Isaac Tawil is settling into his new role as McAllen’s city manager.

“I really welcome the opportunity to serve in this role, for the city commission, for the mayor, for the entire community,” Tawil said. “I'm so excited to be here."

Tawil is in the role previously held by Roy Rodriguez, who retired in June after a decade as McAllen’s city manager.

“Roy set us on a path to become a destination city,” Tawil said. “There was a real focus on place making and making McAllen a place people want to come."

Tawil said he wants to build on the foundation Rodriguez laid down.

“We need to do that, continue to do that by providing them opportunities with good housing costs, job opportunities, opportunities for education, healthcare,” Tawil said.

Tawil brings 13 years of experience in municipal government. He served as McAllen’s city attorney since 2021, and was the assistant city attorney prior to that for nine years.

Tawil said one of his main goals is to continue lowering the city’s property tax, which is on the agenda for a commissioner’s meeting set for Monday, Sept. 23.

With a $653 million budget, Tawil hopes to bring more improvements to McAllen, and more recreational opportunities to the city.

“What I want them to know is that I want to hear from them,” Tawil said. “I want them to visit my office, I want them to stop me when they see me around the community, I want to know what's important to them, because what's important to them needs to be important to me."

Watch the video above for the full story.