County breaks ground on substance abuse facility

By Edwina P. Garza

EDINBURG — State Rep. Aaron Peña knows first hand how Rio Grande Valley families struggle with substance abuse.

His son died of a drug overdose in 2001, leaving behind a grieving family and a newborn.

“We endured many years of silence,” he said last week.

Now, after years of pushing for a substance abuse center in Hidalgo County, an effort Peña said he’d pursue in his first campaign, the county is finally building an outpatient center to help get local youth off drugs.

The Hidalgo County Substance Abuse and Primary Care Facility will be located off of East Schunior Road and should open by May 2011. Officials said the 12,000-square-foot facility will be able to hold approximately 150 patients.

An appropriation of $3 million in construction funds by the Texas Legislature and a $650,000 contribution from the county, including the land, are being put toward this project that has been sought by officials for years.

“This is not a crime, but a health issue,” said Rep. Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa. “Drugs impacts everyone. For many people it’s a cry for help…We cannot give up on these folks.”

Officials said the facility would offer comprehensive recovery treatment, which isn’t offered at other facilities. The Hidalgo County Substance Abuse and Primary Care Facility will serve youth, aged 17 and under, on an outpatient basis. All methods of payment will be accepted, including Medicaid, private insurance, county indigent program and private pay. Patients may be referred or parents may have them evaluated as walk-in clients.

Dee Porter, the chief operating officer of the Department of State Health Services, said eight percent of youth from the ages of 12 to 18 have alcohol or substance abuse problems, and one million other Texans need help with substance abuse.

“As darkness covers the border, this place, this facility is a light in the darkness that will shine brightly,” Peña said with his granddaughter, Chelsea, at his side.

In the RGV, jails are filled with substance abuse sufferers, he added.

“This is one effort that quite frankly will lead the state in a positive direction,” Peña said.

The facility will also help families by giving them tools to cope, officials said.

State Rep. Veronica Gonzales said the families of drug and alcohol addicts also need help.

“We cannot build enough prisons to house the amount of people with drug and alcohol problems,” Gonzalez said.

Mexico’s current drug war is also a United States issue because of the country’s demand, she said. It’s the number one medical issue in the county, said Eddie Olivarez, the director of the County Health Department.

“The sooner we are operational, the sooner we can make a difference in the lives of our children dealing with problems no child should have to deal with,” said Precinct 4 Commissioner Oscar Garza Jr. “Since this public facility is the first of its kind, I unfortunately have the feeling that it will be filled to capacity shortly after doors open. But I have optimism that by having this safe place to get help, fewer and fewer youth will be afflicted with addiction in the future, and we can also prevent them from entering a life of crime.”

Mission gives violators a break with amnesty program

MISSION — Individuals with an outstanding ticket don’t have to hide from local authorities to avoid an arrest. This month, the city is offering people with unpaid tickets a chance to a clean slate with their amnesty program.

Mission Assistant Police Chief Martin Garza said the program started on April 1 and would end at the end of the month.

“It’s something we try to do once a year,” Garza said in an interview recently.

Aside from avoiding jail time, Garza said another advantage to participating in the amnesty program is the dismissal of court fees. People will only be required to pay for their violation, Garza said.

“That’s a great opportunity to take to save some money,” he added.

Citations included in the amnesty program include traffic and non-traffic violations along with parking tickets. Currently, there are about 8,800 outstanding violations in the city, Garza said. It’s unclear exactly how many people have unpaid tickets in the city.

And people who haven’t paid their tickets in months don’t have to fear being confronted by authorities, either, Garza said. Individuals will not be arrested at the Mission Municipal Court when participating in this month’s amnesty program.

“That’s not going to happen,” Garza said of arrests.

Outstanding violations can be paid at the Mission Municipal Court at 1200 E. 8th St. The tickets can be paid Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. For more information, call the court at 956-584-5150.

“We’ve had great turnout in the past years and the city is able to collect a substantial amount of money,” Garza said.

County approves Urban County request for Peñitas library

EDINBURG — Hidalgo County Commissioners approved the Peñitas Public Library’s request through Urban County for new equipment.

The purchase was approved for $42,360.06, which will be taken from the city’s public facilities income funds through Urban County, documents show.

According to their request, the money will be used to purchase four round tables, 50 adult chairs, three children's wooden tables, 16 children chairs, one executive conference table, 14 chairs, 10 bookshelves, five single-sided bookshelves, one magazine/newspaper rack with three add-on units, T.V stands, one round carpet, four large bean bags. 

All the equipment will provide for education programs, current events activities and reading programs for residents of Peñitas, the request states. Delivery is expected within three to six weeks.

In other action items, Precinct 3 Urban County street improvement projects were approved. The court approved a contract with Total Commitment in the amount of $369,647 for funds from 2007-09.

The project consists of street construction in Citrus Shadows Subdivision, Los Niños Subdivision, Stewart Palms Subdivision, and Val Verde Subdivision in the Precinct 3 area.

Commissioners also approved the acceptance of funds from the President’s Office of National Drug Control Policy for the county’s High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas in the amount of $735,174. This grant will support initiatives designed to implement strategy for drug control, a letter from the policy group states.