Corpus Christi could receive up to $35 million to replace two aging water mains, including one that broke 17 times in five years.
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — One of Corpus Christi’s oldest water mains has broken approximately 17 times over the past five years. Now, city leaders hope the state will help pay to replace it.
On Tuesday, the Corpus Christi City Council will decide whether to authorize an application for up to $35 million through the Texas Water Development Board’s Water Supply & Infrastructure Grant (WSIG) program. City staff is recommending approval of the application, which would help fund the replacement of two aging cast-iron water mains.
This story continues below.
The competitive grant program includes a $220 million funding pool available to Texas cities with populations exceeding 150,000, with individual awards capped at $35 million. The city would not be required to provide a local cash match if selected.
If approved by council and ultimately awarded by the state, the funding would help replace aging water mains along East Navigation Boulevard and the Leopard Street and Up River Road corridor.
The East Navigation Boulevard line, installed in 1954, serves North Beach and the Joe Fulton International Trade Corridor. According to city documents, the pipeline has reached the end of its operational life and has suffered approximately 17 water main breaks over the past five years. Replacing it with modern PVC pipe would improve reliability, reduce emergency repairs and add redundancy to the city’s water distribution system.
The second project would replace a cast-iron transmission main installed in 1930 that serves residential, commercial and industrial customers along the I-37 corridor. The city says the line is a remnant of the former Cunningham Water Treatment Plant, which preceded today’s O.N. Stevens Water Treatment Plant, and replacing it would improve system redundancy and long-term reliability.
“This has nothing to do with contractors making mistakes,” At-Large Councilman Mark Scott told 3NEWS. “The reality is the one on North Beach, the one on the north side of the channel, has broken 17 breaks in the last five years. Okay, it’s time to go.”
Scott said the city plans to replace both water mains regardless of whether it receives state funding. Tuesday’s vote, he said, is about giving Corpus Christi the opportunity to have the state cover the cost.
“Be careful. This makes way too much sense not to do,” Scott said of applying for the grant. “It’s a project we’re going to do anyhow.”
Nick Winkelmann, Corpus Christi Water’s chief operating officer, said replacing aging infrastructure is part of the utility’s broader effort to improve the reliability of the city’s water system.
“It will decrease water main breaks throughout the city and improve our resiliency and the reliability of the system,” Winkelmann said.
Corpus Christi Water currently invests between $35 million and $40 million each year replacing aging infrastructure, according to city officials.
If the grant application is unsuccessful, the city says the projects would still move forward using revenue bonds. The Texas Water Development Board is expected to announce grant awards between January and March 2027.