VIDEO: El Cenizo, Texas

El Cenizo, Texas was founded in 1983 as a colonia, or unincorporated subdivision outside of city regulation. It incorporated a few years later, but the damage was done. Colonias have a history of being hastily developed (sometimes even lacking basic plumbing) and marketed to recent immigrants and the poor. In this 5-minute video, we look at how El Cenizo fares in 2008. For more information on colonias in Texas, read University of Texas professor Peter M. Ward’s book Colonias and Public Policy in Texas and Mexico: Urbanization by Stealth.