Inside the Moon Kite Flying A2 Barefoot Festival A7 Pet Adoption A9 Art Show A11 Ribbon Cutting A14 Issue 723 The Island Free The voiceMoon of The Island since 1996 February 22, 2018 Weekly www.islandmoon.com FREE Around South End of The Island The Island is By Dale Rankin We are telling ourselves this week Bombed with that winter is over, that may or may not turn out to be true, as we usually Pamphlets have a cold snap come Spring Break. By Dale Rankin The water temperature on the Gulf side has been in the mid-sixties so When colorful pamphlets and letters things get a little chillier as you go sent by the federal Military Munitions near the water. Response Program began arriving in mailboxes on the south end of The Bombs away! Island last week warning residents to look out for live bombs in their yards The talk of The Island this week was it caused some uneasiness. the notification to property owners around the SPID-Encantada area to The pamphlets showed ground watch out for bombs! That’s pretty zero for the “Old Bombing Target big doings on our little sandbar… B-1” to be near the SPID/Encantada bombs in the yard! Holy Cow! intersection with the area outlined in red including Balli Park and Seashore We’re still sorting out the details Learning Center. It sounds incendiary on that one, but Moon Mike once on its face, but a closer look at existing found an exploded mortar shell Volunteers from the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network were called to PINS just north of federal and historic records finds no his grandfather brought back from Malaquite Beach Tuesday to help a stranded Pigmy Sperm Whale. In spite of their hard work the whale evidence of a “Bombing Target B-1” World War I in a closet after his did not survive located in Nueces County. grandfather’s death. Mike loaded it into his backseat wrapped in a The pamphlet includes a phone blanket and took off for the nearest number and a website to check for National Guard Armory and about old bombing ranges across the United halfway there started thinking that City Funding of Water Exchange States. A check of the website and a maybe wasn’t all that great an idea… call to the listed number this week or maybe not so bad. found 370 former bomb sites in Texas, Bridge in Place with five listed in Kleberg County, “If that thing goes off,” he figured, and four in Nueces County (all across “I’ll be that last casualty of The Big Construction now waiting on private match to begin work the Laguna Madre) but no mention War. They’ll have to put my name on of a “B-1” bombing range in Nueces memorials all over the country. That’s By Dale Rankin County. The list shows Targets B-2, not a bad way to go out!” Generally Where does the TRZ money come from? The Corpus Christi City Council on speaking, if you find a bomb, don’t Bombing cont. on A4 Tuesday put the last piece of public These revenue projections assume a 95% tax collection rate for all three taxing jurisdictions. According pick it up. funding for the Park Road 22/SPID to these projections, 53.0% of the tax increment revenues will come from the City, 32.9% will come from the County, 13.5% will come from the County Hospital District, 0.2%% will come from Del Mar College, Number of Schlitterbahn sellers Water Exchange Bridge in place when and 0.4% will come from the Farm to Market Road. they approved the use of up to $4 People from Keen-Summit Capital million in funds from Tax Increment Registered Partners were on site at Schlitterbahn Refinance Zone #2 to pay for part of Sources of this week to show around any Island TRZ the $11.5 million construction price. City of Nueces Nueces Del Mar Jr. Farm to Total Island Voters potential buyers who might happen Revenue Corpus County County College Market Christi Hospital Road by. Keen-Summit has been hired by The council had previously pledged District $6.5 million in funds leftover from 2009 1,597,917 985,617 406,158 137,838 12,165 3,139,695 Tops 7500 the bankruptcy trustee overseeing the 2010 1,273,417 786,419 324,072 - 9,709 2,393,616 Chapter 11 Bankruptcy at the park to previous bond projects for the bridge, 2011 1,203,508 745,121 307,054 - 9,201 2,264,884 2012 1,372,033 849,855 350,213 - 10,494 2,582,595 market the park to potential buyers. meaning the full funding for the 2013 1,519,533 941,476 387,968 - 11,625 2,860,601 Early Voting Through 2014 1,645,468 1,019,647 420,181 - 12,590 3,097,886 So far no takers, at least no official project is now in place; except for 2015 1,761,879 1,091,870 449,943 - 13,481 3,317,173 announcement. There is no shortage one thing. 