Newsmakers of the Year: Pearsall City Manager Fred Reyes

Turning the page on a long history of Pearsall’s short-lived city managers, Pearsall’s top administrator Federico Reyes is entering his sixth year of leadership with a list of attainable goals for the betterment of the community.

Before he took office in July 2019, shifts in political powers among councilors contributed to city managers staying an average of only a year.

From 2011 to 2019, the city had 12 managers.

“The council has been relatively fair and open-minded,” Reyes said of his tenure in an interview Wednesday, December 18. “Despite disagreements, there has been fairness that has provided me the headway towards priorities.”

Reyes said councilors have given him direction that has allowed him to strategically plan to make improvements to the community’s quality of life by managing city operations efficiently.

“This has allowed me to stay here,” the city manager said. “I am able to execute and oversee projects until completion; I am able to get things done that are important; however, I do not anticipate getting everything done, but we can make headway.”

Reyes has two top priorities for 2025, with input from the council: infrastructure improvement and economic development.

As a continuing investment in the city’s infrastructure, Reyes’ top goal for the new year is to begin the multi-million-dollar infrastructure improvement project along Business IH-35.

In 2018, the city annexed two square miles of property on the north end of town.

Schematics show the wastewater lines will run on both the east and west side of Business IH-35 (North Oak Street) from Pearsall High School to Jack’s Produce with two lift stations. The proposed water line extension will begin on the east side of the roadway at the intersection of Oak and Field’s Road and extend to Jack’s Produce, cross under the roadway, and run south along the west side before crossing under the road near the mixing plant and tying into the existing system.

Reyes said he believes there are homes along the business loop that are ‘underserved’ and, in his opinion, providing the infrastructure potentially will serve as a tool to attract development.

“I am excited,” Reyes said. “I am sure there will be some challenges, but it is a good project.”

City councilors are set to vote in January on moving forward with the project.

Financial stress from the gas utility system has been plaguing the city for years and Reyes anticipates finding a solution to problems with the antiquated infrastructure this year.

Records at City Hall show that during the 2023-24 fiscal year the balance of revenues to expenses showed a $385,000 deficit. Reyes said customer accounts in 2007-08 were 1,554 and, 16 years later, that number of accounts has nearly halved, with only 776 customers in 2023-24.

Additionally, there are nearly 26 miles of antiquated pipe that need replacement.

“It is going to be tough,” Reyes said. “We need to solve the gas utility woes. Our goal is to educate the public and let them make the decision in May. We have lost a lot of customers and the challenge is to continue to provide services without an increase in rates.”

Pearsall city councilors voted earlier this year to hold a special election to consider the sale of the natural gas utility distribution system.

The city manager’s final goal is to continue pushing to attract new businesses through programs and financial initiatives like tax breaks, grants and loans to encourage development.

“We have not marketed enough; we need to work with the Chamber and market,” Reyes said. “Our fees are not excessive; we do not have impact fees that are detrimental to developers.”

Reyes acknowledged a lack of housing in the community and noted a possible misconception of Pearsall by developers and public need.

“Developers struggle with not knowing the market,” the city manager said. “We need to address this, even if we have to provide incentives.”

Over the past two years, the city has allocated money to the tax increment reinvestment zone (TIRZ) and councilors recently approved the creation of a public facility corporation (PFC), both programs aimed at providing tools to help the city fund public improvements and encourage economic development.

Over the past five years, Reyes said his administration has been frugal with spending, thereby giving the city financial reserves.

“We are doing better than in previous years,” the administrator said of the current financial state of the city. “We have not raised taxes and do not anticipate changing that this year. We are not making irresponsible decisions with taxpayer dollars.”

Taking the helm just months before the coronavirus pandemic that caused significant economic hardship and yet surviving is Reyes’ biggest accomplishment.

“It was the scariest time of my career,” the city manager said. “It was tough. I did not know how we were going to come out of it. I anticipated the city being in a bad financial state. it was worrisome and the sales tax was unsure. The world stood still. But we came out relatively unscathed as far as operations go.”

Reyes said his administration kept a close eye on the budget and the city’s financial prospects in the face of nearly $450,000 in sales tax losses at the height of the pandemic.

Reyes said he is proud of the city’s accomplishments over the course of his tenure and is excited to continue moving forward in 2025.

“Pearsall is an area and community that has grown on us,” Reyes said. “It works for us; it is close to all things important to us.”