Officials in Falfurrias are working on bringing an emergency care facility to the city. The closest ones are Kingsville and Alice, which are 40 minutes away. Founded in the ranching and farming industries, the City of Falfurrias has been working on securing a grant from the USDA for at least a year. That $500,000 grant has finally been approved, and officials plan to turn part of the old Bealls retail store into an urgent care facility.
“Our goal is to attract an urgent care center to the city through our Chapter 380 resolution program, designed to incentivize economic development,” said Falfurrias City Administrator Andy Garcia.
The city invested $1.6 million to purchase and renovate the former Bealls shopping center, now rebranded as the Falfurrias Economic Development Accelerator. This complex already houses entities like Workforce Solutions and Behavioral Health Solutions; City Hall has been relocated there.
“In addition to bringing an urgent care center to this complex, we’re also planning to offer them free rent,” Garcia added. “The idea is to have a lease agreement under an ‘incubator model,’ essentially providing a rent-free space to help the clinic minimize costs and establish itself in our community.”
While several doctor’s offices are in the area, the consensus is that an emergency care facility is greatly needed. Brooks County Attorney David Garcia fully supports the initiative. “We used to have five clinics, each backed by a nonprofit or government agency, but we lost them,” he noted.
Garcia revealed that he has already been in touch with several companies interested in the project and plans to issue a request for proposals soon. This would allow renovations to commence and pave the way for opening the emergency care center in this repurposed retail space.