2016 2,162,313 1,340,366 552,345 - 16,549 4,071,572 March 2 2017 2,615,229 1,621,428 668,166 - 20,018 4,924,842 The total number of registered voters or rumors though, while we can’t Tuesday’s vote commits the $4 2018 3,127,882 1,939,557 799,263 - 23,945 5,890,647 2019 3,708,557 2,299,895 947,753 - 28,393 6,984,598 split between the two Padre Island address all the stories we have heard, million from the TIRZ through 2020 4,366,726 2,708,317 1,116,057 - 33,435 8,224,535 2021 5,113,212 3,171,538 1,306,944 - 39,153 9,630,847 precincts is now at 7546 according we can say that the area is not going February 28, 2019 and is contingent 2022 5,960,390 3,697,237 1,523,577 - 45,642 11,226,846 Total 37,428,065 23,198,342 9,559,692 137,838 286,400 70,610,338 to the Nueces County Clerk’s Office. to be turned into nuclear waste site, on the owners of the land surrounding Precinct 40 has 3,803 registered intentionally burned to the ground, the canal leading to the west side of and $10 million with about 80% voters, and Precinct 81 has 3,743 turned into a Taliban training site, nor the bridge site putting up $5 million refundable by the Federal Emergency registered voters. blasted into space by Elon Musk – at to ensure the new canal is lined with What is the least not this week. Management Agency. A study to bulkheads before the funding for the determine the cost of that project is On the first day of Early Voting Knuckleheads with spray paint bridge is released. currently underway. TRZ? Tuesday 13 Democrats and On March 21, 2000, the Corpus 45 Republicans cast ballots at Our island has been invaded of late The TIRZ funding was first The future of the Water Exchange Christi City Council authorized Schlitterbahn, the only Early Voting by vandals armed with spray paint. approved by the Island Strategic Bridge now rests with the Axys the preparation of a preliminary site on Padre Island. During both After fifteen years of waiting the Action Committee, then on February Capital Group of Austin which owns financing plan for a tax increment Early Voting and on Election Day portable restrooms we finally got 21, 2017, the TIRZ #2 board, which the northern portion of the new canal, financing district covering portions voters can cast ballots at any polling on the beaches last month have now consists of members of the Corpus and International Bank of Commerce of North Padre Island and Mustang place in Nueces County, they do not been removed so the spray paint Christi City Council and three which controls the southern end. Island. This tax increment financing have to vote in the precinct where can be removed and damage can be other taxing entities which granted For work on the bridge to proceed would be used primarily to provide they are registered. repaired. For the most part graffiti on tax breaks to the TIRZ. Tuesday’s the two combined must dedicate $5 the local share of the North Padre The Island over the years has been council vote was the last step in the million for the finishing of the canal Of the total of 199,188 registered Island Storm Damage Reduction and confined to the concrete structure funding process from the city’s side. structure. The majority of the new voters in Nueces County 1900 cast Environmental Restoration Project around the water gate at the entrance canal is currently dug but stops about ballots on Tuesday - 1340 Democrats In the same vote the council also ("Packery Channel project"). Then to Lake Padre, but a few weeks ago fifty feet short of cutting through to and 560 Republicans. committed TIRZ funds to repair on June 27, 2000, the City Council these knuckleheads sprayed up the the existing Island canal system just In the November 2016 Election damage to the Packery Channel Jetties approved the preliminary Project restrooms on the seawall, and then by Hurricane Harvey. Estimates for north of Whitecap Boulevard, and has at total of 4973 Island voters cast this week the restrooms and signs those repairs run between $6 million no bulkheads on either side.