State of the City alive and well (and so is Schlitterbahn), mayor says

As she ran through a list of accomplishments Corpus Christi can be proud of vs what it needs to work on for the future, Mayor Nelda Martinez paused to say with special emphasis she plans to help facilitate the completion of Schlitterbahn Water Park. The round of applause at that statement was but one of many given to the mayor during her annual State of the City speech at the American Bank Center Feb. 5.
“When completed Schlitterbahn will be a game changer, not only for the island, but for the whole region,” said the Mayor. Construction at the park ceased last fall after nine liens were filed by contractors for lack of pay. Schlitterbahn recently asked the city to extend its time period for eligibility of millions of dollars in tax incentives. The park is almost a year behind schedule, although a limited part of the park has opened.
As the Chamber of Commerce’s biggest fundraiser of the year, the State of the City was certainly a success. The sold out event packed almost 1,000 people into a massive ballroom at the bayside convention center.
The mayor began with an emphasis on the region’s economic diversity, which has provided a cushion against negative effects from the fall in oil and gas prices.
“Over 50 companies are still going to continue to add capital investment in our community,” she said. “We still have companies waiting to move into the area. The [Eagle Ford] shale is bringing manufacturing back home to the U.S. of A. Our region has gained an edge because of the availability of natural gas.”
She then played a video of local dignitaries and business leaders explaining why the low price of oil would not hurt, but eventually help, the area. A serious topic ended with a little fun as they all took turns dancing to Taylor Swift’s “Shake it Off” video.
Other topics of importance to the city included:
— Drought resistant water supply, including desalinization.
— Keeping the military bases, which provide 20 percent of the city’s tax base. (The Corpus Christi Army Depot is the city’s biggest employer.)
— Educating and training a workforce for the companies wanting to move into the area.
— Providing the housing stock for those workers and for those who cannot afford to buy. (“We have a housing crisis in the city,” the mayor said.)
— Revitalizing the downtown area for a more livable urban core that will draw both residents and tourists.
“We have so much promise,” Martinez said. “The promise is right in front of us. We have experienced so much success by working together. We have so much to be thankful and happy about.”
One of those reasons, she noted, is that the city was the only Texas community in a list of the top 10 happiest places in the nation.
“Now that’s something to be proud of,” she said, starting another video, this one of council members and others explaining what makes them happy about Corpus Christi as Pharrell Williams’ song “Happy” played in the background.
Several members of the audience were happy about the mayor’s speech.
“I thought the mayor’s speech today was very motivating,” said Veronica Wenzel, of Christus Spohn Hospital. “She touched on many of the topics residents are interested in.”
She added that she was surprised (and happy) to learn that Corpus Christi was one of the happiest cities in the nation. “I didn’t know that,” she said.
Harvey Lopez of the Corpus Christi Housing Authority was surprised when he heard his organization mention — which made him and his colleague Marsha Hardeman happy.
“That was a good surprise,” he said. “That’s good news. We’re going to need a lot of housing for people here, including the homeless. That’s one of our goals.”
“I especially like the part about the partnerships and networking with other entities,” Hardeman said. “We can always get more done if you’ve got everyone working toward the same goals with the same ideas.”