The jetty at Breakwater Park at 2800 N. Shoreline Blvd. will not be part of the deal if Proposition 3 passes Nov. 4 and the city is able to sell the .15 acre parcel of land that makes up this little – known piece of public property. Staff Photo
City voters will decide on whether to sell or decommission 17 of the city’s 207 parks when they go to the ballot box Nov. 4. Proposition 3 asks voters to give the city permission to sell, repurpose or lease about 30 acres of designated park land. Any money from sales only can be used to “acquire and improve city park land,” the ballot reads. When the city council began work on a parks master plan two years ago, 27 parks were on the original list for possible decommissioning. Since then, 10 have been adopted by organizations or neighborhood groups, said parks and recreation director Mike Morris. “[The study showed] we have more parks than we need,” Morris said. “We have more parks per capita than most cities in Texas. We have parks across the street from parks.” Corpus Christi recently ranked high among the nation’s 60 largest cities for its proliferation of parks. The Trust for Public Land lauded Corpus Christi for its number of playgrounds per residents and percentage of population living within a 10-minute walk from a park. Losing the just over 30 total acres involved will not affect that ranking, Morris said. The city has more than 2,000 acres of parkland, not including beaches. Authorizing the city to sell these 17 parks does not mean that’s what will happen to them, Morris added. If the ballot measure is approved, the city will notify residents near the parks of any proposed action and will hold more public hearings before a sale or lease is finalized. The parks still will be available for adoption. In fact, two of the parks may go to the Corpus Christi school district, as they are adjacent to elementary schools. The city will also have to go through a process of deciding how to sell any parks after doing a market analysis of their worth. Parks can be sold through auction or a real estate agent. Not every asset related to a park will be sold either. Breakwater Park at 2800 N. Shoreline near the Harbor Bridge is on the list, but the jetty there is not part of any plan to sell. “For one thing, I don’t think you can really sell a jetty,” Morris said of the concrete blocks that lead out into the bay. The jetty was built to buffer the wave action off the bay, not for public use. To adopt a park, individuals or organizations need to fill out an application, which can be found online at cctexas.com. Responsibilities include assisting with landscaping, litter cleanup and park improvements such as benches, playscapes and other amenities. Volunteers involved are required to attend safety meetings before each work cycle. Trash bags and trash removal from the site are provided by the city. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 4. For a list of polling places, visit co.nueces.tx.us. The deadline to register to vote was Oct. 6. Early voting closes Oct. 31. Parks listed on the ballot include:
- San Carlos Park, 12650 Figueroa St. (2 acres)
- Violet Park, 4301 Violet (1.55 acres)
- Willow Park, 11418 Willowood Creek (0.93 acres)
- Cabra Park, 1323 W. Broadway (1.36 acres)
- Fountain Park, 4938 Moody (1.62 acres)
- Kosar Park, Kosar at Staples Street (0.28 acres)
- Breakwater Park, 2800 N. Shoreline (0.15 acres)
- Acushnet Park, 6746 Aaron (9.96 acres)
- Congress Park, 4017 Capitol (1.96 acres)
- Creekway Park, 7306 Prairie (0.89 acres)
- Durant Park, 6113 Durant (2.70 acres)
- Mt. Vernon Park, 5151 McArdle (7.25 acres)
- Parklane Park, 4600 Arlene (1.95 acres)
- Peary Park, 1750 Paul Jones at Decatur (1 acre)
- Penn Place Park, 4302 Aaron (1.67 acres)
- Ridgewood Park, 5730 Malden (5.04 acres)
- Caribbean Park, 601 Mediterranean (1 acre)
