Now picture that on a grander scale. The government of the state of Nuevo Leon, Mexico, with help from the University of Texas, plans such a city near the Texas border at Colombia , north of Laredo along the Rio Grande. Today, Colombia is a small, century-old village of 500 residents. It is an ambitious project, but surely feasible. Colombia represents a new chance to do things right from the start and implement on a grand scale what has been demonstrated to be successful in smaller projects around the globe.
American planners are just as excited.
Colombia is at a premier location. It sits at the center of Nuevo Leon's narrow border with the United States, just across the Colombia International Bridge, built in the mid-1990s as an alternative route to the congested bridges between Laredo and Nuevo Laredo. The bridge is easily accessible by taking Texas' only private toll road, Camino Colombia, off Interstate 35 just north of Laredo. The plan for Colombia is moving quickly. The bridge provides the focus for international trade.