Commissioners OK $600,000 allocation for Santa Maria drainage, set workshop on CDBG MIT grant

Nueces County commissioners on Jan. 4 approved allocating $600,000 to address drainage in the Santa Maria subdivision, to be funded from Precinct 4 ARPA allocations or CDBG-MIT as needed. Commissioner Brent Chesney moved the allocation and the court voted (noted in the record as a 4-0 approval) to notify Santa Maria residents and begin preparing a shovel-ready project.

The court also handled the contested Living Breakwater/Rincon Breakwater Oyster Reef CDBG MIT submission. Members discussed reducing the county's submission from figures previously cited on the draft (one speaker referenced "98,000,000" but noted the county did not receive that amount) and agreed to hold a one-item workshop on Jan. 17 with a full presentation on available projects, restrictions on funds, and low/moderate income (LMI) requirements. Staff was directed to prepare materials and include the COG and grants specialists for the Jan. 18 afternoon session (1 p.m.) in the event the court needed to finalize an application before the Feb. 21 deadline.

Commissioners also discussed ARPA requests for parks projects (a $135,000 pavilion at Kiwanis Park and $225,000 for a walking trail at Diaz Park) and noted both parks are city-owned and would require MOUs before county funds could be spent; the court tabled those items to allow the city and staff to clarify agreements and scopes.

Staff (Juan Pimentel and grants staff) were assigned to set the workshop, coordinate presentations and prepare project lists for the court to consider at the Jan. 18 meeting.