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During a meeting last week, the city of Mission approved an economic incentive agreement for the construction of the city’s first Olive Garden.
The Mission Economic Development Corporation’s board of directors approved the agreement on Wednesday, according to a news release.
The Olive Garden will be located at a well-known area to residents — the old K-Mart site, which is in the process of being revamped by New Quest Properties, Mission EDC officials said. In addition to the restaurant, a Burlington store and Murdoch’s Ranch and Home Supply will also open locations at that site.
“Visitors coming in from our bridge will soon be able to shop, eat and play without having to travel far,” Mission EDC CEO Teclo Garcia said in the release.
The proposed project would usher in a $4.9 million capital investment, officials said, and create the equivalent of 50 full-time jobs through the construction of the 7,800-square-foot Olive Garden at the northeast corner of Bryan Road and Interstate 2.
“Olive Garden would be a true lynchpin for the continued development of our Anzalduas corridor, which runs from our international bridge to I-2,” Garcia said in the release. “Last year, more than 1.2 million visitors came in through our port of entry, and we plan to leverage that visibility.”
Construction for the restaurant is set to begin in October, with its expected completion date for July 2024.
Olive Garden also agreed to donate $25,000 worth of food to the Food Bank of the Rio Grande Valley over a five-year period through the Darden Harvest Program, the release stated.
