When the new Harbor Bridge is built and the old one (shown here) is removed, some 85 acres will be available for development between Whataburger Field and American Bank Center. Most will be owned by the city of Corpus Christi. Courtesy photo
The first of possibly three state committee hearings to explore bringing passenger cruise ships to South Texas will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 25, in the Solomon P. Ortiz Center. Co-chaired by state Rep. Todd Hunter, R-Corpus Christi, the committee will explore cruise ship harbors from Port Lavaca to Brownsville.
“We want to find out who has the expertise, which areas are best suitable to supporting the cruise ship industry,” Hunter told Corpus Christi Business News. “We want to find out what we need to do to be ready and go make a request to the private market to come look at what we have.”
Hunter’s heart, of course, beats for the Corpus Christi area, which he said has a lot to offer the cruise industry.
“We are closer to a lot of the destinations, and our port is very manageable,” he said. “It’s easy to get in and out of, we have an airport, which is helpful, and we have a downtown area that could service a cruise ship.”
He also touted the Ortiz Center, which would be the port of call for ships.
“There are a lot of factors up in the air that could land correctly,” he said, while acknowledging that Brownsville also has some advantages.
Having more than one home for a South Texas cruise ship industry would be unlikely, he added.
“To develop such a project, it would be only one area,” he said. “It didn’t work well with Galveston and Houston next door to each other. That was too close.”
Two types of testimony will be sought for the hearing: invited and public. Those invited to make presentations or answer questions will include officials from the various ports and chambers of commerce as well as representatives of the economic development and travel organizations in South Texas.
Public comments may be made at the hearing or submitted to Hunter’s office.
“That’s the focus of the initial hearing,” Hunter said. “We will mainly focus on communities rather than the cruise ships.”
Additional hearings could be held in Austin and Brownsville along with a possible field trip to the Galveston port for a firsthand look at how a vibrant cruise ship port of call operates.
HARD WORK PAYS OFF
Bringing cruise ships to Corpus Christi has been a passion of Hunter’s for some time now. He sponsored the bill that made these hearings possible. It was signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott after the 2015 legislative session.
“Having cruise ships here would be great for economic development and for travel tourism,” Hunter said. “This area is ripe for cruise ships. It connects our community to ports of other areas: Mexico, Cuba, Panama. It opens us up to great job-producing opportunities. Cruises are a great way to vacation; they are great for families, great for businesses.”
House members serving on the committee with Hunter are vice chair Eddie Lucio III, D-Brownsville; Wayne Faircloth, R-Galveston; Wayne Smith, R-Baytown; Ed Thompson, R-Pearland; Senfronia Thompson, D-Houston; and Vo Hobert, D-Houston.
Senate members are co-chair Lois W. Kolkhorst, R-Brenham; vice chair Juan Hinojosa, D-McAllen; Joan Huffman, R-Houston; Eddie Lucio Jr., D-Brownsville; and Larry Taylor, R-Friendswood.
