CORPUS CHRISTI, Tx — City leaders have been discussing improvements for the iconic marina area for quite some time. Planning and Architecture firm, EDSA, was hired to develop the Master Plan last year.
The plan was originally scheduled for a vote at Tuesday's city council meeting but it was pulled from the agenda, but it's unclear why. The purpose of the Master Plan is to create a vision for the marina that will guide the city for the next ten years.
TAKE A LOOK AT THE MARINA MASTER PLAN HERE
“I think their mindset is that they want to have it where you can actually entice people to walk from the marina to the downtown or vice versa from the downtown," said District 1 Council Member, Everett Roy.
During a conversation, Roy tells KRIS 6 News reporter, Alexis Scott, that he loves the concept of adding to the marina, but he also wants city leaders to keep in mind other existing projects and what brings in more revenue.
LISTEN TO THE FULL INTERVIEW HERE:
“They [City leaders and the Marina Advisory Committee] were talking about, just to do the streets along to change the structure and the way that the streets are curved, spending about $220 million. So, my take as the council member for District 1, we need to look at things that we could do in conjunction with the marina that would help us bring revenue," Roy said.
Here are some image renderings included in the city's Master Plan Presentation:
The city plans to utilize state and federal funds to foot the bill. Under the Master Plan, the city wants to create better intersections and accessibility to the T-Heads, add shaded structures and a pedestrian swing bridge, build a community sailing center and bring in more restaurants, retail shops and an event lawn stage.
Some tourists and locals also believe the Master Plan will boost attraction to the area.
Mason Marshall said he travels to Corpus Christi often and loves spending time at the marina.
“Any recreational activity would be a big improvement to the area, I would say," said Marshall.
"It’d be great. I mean there’s a lot of places downtown, but you could always go for more. A lot more stuff, especially down here in this marina area," local resident, Robert Salazar said.
Right now, there's no word on when the proposed Master Plan will be presented to city council.
For the latest local news updates, click here, or download the KRIS 6 News App.
