The controversial Inner Harbor desalination plant — put on an indefinite hold in September — is returning to Corpus Christi City Council discussion.
The future of the facility is among a slew of water supply projects listed on the agenda for a workshop scheduled for Oct. 3.
The estimated $1.2 billion endeavor, planned to generate as much as 30 million gallons of treated water per day, was paused after a council majority voted Sept. 3 to turn down a contract extension with Kiewit Infrastructure South Co.
This graphic illustrates the conceptual layout for the proposed Inner Harbor desalination plant campus.
However, as several council members have pointed out, the vote was to reject continuance of Kiewit’s contract, not to nix the plant altogether.
The aftermath of the vote was an illustration of the divide — cheers from opponents and disappointment from supporters.
It was a move, too, that evoked heavy scrutiny by state and credit rating agencies.
In a memo, city staff briefly describes some of the possible routes the council could take to move forward, to include alternatives such as taking up dialogue with the second-highest-bidding company or reassigning the existing contract to nonprofit state agency Gulf Coast Water Authority.
There would also be an option of a public-private partnership, according to the memo.
Should the council express interest in the Gulf Coast Water Authority, that would be an option only available through Oct. 30, when the Kiewit contract expires, wrote City Manager Peter Zanoni in a message to the Caller-Times on Sept. 30.
Although not specifically listed on the memo, some officials have floated the possibility of selling the permits to a private buyer.
Returning to talks on the Inner Harbor desalination plant is “ridiculous,” said City Councilwoman Sylvia Campos, who has been a vocal critic of the Inner Harbor plant, based largely on unresolved environmental questions.
“The people have spoken,” she said. “We have already said that we don’t want it, we don’t want Inner Harbor — it is at the worst spot that you could have it in.”
Also slated for discussion is the fate of low-interest loans awarded by the Texas Water Development Board.
The state agency approved the city for $757 million in financing specifically for Inner Harbor seawater desalination.
The city has issued bonds for about $235 million. Roughly $231 million represents outstanding principal that must be repaid with interest, officials have said.
Desalination — an undertaking that has been in the works for a decade — has not been taken off the table as one of the city’s strategies to address drought, said Mayor Paulette Guajardo.
“We have the land, we have the permits and we have the state of Texas that has partnered with us through the low-interest financing,” she said. “It’s the only drought-proof water source — so unlike the other options, desal is the only one that is ready today as a long-term solution.”
She noted that the council is also exploring immediate and short-term options to bulk up water supply, and will be evaluating potential “risks of all these projects.”
“It’s important to know what the risks are because that affects the timeline,” Guajardo said. “We’re trying to expedite and do everything we can to bring water to Corpus Christi.”
The city has so far spent $50 million in efforts to build the Inner Harbor desalination plant, which officials most recently estimated could come online in 2028.
What to expect
Some council members expressed openness to discourse on any of the water projects, although some cautioned that factors like budgets and environmental soundness still present unsettled questions.
The cost for the Inner Harbor desalination plant was cited heavily in the pivotal vote to terminate Kiewit’s contract.
While he will have an open mind to water supply discussions, “there was a reason (Inner Harbor) got voted down,” said City Councilman Everett Roy.
“I believe that probably the key reason is just the sheer cost of it,” he said. “So if there’s some other alternatives that would be more amenable to our ratepayers, then … I’d listen to it.”
City Councilman Eric Cantu said he has continued concerns about pricing and potential impacts to the bay’s ecology, adding that he hasn’t seen the studies he feels are necessary to ensure plant operations would be protective of the environment.
City Councilman Mark Scott said he is focused, in part, on coming up with a solution that “begins to show the public, the state and the bond rating agencies that we have a game plan that we can implement.”
He hasn’t heard criticism about bringing back conversation on Inner Harbor, he said.
“The feedback I get from the community is, ‘get back in the ring, figure out a way to get Inner Harbor done such that we don’t have to eat $230 million nor do we have to have burned $50 million,’” Scott said.
City Councilman Roland Barrera, who said he was among those who had requested the item appear on the agenda, said there generally need to be some clarifications, as well as efforts to give staff more direction.
It’s important, he added, to answer the question of “where do we go from here, what’s the next step.”
“I personally hope it gets resurrected,” Barrera said. “I’ve been consistent for the longest time, but I think we’ve got some decisions to make with regard to the funds that we have and what are we going to do with permits.”
Other projects
An agenda memo shows other projects anticipated for upcoming discussion include the city’s ongoing development of Nueces River groundwater well field — along with several other groundwater endeavors — potential wastewater reuse and the possible purchase of desalinated water through another entity.
One of the wastewater reuse projects, as proposed, would be partially supported by the Gulf Coast Water Authority — the same state agency as that being considered for follow-through on the Inner Harbor project.
The council is also slated for an overview of two seawater desalination projects in which the city would purchase treated water — one being the Nueces River Authority’s initiative, which proposes to build a plant on port-owned property on Harbor Island.
The discussion on the Nueces River Authority’s offer could serve as a curtain-opener to an item listed on the agenda for the Oct. 7 meeting, when the council is expected to consider a reservation agreement for as much as 56,000 acre feet per year — or 50 million gallons per day — in treated seawater.
This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Desal is coming back to Corpus Christi council. Here’s what to expect.