What can you do to help: Please sign this petition to encourage the Port Aransas City Council to stop future petrochemical industrial development within its city limits through zoning changes to the properties on Harbor Island. And ask your friends to sign and distribute this petition. About Port Aransas and Harbor Island: The City of Port Aransas sits at the north end of Mustang Island on the middle Texas Coast near Corpus Christi. It also encompasses Harbor Island which is several thousand acres of land and wetlands across the Aransas Channel from the town. Harbor Island has historically been used as a shipping depot, oil export terminal, cruise ship terminal and offshore oil industry supply and service depot. There are two primary tracts of land on Harbor Island. Both tracts are currently on the market and both are currently zoned “Heavy Industrial” by the City of Port Aransas. This allows any type of industrial use that the owner can get permits for. Both tracts have been and remain under consideration by potential buyers for the construction and operation of oil and gas refining (Fractionator) and/or Natural Gas Liquification (LNG Plant). About the Surrounding Environment: The protected waters, seagrass beds, and mangroves of Harbor Island provide a magnet of easily accessible hunting, fishing, birding and sightseeing opportunities for residents and hundreds of thousands of annual visitors. The very first paddling trail in the state of Texas, The Lighthouse Lakes Paddling Trail, was established within Harbor Island in the year 2000, and lies within the Redfish Bay State Scientific Area which Texas Parks and Wildlife Department established for the protection of the sensitive seagrass beds in the Harbor Island area. The petition writers want rezoning for Harbor Island: Many citizens of Port Aransas and throughout the State of Texas are horrified at the prospect of having these dangerous and polluting operations at the front gate of their home town or cherished vacation spot. There is much discussion about what can be done and it is clear that the City of Port Aransas, through its zoning powers, can protect the City from become just another refinery city on the Texas Coast. Why some City of Port Aransas City Council members oppose rezoning:  The prospect of increased property tax revenue is the Siren’s Song that drives opposition to a zoning change. What these city council members don’t seem to realize is facilities like these are rarely built without tax incentives. Additionally, industrial landowners pay lower tax rates than residential landowners. Finally the mere presence of industrial facilities like these will degrade residential property values. So in the long run, it may actually end up being a net loss of tax revenue to the City. Proposed changes: We ask that the City Council amend the current zoning to provide for acceptable use of the Harbor Island properties that is in line with the City’s reputation as an environmentally sensitive  tourism destination for recreation and relaxation.  Proactive rezoning by the City of Port Aransas will prevent the need for the citizens to rally and fight every proposed facility on the properties of Harbor Island for the foreseeable future.