City offers meals to employees during Texas Week

By DINA ARÉVALO
Port Isabel-South Padre Press
editor@portisabelsouthpadre.com

Nikki Soto prepares coleslaw as part of a meal program offered by the City of South Padre Island to its employees, as well as law enforcement, during Texas Week. (Staff photo by Dina Arévalo).

Nikki Soto prepares coleslaw as part of a meal program offered by the City of South Padre Island to its employees, as well as law enforcement, during Texas Week. (Staff photo by Dina Arévalo).

Texas Week is, without a doubt, one of the busiest times of the year for law enforcement and City of South Padre Island employees. With thousands of twenty-somethings descending on the Island looking for a week of non-stop fun, local officials have their hands full making sure the visitors have a safe and happy experience. But steady streams of traffic — on the roads, in City offices, and throughout Island businesses — means it can be next to impossible for those who work during Texas Week to find a meal.

The City has come up with a way to help ameliorate the issue, though. For several years now, the City has hosted lunch and dinner for all City employees, as well as any law enforcement and volunteer personnel who work during Texas Week. “We are preparing meals for all of our employees. We provide them with lunch and dinner every day from Wednesday through Saturday during Texas Week. We do this every year,” said Assistant City Manager Darla Jones. On average, approximately 200 meals are prepared at every lunch service and 160 during each dinner service, she said. “We spend, probably … I’d have to say about between $4,000 – $5,000″ for the week.” she said.

In previous years, the City prepared and served the meals from City Hall, utilizing rooms on various floors to do so. This year, the Convention Centre was made available, giving employees the ability to dine at the Centre, if they so chose. “They simply don’t have the time to go into a restaurant, go in and eat, They may have 10 minutes to spare and they can cram their food down real quick. We try to provide a healthy, filling meal for them,” she said.

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