In the April issue of LareDOS, a story on plans for a new international rail bridge incorrectly stated that former Webb County Judge owned land near one of the proposed bridge sites, property owned by the D.D. Hachar trust. Martinez actually does not own any land outside Zapata County, 20 miles from the site. On May 5, Martinez told LareDOS he has no personal interest in the proposed deal and stands to make no personal gain. Martinez said he is promoting the site because building a new vehicular bridge is important for Laredo’s economy. City and county officials and other local leaders have been working to get a new vehicle bridge since at least 2001, and the Hachar land was offered as a potential site in late 2007. Backers of the Hachar site also offered the land as a site for a new railroad bridge. The site sits across the Rio Grande from land owned by Glafiro Montemayor Jr., a Nuevo Laredo customs broker whose father is a personal friend of Martinez. The Hachar trust is a charity that awards scholarships to Laredo students. If a vehicular bridge were built at the Hachar site, the land’s value would increase exponentially, Martinez said, for the benefit of students.

We regret the error.