Last month, City Council decided to pause funding for the Inner Harbor as they figured out how the outstanding Texas Water Development Board SWIFT Loans could be utilized. The verdict, money from the loans cannot be used for other water projects. If City Council chooses not to pursue the Inner Harbor, the loan can be repaid ten years after it was issued, resulting in a cost to residents of $72 million in interest payments.
While that may sound grim, the thought of the City moving ahead on the Inner Harbor when the modeling results are still mostly unknown scares me even more, especially as project costs continue to rise. For example, the City still hasn't stated what the desalination plant's impact on the Nueces Bay will be. My basic argument is that without an independent review to confirm the accuracy of the City's modeling assessment, we won't know the true environmental and economic costs of the project. Making this type of gamble with residents' valuable water dollars is a huge risk, way more than the $72 million penalty for not pursuing the project. If you feel the same way, please contact your Councilmembers or give a public comment this Tuesday to let them know you want the independent review finished before proceeding with the Inner Harbor.
Cheers,
Jason
---
Here are some recent articles about the Inner Harbor desalination plant:
Protesters rally against $1.2B Inner Harbor desalination project
State board says redirecting Inner Harbor Desal funds unlikely, debt still due, council reacts
State officials call meeting on Inner Harbor desal project; council vote delayed
—
Paulette M. Guajardo, Mayor
Email: paulette.guajardo@cctexas.com
Phone: (361) 826-3100
Denise Sudell, Constituent Relations Coordinator for Councilmembers Hernandez, Paxson, Roy, and Vaughn
Email: Denises2@cctexas.com
Phone: (361) 826-3107
Councilmember Carolyn Vaughn, At Large
Email: carolyn.vaughn2@cctexas.com
Councilmember Everett Roy, District 1
Email: Everett.Roy@cctexas.com
Phone: (361) 826-3107
Mobile: (361) 677-1335
Councilmember Kaylynn Paxson, District 4
Email: Kaylynn.Paxson@cctexas.com
Councilmember Gil Hernandez, District 5
Email: Gil.Hernandez@cctexas.com
Phone: (361) 826-3107
Mobile: (361) 779-1179
Patricia Galvan, Constituent Relations Coordinator for Councilmembers Barrera, Campos, Cantu, and Scott
Email: Patriciag3@cctexas.com
Phone: (361) 826-3145
Councilmember Mark Scott, At Large
Email: Mark.Scott@cctexas.com
Councilmember Roland Barrera, At Large
Email: Roland.Barrera@cctexas.com
Phone: (361) 826-3145
Work: (361) 400-2484
Councilmember Sylvia Campos, District 2
Email: Sylvia.Campos@cctexas.com
Phone: (361) 826-3145
Mobile: (361) 687-7259
Councilmember Eric Cantu, District 3
Email: Eric.Cantu@cctexas.com
—
Mega email list for copying and pasting:
paulette.guajardo@cctexas.com, Roland.Barrera@cctexas.com, Mark.Scott@cctexas.com, carolyn.vaughn2@cctexas.com, Everett.Roy@cctexas.com, Sylvia.Campos@cctexas.com, Eric.Cantu@cctexas.com, Kaylynn.Paxson@cctexas.com, Gil.Hernandez@cctexas.com