Managing Success: Galveston’s Economy, Tourism, and the Legacy of Unity

From Party Town to Cultural Capital

Tourism, Brown believes, must evolve beyond the spring-break stereotype that once defined it. “We were known in the past as the place to come down to party … but that has changed, and it’s changing for the better.”

He envisions a future where eco-tourism, cultural festivals, medical conferences, birding events like FeatherFest, and sports tourism all continue to take root. This shift isn’t just about diversifying the visitor profile—it’s about drawing fewer but more valuable visitors, people who “spend more money” while placing less strain on the community.

But how does a city influence the type of tourism it attracts? Brown’s answer is deceptively profound: respect. “When citizens respect their city, visitors step into an environment they want to support as well. They will respect our city if we respect our city.”

In other words, quality of life for residents and brand image for visitors are inseparable. Cleaner streets, safer neighborhoods, revitalized parks—these civic basics become not just amenities for locals but marketing tools for a more sophisticated, sustainable tourism model.

The Strength of an Engaged Citizenry

If tourism and port growth are the engines, Brown insists the true strength of Galveston is its people. “Our strength is having a citizenry that is engaged with the community, engaged with their city council members, engaged with the city staff.”

That engagement has taken shape in the form of a citizen-led steering committee for Galveston’s new comprehensive plan. For Brown, it’s not just about policy—it’s about legacy. “What is so important about this comprehensive plan is that it sets the framework, the guidance for the development of our ordinances and our land development regulations to support the vision that the citizens put together.”

The mayor is clear: the island cannot afford to return to the fractured silos of the past, where the port, the Park Board, and the city each pulled in different directions. “Those days are over,” he said firmly. “If we want to see this island become even better than it is today, we have to work in unison with each other.”

A Legacy of Unity, Not Just Projects

When asked what legacy he hopes to leave, Brown could have pointed to bridges, cruise terminals, or the USS Texas. He did mention them—Pelican Island bridge, new land-use regulations, higher-end tourism—but then he turned to something larger.

“The legacy I would like to leave,” he said, “is to leave the thought that working together—the citizens in the community and the municipal government—we can accomplish things far greater than we have in the past. And also the coming together of our two greatest partners here on the island, the Park Board and the port … to work towards all of these things that we’ve talked about.”

In a city known for sharp divides, Brown’s insistence on compromise and collaboration feels almost radical. As I reflected to him, it hasn’t always made him the loudest or most popular voice in the room, but it has made him a bridge-builder—a quality Galveston has often lacked and sorely needed. That philosophy of unity extends into Galveston’s business culture, where small businesses remain the heartbeat of the island’s identity.

Small Businesses, Big Identity

For Brown, Galveston’s identity is defined as much by its small businesses as by its port or beaches. He recalls watching his wife Angela launch MOD Coffee House, embraced by the community as a symbol of local spirit.

“This community … we’re not a corporate, big-business type community—though there’s nothing wrong with that. We’re a community that really respects and supports the small business owner.”

For Craig, supporting that culture means streamlining permitting, empowering the city’s economic development coordinator, Michele Hay, as a true ombudsman for entrepreneurs, and strengthening partnerships with the Galveston Economic Development Partnership, who he sees as critical to the city’s continued success. “GEDP serves a role, in my mind, that the city can’t serve,” Brown explained, pointing to its ability to engage businesses in early exploration before they commit. He envisions GEDP not only as a bridge for large employers but as a champion for small shops and startups as well.

Development Without Losing Charm

Finally, the perennial question: how does Galveston attract new investment without sacrificing the character that makes it unique? Brown doesn’t pretend it’s easy, but he circles back to his core theme—quality of life.

“If we provide a community that has a great quality of life … that is something that attracts businesses wanting to come and open a business here and having their employees possibly live here.”

He acknowledges the hard truth of limited space for workforce housing, calling for serious commitments on that front. Yet he also takes a pragmatic view of Galveston’s geography: “We need to look towards the mainland as our suburbs also,” he said, suggesting stronger transportation ties with Texas City, La Marque, Hitchcock, and Santa Fe.

It’s not a vision of isolation, but of integration—a recognition that Galveston’s future will always be tied to its neighbors across the causeway.

The Throughline

Across our conversation, Brown’s answers returned again and again to one idea: balance. Balance between growth and livability, between tourists and residents, between economic engines and civic values.

And perhaps that is the essence of his legacy: the belief that Galveston’s success is not a zero-sum game, but a shared project—built through respect, collaboration, and the steady hand of leadership that sees unity not as compromise, but as strength.