Welcome to District VII

Welcome to the District 7 homepage, where you can find information about past projects and current events happening in our district. Our district is in a rapidly growing part of North West Laredo, with new developments springing up every month and many new residents calling this District their home. 

To contact your Council Member, please email, phone, or submit an online message. I welcome your comments and look forward to hearing from you.

Resources

• Texas Department of Transportation Web Cameras
• Adopted 2022 Redistricting Information
• Liquid Waste Collection Survey
• Veterans Affairs and Committee Information

Biography

Vanessa Perez was born and raised in Laredo, TX. She is the first person in her family to attend and graduate from college. She attended the University of Texas at Austin, where she graduated in 2004 with her Bachelor of Business Administration, with a concentration in Marketing, from the Red McComb's School of Business. After College, she became a Certified Texas Educator and served as a highly qualified mathematics teacher for eight years at the middle school level.

She has been married to her husband, Andres, 12 years, and together they are raising their three children, Andres Jr, Madison, and Joshua.

She is the first female Council Member to represent District 7, the 2nd female Mayor Pro-Tempore in history. In her few years in public office, Vanessa Perez has advocated for a fair and transparent government, better planning, zoning and infrastructure, fair representation, inclusion, economic development, health, safety, and overall better policies and practices for a better city.

Currently, she serves as a Mayor’s appointee to the City of Laredo Veteran Affairs Committee and the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO). Additionally, she was voted to represent the city on the Webb County Appraisal District Board of Directors.

Some of the more noticeable changes she has made in office include:

• the establishment of the Laredo Port of Entry Advisory Committee, that she introduced her first months as an elected official, where leaders in the trade industry meet to ensure a healthy Port Laredo;
• Co-founding the Clean Air Laredo Coalition alongside the Rio Grande International Study Center to tackle air pollution in response to reports that Laredo has an increased risk of Cancer from ethylene oxide (eto) emissions from a medical sterilizer plant in her district. She is working to help shape the Environmental Protection Agency rules and practices, demanding they implement a monitoring program and phase out the use of known carcinogens;
• the establishment of the Laredo Autism Coalition, which brings stakeholders together to address autism spectrum needs; the coalition is helping form an Autism Master Plan, a first of its kind guide, to shape City practices and move Laredo towards a more inclusive, understanding, and accommodating city;
• the establishment of a hazardous materials ordinance that restricts hazardous materials storage within 500 feet of a school;
• prioritization of safety, infrastructure, and smart growth for the FM 1472/Mines Road corridor;
• advocacy for a women’s Veteran Group in the Veterans Affairs Committee;
• Advocacy for the designation of Laredo as a breastfeeding friendly workplace.

Vanessa Perez has a history of identifying problems, organizing people, and helping formulate solutions. She believes in leaving places better than you found them and always looking towards the future. She will continue to work for the community that she loves.

District Map

District VII Map

District Demographics & Statistical Data