Courtland Holman, Executive Director
(979) 531-9015
execdirector@whartonedc.com
Louisa Jimenez, Coordinator
(979) 532-0999
staff@whartonedc.com
On a planet thirsty for water, energy and innovative solutions, JM Eagle® delivers. The world’s largest plastic pipe manufacturer combines cutting-edge technology with best-in-class service and distribution to keep the “essence of life” flowing across the globe through the highest quality PVC and PE pipe used for delivering water, oil and gas. The world is a better home for life thanks to JM Eagle, a company that’s found an ideal manufacturing home in Wharton.
In a rapidly-evolving energy landscape demanding innovation in generation and delivery, Exelon Generation is lighting the way as one of the nation’s foremost competitive energy providers. When the Fortune 500 leader decided to upgrade its fossil plants with next-generation combined-cycle gas turbines (CCGTs), the Colorado Bend Generating Station in Wharton was one of the first plants chosen. The new turbines, the cleanest and most efficient in the nation, start fast and ramp up quickly—and that also describes the upgrade operation in Wharton, a city that industry chooses for swifter, more profitable startups and more rapid ROI.
Pioneering company NFRA is making global energy safer and smarter, allowing the monetization of stranded gas fields and eliminating petroleum gas flaring through its new GTL (gas-to-liquid) technology. For the company’s very first commercial-size plant, Mark 100, it chose Wharton. And when Nan Ya Plastics, a division of Formosa Plastics, decided to move beyond its PVC rigid film calendar line with products for the APET (Amorphous Poly-ethelene Terephthalate) market, the company’s Wharton plant was selected for the critical—and successful—expansion.
Wharton has invested in its sewer and water capacity, ensuring the excess capacity needed to accommodate major users. The City of Wharton’s Public Works team provides top-notch reliable service. Wharton was among the few municipalities in the region to maintain service throughout Winter Storm Uri in 2021.
Kansas City Southern Railroad has recently been acquired by Canada Pacific, creating an integrated rail network connecting Canada, the American Midwest and Gulf Coast all the way to Mexico’s Pacific Coast ports. Wharton is transected by KCS track and offers opportunities for rail-tied development. Just ten miles south of Kansas City’s major Texas multi-modal facility at Kendleton and ideally located to take advantage of the rail facilities for warehouse, distribution, and logistical facilities.
Wharton is strategically located on the I-69 corridor, the primary U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade route, Wharton’s section of U.S. Highway 59 is currently undergoing a $400 million upgrade to urban interstate standards, providing rapid access to the greater Houston Metropolitan area and beyond. The newly constructed frontage roads will provide opportunities for retailers looking to capitalize on the over 27,000 daily traffic counts.
Wharton is constructing a $130 million levee system in partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to provide structural flood mitigation from the Colorado River. Repeated historic flooding has impeded Wharton’s growth, the levee system will remove large tracts of land from the floodplain, incenting pent-up growth.
Traditional providers are in the process of upgrading their networks to fiber-optics and new entrants are coming online with fixed wireless offering gigabit speeds across large sections of the county.
