Border fence going up at UTB-TSC

BROWNSVILLE - Ground will be broken next week on the border fence at the University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College.

In July, UTB-TSC and the federal government arrived at an agreement that would leave the campus virtually unscathed, allowing for a renovation of existing fencing and the addition of cameras and sensors.

On Tuesday, UTB-TSC awarded a $1.04 million contract with Thrall, Texas-based Construction Rent-A-Fence to execute its plans. Six firms submitted bids for the project.

In the course of construction, some fencing will be heightened to 8- to 10-feet, and some segments will be replaced entirely.

The upgrades - a far cry from the 18-foot-tall steel fence the government had initially planned for the campus - are expected to be completed by Dec. 31, according to project manager Michael Putegnat.

The university's compromise with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has since been hailed as a model for other contested border fence cases. But so far, the agreement - finalized in an August court order - has not been replicated for any other institution or individual.

Since the order was filed, UTB-TSC acquired the property and buildings between its campus and the U.S. Point of Entry at Gateway Bridge.

The university will extend security fencing along the area for $380,000.

UTB-TSC will also spend approximately $250,000 to enhance security technology on its campus, as the federal government requested in the original compromise.

Due to legal holdups, no conventional border fencing of any kind has yet been erected in Cameron County, though contracts for several segments west of Brownsville were awarded last week.