Councilman Eric Cantu claims the Evangeline water project is being stalled behind closed doors. The Mayor and City Manager strongly deny the accusation.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — A major water project designed to protect Corpus Christi from future water shortages is now at the center of a growing political firestorm.

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The Evangeline water project, which could eventually deliver up to 24 million gallons of water a day from San Patricio County, is meant to help the city avoid mandatory water curtailment in the coming years.

But one city councilman now claims the project is being quietly sabotaged from inside City Hall.

Councilman Eric Cantu says the clock is ticking and the delays are no accident.

“The reason why there’s a monkey wrench on this is because of Roland Barrera, Mark Scott and the mayor,” Cantu said, claiming their influence in San Patricio County is slowing the project.

Cantu alleges those efforts aren’t happening in public meetings, but behind closed doors.

“They are stopping it behind closed doors, in private meetings, and trying to kill this project,” he said.

Mayor Paulette Guajardo forcefully rejected the accusations, calling them political theater.

“Absolutely not. Anyone saying anything otherwise is grandstanding,” Guajardo said. “This council and prior councils have constantly worked towards bringing water to our community and our region.”

Guajardo pushed back on turning water security into a political battle.

“To make this political is really sad,” she said. “It really just shows a level of governance and level of education of this topic.”

City Manager Peter Zanoni said despite the noise, the project timeline is still moving forward.

“The goal is to bring on the first 12 million gallons of water from the Evangeline project by November,” Zanoni said, adding some water could come online even earlier in 2026.

Zanoni also rejected any suggestion the city is slow-walking the project.

“We worked through Christmas to keep the project on track,” he said. “We are trying to expedite the project instead of slowing it down.”

He says the city expects a clearer answer on the Evangeline project and it’s timeline at the next council meeting.

If the project misses key deadlines, Corpus Christi could face water curtailment with fewer backup options…something Cantu warns would leave the city dangerously exposed.

Cantu says he plans to keep pressing for answers as the political fight intensifies.