CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Three years after starting construction and $22 million later, the Don Patricio Bridge finally is complete.
"It really ties the island together,” said former Pct. 4 Corpus Christi City Councilman Greg Smith. “It puts Padre Island on the map as it competes against other coastal communities. It creates an environment here that those communities don't have.”
The bridge consists of three concrete arches.
Current Pct. 4 councilman Dan Suckley said that once water is connected to the Padre Island canal system, it will allow boat access from the Gulf of Mexico to the Packery Channel and is named for 19th century Padre Island rancher Patrick F. Dunn.
"So the Don Patricio Bridge named in his honor, for the future of this city," said Corpus Christi Mayor Paulette Guajardo.
The 36-ft. arches on both sides of the canal that serve as boardwalk will also improve how both islanders and tourists get around, said Corpus Christi Mayor Paulette Guajardo.
"Golf carts, swimming, biking walking, jogging whatever they want to do," she said.
Guajardo said the bridge is a huge addition to the city's infrastructure made possible in partnership with the private sector: the Padre Island Property Owners’ Association.
"The bridge is not just a bridge for mobility,” she said. “It just represents so much more. This project was in the making for many, many years, and so today is such an important day because we are actually seeing it come to fruition."
While there was celebration about the bridge’s completion, for now, water from the gulf currently doesn’t flow into the canals, and there are questions about when that will happen.
The Padre Island Property Owners’ Association has concerns over what the gulf water will do to the neighborhood’s canal and the Whitecap bridge.
The property owners’ association tells 3NEWS they will be presenting to city council on Tuesday, where there they will share their concerns and work alongside developers to come up with a solution.
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