaurants in Brownsville and Matamoros.

And the hype: "The “Noche en Garibaldi” will certainly become a staple in the community and a favorite amongst festivalgoers for years to come."

Attendance is restricted to participants 21 years and over only.