CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — After hours of public testimony, heated debate and several arrests in the audience, the Corpus Christi City Council on Wednesday voted against advancing what would have been the city’s most expensive infrastructure project to date: a $1.2 billion desalination plant at the Inner Harbor.

Key Amendment Fails

The pivotal decision came with the rejection of Amendment 5, which would have allowed contractor Kiewit to move forward with design plans to 60% completion. The amendment also called for the company to return with a guaranteed maximum price by March 2026.

By voting down the amendment, the council effectively halted years of planning and left the city on the hook for $122 million in debt service over the next decade—without a desalination plant to show for it.

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