CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The city of Corpus Christi has decided which 32 projects it would like to put on the 2022 bond program. This year’s program distributes approximately 13% of funds to each of the city’s neighborhoods and approximately 34% of funds affecting the whole city.
City Manager Peter Zanoni said rebuilding roads remains the city’s top priority.
Of the $125 million program, $92.5 million is dedicated to street projects.
One of the most notable is the widening of Yorktown Boulevard east of Rodd Field Road to Oso Bay, with $20 million dedicated to the project.
“Today it’s a two-lane road, one in each direction,” he said. “And it’s the highest growth area in our city. It’s very outdated, the road system. It will convert this two-lane road to a four-lane road with center turn lanes.
South Alameda Street from Airline Road to Everhart Road needs upgrading.
The city crews had done patchwork before, but now the whole roadway is going to be rebuilt. Nearby Avalon Street and Roberts Drive will receive similar treatment.
Past flooding in Flour Bluff has now prompted city staff to take action. Flour Bluff Road is on the list for reconstruction.
The project would be from Yorktown to Don Patricio Road. $14 million is proposed, but only for the pavement. Zanoni said the city’s utilities have funds they can use to replace water pipes, sewer lines, and more.
“There are significant drainage issues, the boundaries take it all the way to Don Patricio. And the heavy rains we had last summer, it was an area that was very prone to heavy flooding,” he said.
A total of $20 million will be allocated to park projects. Zanoni said the city took note of the lack of equipment.
“We have a lot of parks, but there aren’t a lot of amenities,” he said. “Even things like a bench or a shade or a barbecue. And so we continue the three-year process of installing equipment in our parks, whether it is play equipment or brand new swimming pools .”
The city also wants to spruce up the International Westside Pony League baseball diamonds. The fields will feature AstroTurf, the first in the city, as well as an irrigation system.
Preliminary work is proposed for the search for a new clubhouse at Oso Golf Center.
Bill Witt Park is one of the largest in the city, but it doesn’t have a pool. The 2020 Bond had funds for the design of an aquatic center there. In Bond 2022, $10 million could be spent on building it.
“These are amenities that will draw our families to our parks,” Zanoni said. “They’re all free. And so hard-working families who may not have disposable income to travel out of town can, right in their backyards, have a great day out.
How are projects decided? How are they prioritized? A scoring system is used.
“We also listen to the community,” Zanoni said. “Their priority may be different than our department staff members. And then we also get feedback from the mayor and city council.”
One system is used for roads and one system for parks.
“We measure our streets with a pavement condition index and a drivability index,” Zanoni said. “So the ones that are the worst and have the lowest score, usually go up to the top. However, streets like Yorktown where there is high growth and an inadequate system – those also go up to the top.
You may ask, what about my street?
“With this bond program, obviously we can’t take care of all of them,” Zanoni said. “But the important thing to know is that we have our slate and we know there are more bond programs coming. We know we have the city’s operating budget that helps us with that as well.”
The bond program also plans to develop a plan or action for two new police stations. One in the growing South Side and one in the Callallen area.
The redevelopment of fire stations n°8 and n°10 is also proposed.
On August 16, the city council will vote on the bond program. If approved, these are the projects you will see on the November ballot.
To see the whole plan, you can click here.
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