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Fueled by
booming construction
and retail sales and burgeoning U.S.-Mexico trade, Laredo’s
economy will grow at least 8 percent this year, making it one of
the fastest-growing communities in the United States, city
officials said.
The projected 2005 expansion, which mirrors
Laredo’s growth in 2004, indicates that the South Texas city’s
explosive growth since the North America Free Trade Agreement
took effect in 1995 continues unabated.
“These numbers simply reflect what we see
going on around us everyday. The members of the city council and
I will continue to work towards ensuring the economic prosperity
of this community,” said Laredo’s chief elected official, Mayor
Betty Flores.
“This growth data confirms the city’s
status as a premier destination for all kinds of investment and
business,” said John Adams, then-president of the Laredo
Development Foundation.
Laredo is the largest inland port for
international trade in the Western Hemisphere, with an estimated
more than $100 billion worth of goods expected to pass through
the city this year, up from $89.8 billion in 2004. The city,
serving as the principal gateway to Mexico for most of the
United States and Canada, gives retailers and other businesses
direct access to more than 8 million consumers in the Monterrey-Saltillo
area, the industrial heartland of Mexico.
Evidence of the Laredo economy’s vigor is
being felt at all levels. Tax revenue in 2005 fiscal year rose
9.3 percent from last fiscal year, while receipts are up almost
15 percent in October compared with the same month in 2004.
The city will register more than $700
million worth of new construction in 2005, the same as last
year. The figure indicates the city’s multi-year building boom
shows no sign of letting up, with projects now underway ranging
from new hotels and retail centers, such as El Portal, and the
development of at least 1,800 new single-family homes.
Here are some of Laredo’s
construction...
...Continued
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