Trade plaza near the US border may shape future

HOUSTON - Laredo, a major inland port on the US border with Mexico, continues to be in the spotlight of trading activity between China and the United States as plans move forward to build a multimillion-dollar free trade center near the city's downtown.

Local company Laredo Lomas Properties and a Houston-based investor of Chinese origin recently signed a joint development agreement that will convert an abandoned seven-floor hospital building that's fallen into disrepair and been fenced off for nearly 20 years into the World Free Trade Plaza of America Inc.

The deal to convert the old Mercy Hospital Building into a multifunction commercial center of showrooms, office, hotel and warehouse space will cost at least $50 million and take around a year to finish, according to Gao Long, the Houston investor.