SOUTH PADRE ISLAND — From electric vehicle charging stations to a deep water marina, some new ideas are on the table in this coastal city.
During a board meeting on Monday, members of the South Padre Island Economic Development Corporation (EDC) discussed different projects aimed to enhance the area.
The board approved forming a committee to research the development of a deep water marina.
“We’ve been discussing this for a couple of years,” SPI EDC board member Gayle Hood said. “I think a lot of people here see the need for a deep water marina. It’s something we don’t have.”
A marina is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats.
“They’re developing the RGV Reef project offshore so we’re hoping to attract some of those big yachts and boats and that clientele of people,” Hood said. “I think they’re running out of room to put these folks, and if they have any at all.”
Hood said she was interested in the board forming a committee, finding a location and learning how they could make it work to create the deep water marina.
“I understand there’s grant money we can apply for,” she said. “We don’t know all the ins and outs yet, but we have to start some place.”
According to Hood, Richard Franke, Kristina Boburka and Daniel Bryant are some members of the community who have agreed that they would love to serve on the committee.
“We welcome any kind of questions, input or help from anybody — any ideas that you have because we’re just getting started in this and I just think that it’s something we really need to do,” Hood said to the board. “This would be great to have.”
Charging stations
SPI EDC Executive Director Darla Lapeyre presented the idea of having a possible new program to assist in providing electric vehicle charging stations at SPI businesses.
Lapeyre said she wanted to see what the board felt about the idea after being approached by an Island business owner who drives a Tesla.
According to Lapeyre, the business owner is going to put in a charging station at their business so people can charge their vehicle while they’re shopping.
“I started researching this and there are grants out there for the charging stations,” Lapeyre said. “I spent a few hours researching it and then I thought I better just wait and see if the board even likes the idea.”
Lapeyre said she looked at two different approaches for the project.
The first one would be working with the city to see if there are any public facilities that they would want to put the electric vehicle charging stations in.
The second approach involves some type of grant program to assist the business.
“Sort of like our facade grant where we would reimburse them 50 percent if they put one in their storefront, which I kind of like that more so than the other one because that way we’re not in charge of collecting the money and all that kind of stuff,” Lapeyre said. “Maybe we just let the businesses that want to do it do it and then they apply to get reimbursed for half.”
Hood said she likes the project idea and thinks it’s the way of the future.
“I can come back at a future meeting with the guidelines like I do for the other programs and with the details of all of that,” Lapeyre told the board. “I’ll start working on that.”
