CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Outside Tuesday’s regularly scheduled Corpus Christi City Council meeting, a group of environmentalists were calling on a majority of council to not sign off on a memorandum of understanding with the Port of Corpus Christi that three council members drew up without Council input.
"They have been in gauging and back door deals outside of public scrutiny," said the Texas Campaign for the Environment’s Arman Alex. ““We are looking at an MOU that was produced by three rogue city council members that went behind closed doors to make a secret deal with industry."
The discussion over that memorandum had council members verbally battling each other in its temporary chambers at the RTA building across from city hall.
"Mayor, I’m not gonna sit here and be lectured by you over something being submitted on an agenda. When we get things on the agenda, they are all the way up until Friday. It says so every week. You can put something on the agenda up until Friday afternoon,” said councilman Mike Pusley.
“Councilman, this is water!” Mayor Paulette Guajardo answered back.
“I don't care whether it's milk,” he said, exasperated. “It doesn't matter."
The memorandum of understanding was first presented in March, with councilmen Mike Pusley, Michael Hunter, Dan Suckley, and Gil Hernandez in favor of council signing off on the agreement to work with the port on building a desalination plant.
That did not happen, so it was put on the agenda again for Tuesday’s meeting.
Councilwoman Sylvia Campos not only voted against approving the memorandum – she doesn’t even want the city to move forward on building a desalination plant.
"Not the right timing, not the right place, not the right time so,” she said.
Her suggestion for making sure Corpus Christi has enough water?
“People need to conserve, and that includes industry," she said.
Most council members are in favor of the city building a desalination plant, but their objection is with the port’s preferred site.
Councilman Roland Barrera is skeptical about the Harbor Island proposal near Port Aransas and favors the city's Inner Harbor.
Pusley estimates the city has spent over $6 million working on its desalination plans.