Wednesday, August 6, 2025 – BROWNSVILLE, TEXAS – The Brownsville Community Improvement Corporation (BCIC) has adopted its 2025-2029 Strategic Plan. The planning process began in early 2024 and was shaped by input from community voices, including entrepreneurs, educators, artists, students, residents, and civic leaders through focus groups, public forums, and stakeholder interviews. Their feedback highlighted what matters most to Brownsville, including improving quality of life, creating more family-friendly spaces, supporting small businesses, revitalizing downtown, and retaining local talent.
The strategic plan is built around five core goals: enhancing community well-being through quality of life projects, parks, green spaces, and public events; strengthening entrepreneurship and small business support through programs at the eBridge Center and increased access to capital; revitalizing downtown Brownsville through grants, business recruitment, and public art initiatives; building strong cross-sector partnerships to address workforce development, public health, and economic mobility; and advancing organizational development to ensure BCIC remains agile, effective, and focused on community impact.
“BCIC knows that when done well, economic development and public wellness are not mutually exclusive opponents; they are instead mutually reinforcing, synergistic partners. […] This plan’s goals are thoughtful, robust, and achievable. A ‘vibrant’ Brownsville is ready for families, entrepreneurs, community programmers, artists, tourists, and more. BCIC is in the midst of all… ready to achieve.” – Dr. Rose M. Z. Gowen, BCIC Board Chair
The new plan builds upon the momentum of BCIC’s 2021 to 2025 Strategic Plan, which laid the groundwork for transformational projects such as the eBridge Center for Business and Commercialization, a public and private partnership that now serves as the region’s hub for entrepreneurship, innovation, and commercialization.
Over the past two decades, BCIC has catalyzed Brownsville’s development by funding the restoration of historic buildings, expanding recreational and tourism infrastructure, and supporting local businesses with grants, mentorship, and technical assistance.
“This plan isn’t just a set of goals – it’s a shared vision for the city we all love. I see it every day in the people I meet: the entrepreneur with a dream, the family enjoying their neighborhood park, the artist painting the mural downtown. That’s the Brownsville we’re building.” – Cori Peña, President & CEO of BCIC
The BCIC 2025–2029 Strategic Plan is now available for the community to view. You can view the full plan online at https://isu.pub/5rToRLe.