El Milagro’s Sole Ballot Came From Developer’s Address
The sole voter who cast a ballot to approve the propositions in the November 2024 election which authorized the El Milagro Municipal Management District (MMD) to take out $167.5 million in loans, registered to vote using a business address which belongs to the project’s developer.
State Representative Sergio Muñoz (D-Mission) filed a bill earlier this year to dissolve the district after he received calls of concerns from constituents in that area about the manner in which the debt was created, he said. The $167.5 million of debt will be passed on to anyone who buys property within the district lines in the future, where the developer plans to build single-family homes.
Muñoz testified on April 22 before the House Committee on Intergovernmental Affairs, and stated it was his understanding that the lone voter is an employee of the MMD.
“One single voter, it’s my understanding its somebody that works for the development, was the one who was able to cast it,” Muñoz testified at that time.
Hidalgo County election records show an individual registered to vote at a business address on South Conway in Mission owned by Charco Land Sales, LLC where Radcliffe Killam II of Killam Development serves as CEO.
Both Charco Land Sales and Killam Development have been identified on various Mission city council and planning and zoning documents as the El Milagro MMD developer. Killam Development and Charco Land Sales share an identical physical address of 4320 University Blvd. in Laredo, where they are based.
Radcliffe Killam, II did not respond to phone messages requesting an interview. Killam Development’s Vice-President of Marketing, Alejandra Urrabazo-Martinez, stopped communicating with a reporter once she learned of the topic of the desired interview.
The business address used by the voter is a brown metal building on South Conway Avenue, with large commercial overhead doors which sits directly in front of construction currently underway for the future master planned community of El Milagro.
An examination by the Progress Times of public election records shows the one voter initially registered to vote in 2012 with a Mission address, at the age of 32. The voter registration card was then returned to the Hidalgo County Elections Department as undeliverable. The individual became inactive and did not vote in elections for 12 years.
On September 25, 2024, at a DPS station, the voter changed their address from Mercedes to the South Conway address in Mission, just 5 weeks before the November 5, 2024 election, and then voted early in that election in Precinct 63. No other votes for or against the measures were cast, even though 11 other people there participated in the election.
The Progress Times is withholding the name of the sole voter, to protect their right to a secret ballot.
Three other voting areas were eligible to vote on the propositions authorizing the bonds, including precincts 82, 93 and 203, but not a single vote was cast in favor of or against the measures in these locations.
Section 1.015 of Texas election law states eligible voters may only register at their permanent residential address, and potential voters can’t attempt to establish residency to try and sway the outcome of a specific election.
“It’s apparent the person registered for one specific reason,” Muñoz said. “It’s not a home, and I think it continues to smell of secrecy and suspicion.”
Hidalgo County Elections Administrator Hilda Salinas said her department is not authorized to conduct investigations, and said her contracted responsibility is to provide the proper customized ballot for voters within specific geographic areas or precincts.
“I do receive calls all the time, with all kinds of complaints about all kinds of elections,” Salinas said. “We are contracted by entities to follow the law that apply to administering an election. I do not have the authority to do anything else.
“We are not law enforcement, and we are not a legal team,” Salinas continued. “We maintain the voter registry and administer the election in accordance with the Texas Election Code.”
Texas Secretary of State’s (SOS) Assistant Secretary for Communications Alicia Pierce had similar comments. The SOS serves as the chief election officer for Texas.
“We are not an investigative agency,” Pierce said. “We have the statewide data base and the (voter) registrations are based in the counties and the counties maintain their voter rolls.”
Hidalgo County District Attorney Terry Palacios said litigation might be the only resolution to determine if an ineligible person voted in the election.
“Somebody that has interest in that situation, someone that is affected by it, has to contest that the election was improper or fraudulent,” Palacios said. “And this might be outside the window (statute of limitations) for that, I’m not sure, I’d have to look at the election code.”
While the DA’s office has experience with complaints on individuals who run for office, Palacios said the situation for a MMD might be different.
“To contest an election, an individual can file a report with the Texas Attorney General and claim voter fraud,” Palacios said. “I would have to see if the person used a business as a residence to register, which isn’t possible, you have to list where you reside.
“This stuff happens, and it’s hard to track unless someone makes a complaint,” Palacios said.
Muñoz stressed that he is not against economic development, and he expressed his respect for the Killam family and their businesses.
“But I keep thinking, ‘Is the best thing for the city?’” Muñoz said. “At what cost are we doing this? Are we giving away the farm? The whole process is a cause for concern.”
In 2021, the City of Mission and the Mission Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) conveyed TIRZ benefits to Killam Development which bought the property in 2019, resulting in $13 million in tax dollars being used for the development of roads, water and wastewater infrastructure.
“There are more eyes on it now,” Muñoz said. “Every tax dollar needs to be accounted for here.”
If successful, Muñoz’s legislation calls for the MMD to be dissolved within 60 days of the bill becoming law, and for the district to shed its debt. He is racing against the clock as the Texas Legislature adjourns on June 2 and is not scheduled to meet again until 2027.
The State House Committee on Intergovernmental Affairs heard complaints from other Texans on April 22 on MMDs in the Houston area. Another bill before the committee, House Bill 1226 filed by Representative Gary Gates (R-Richmond), would allow MMDs to be dissolved by a petition signed by a majority of the property owners within the district. Currently the law requires two-thirds of property owners to sign a petition to dissolve it.
While several people traveled from Houston to Austin to testify in favor of the bill in person, at least 19 people submitted written comments on the legislation, all urging the approval of the legislation. One person stated the MMDs are controlled by a very small group of unelected people with no oversight.
Houston attorney Raed Gonzalez wrote to committee members and said his business is subject to extra taxation by the Hobby Area Management District.
“We could be investing the funds back into the important work that my firm accomplishes, but instead we are forced to waste the money on an unelected taxing entity that this community does not want,” Gonzalez wrote. “No one ever asked if I wanted the implementation of this so-called service. Imposing this tax strikes at the very nature of our democracy: no taxation without representation.”
Eddie Lucio III, Brownsville attorney and former state representative, served in the Texas House of Representatives alongside Muñoz for several years. Lucio has returned to private practice and now lobbies for Killam Development, according to Texas Ethics Commission public filings.
As of press time, Lucio has not returned several calls seeking comment on Muñoz’s pending legislation.
