A still-in-the-works water project that would impact San Patricio County residents has continued to be a hot topic, with the issue taking center stage again at a recent Corpus Christi City Council meeting — a meeting which ended with rejecting a private donation to cover potential costs.

During their regular council meeting on July 28, the council voted 5-4 to reject an unrestricted donation from Voices for Coastal Bend Energy, a Texas 501(c)(6) organization, to fund the preparation and submission of the City of Corpus Christi’s U.S. Bureau of Reclamation WaterSMART Desalination grant application for the Inner Harbor desalination project.

Council members Carolyn Vaughn, Eric Cantu, Gil Hernandez, Kaylynn Paxson and Sylvia Campos voted against accepting the grant. Mayor Paulette Guajardo as well as council members Everett Roy, Mark Scott and Roland Barrera had voted in support of accepting the donation.

Had it been approved, the donation would have covered the costs associated with the grant application and more, which Corpus Christi Water’s Nicholas Winkelmann said would have been between $50,000 and $55,000 plus pay for additional staff time.

The San Patricio County Municipal Water District — which serves area municipalities such as Portland, Taft, Ingleside, Aransas Pass, Odem, Mathis, and more — receives its water from the city of Corpus Christi.

“Pursuing these federal funds will reduce the financial burden on residential and small business ratepayers while helping our community move toward a reliable, drought-resilient water supply,” Voices for the Coastal Bend wrote on social media prior to the meeting. “We encourage everyone who cares about the future of Corpus Christi and the Coastal Bend to make their voice heard.”

Executive Director Dolly Gonzales Trolley said the donors on behalf of their organization are respected businesspeople and members of the community. She said the organization was willing to fund such costs even as approval for the Inner Harbor project is pending resolution.

“What we’re asking you to do while continuing your due diligence… Is say ‘yes’ to letting us fund the cost to get this prepared,” Trolley said.

However, with representatives not required to release the names of the organization’s donors, some council members expressed apprehension of accepting money from unnamed people.

“I appreciate the work that you do, I do — but as for me, I think that whoever is in this committee, the names should be out there,” Vaughn said. “I don’t think the city should take money from people you don’t know.”

Paxson shared similar concerns, among others shared by council members.

“My position at the last time we heard this item hasn’t changed — we still don’t have a project to apply this too that’s been approved,” she said. “I want to say, I’m very appreciative to the groups…but I do share some of councilwoman Vaughn’s concerns that there’s just kind of a blanket org name here without a lot of detail behind it.”

Following roughly an hour of discussion, the resolution ultimately failed.