Harlingen shoots down proposed car wash restrictions

Fernando Del Valle, Valley Morning Star, Harlingen, Texas
·4 min read

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HARLINGEN — While the city's car washes are free to keep booming, city commissioners are mulling their water conservation, parking areas and surrounding traffic flows.

Two weeks after Commissioner Rene Perez called on them to restrict new car washes from opening along the city's main streets, commissioners rose up against the plan.

Earlier this week, commissioners voted 4-1 against the proposal, with Perez casting the lone dissenting vote.

"I really believe this entire commission is in support of small businesses — all business," Mayor Norma Sepulveda said during Wednesday's meeting. "We want to make sure Harlingen — and I say this everywhere I go — (is) open for business and I want to make sure that message is driven home no matter what industry it is."

During the meeting's public comment period, residents spoke out against Perez's proposal to restrict new car washes from the city's main streets including Expressways 77 and 83, Harrison and Tyler avenues, Ed Carey Drive and Loop 499.

Then, during discussion, Perez said he and Commissioner Michael Mezmar stood alone in their opposition to the commission's denial of a woman's plan to open a shop selling lingerie last year.

"So, in essence, you guys are picking and choosing," he told commissioners. "You're not being consistent. You're regulating when you want to."

During discussion, Sepulveda proposed requiring businesses such as car washes request special use permits requiring them to conserve water and offer ample parking while helping clear the way for safe traffic flow.

"Maybe we do need to ensure, for the future of Harlingen, that there is a conservation component in these car washes," she told commissioners. "They use much less water than folks understand. There's nothing wrong with ensuring all car washes moving forward have a conservation business plan."

Amid a national boom that's spurred 22 car washes to open here, more traffic's surrounding the businesses.

"There are issues with traffic and it is a concern," Sepulveda said. "It would be nice to be able to come to understand that if a business is going to open, especially a car wash, that there are certain requirements that we have in the community to make sure that they have enough space on their lot. It's not limiting whatsoever but it is making sure that there are conservation efforts, that there is sufficient parking, that traffic is taken into consideration aesthetically."

Amid discussion, commissioners stomped Perez's plan aimed at stopping the city from becoming what he described as "the car wash capital of the Valley."

"I don't know how many of you have read the 'Communist Manifesto,'" Mezmar told commissioners. "There's only one valid point in there — capitalism is a rough system. In the 'Communist Manifesto,' they talk about the government controlling the means of production — and that's what we have here. The government wants to control the means of production on car washes."

Mezmar argued restricting car washes from main streets would infringe on the businesses' freedom.

"If you're going to sell donuts or car washes or any goods, if you're going to sell coffee, you need to be on main roads because that's where the traffic is," he said. "You don't need to be set aside to some obscure street where nobody will drive by and know of your existence."

"Do not squash any business," he said. "So what if we're 'car wash city.' It's better to be known for that than any other things negative — and having car washes is your town is not a negative thing. The citizens will drive the economy of car washes. Do not get in the citizens' way to spend their money as they want to."

In response, Perez condemned Mezmar's reference to the "Communist Manifesto."

"I believe in the free enterprise system," Perez, a veteran, told Mezmar. "I fought for the free enterprise system. Saying we're communists and all that — that doesn't work."

Amid discussion, Perez said he wasn't trying to ban car washes he argued are eating into prime commercial property.

"Car washes would be free to come in to Harlingen," he said. "All we're asking is they not be in the major corridors of our city. My biggest fear is we have so many of these car washes — right now we have 22 car washes for a population of what, 74,000. Eventually, this little boom of car washes that we have right now might eventually go away and if it does we're going to have all these eye sores of car washes on some of these major corridors."

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