New Pelican Island bridge could attract development
that’s been years in the making, with the city and county already clearing the way.
“It was done in the spirit of cooperation and collaboration with Galveston County,” Port of Houston Authority spokeswoman Lisa Ashley said, “and in the best interest of our region.”
The current bridge causes traffic jams whenever boats need to pass. It also goes through the center of the expanding A&MGalveston campus. College congestion
“It’d be advantageous for us to cut downcongestion for the safety and welfare of the students, faculty and staff,” said Bill McClain, adviser to the school’s chief operating officer.
The terminus of the proposed four-lane vehicular bridge would be outside of the campus. It would be capable of supporting industrial truck traffic, and it would be tall enough for ships to travel beneath.
Officials hope the modern bridge would attract developers to the island. The Port of Houston Authority has about 1,000 acres of undeveloped land on Pelican Island. The Port of Galveston has about 550 acres on Pelican Island, and 285 of those are undeveloped. That includes some 100 acres of prime channel-front real estate.
“It makes everybody’s property more valuable for economic development,” said John Ford, president of the Galveston County Rural Rail Transportation District.
The Rail Transportation District was created in 2012 to facilitate a railway to Pelican Island, but Ford said he quickly realized a vehicular bridge was more pressing. The railway has been kept in the plans and was approved by the Port of Houston Authority, but it’s on the back burner.
“It assures there is rail access for Pelican Island if the market demand is ever there for that to happen,” Ford said.
Michael Mierzwa, port director for the Port of Galveston, would like to see a railway but said it would be a tough sell. Officials won’t build a railway until there’s business demand, and it may be tough to attract certain businesses without the railway.
“That’s going to be a challenge going forward,” he said.
Gulf Copper, which operates a shipyard on Pelican Island, said there was one incident where a large amount of steel was shipped by rail. The steel had to be unloaded from the rail, reloaded onto trucks and then loaded onto a barge. Cyclists, pedestrians
Such scenarios are rare, Gulf Copper vice president Jonathan Hale said. He is more excited about the new vehicular bridge. He said it would cut back on delays caused by the drawbridge, and it will be safer for cyclists and pedestrians who make him nervous on the narrow span.
He also likes that the new bridge wouldn’t cut through the A&M-Galveston campus, and it could hold more weight. In the past 10 years, Gulf Copper has probably lost four significant jobs because of the current bridge’s load capacity, he said.
Mierzwa said the new vehicular bridge would help the port market properties on the island, which could provide an economic boon to the area.
“Any kind of development over there is going to result in jobs,” he said, “in good-paying jobs.”
And when there are new jobs, people will buy houses in Galveston County, eat at nearby restaurants and shop locally, said Henry, the county judge.
“It is an economic game changer for this area,” he added.
Gina Spagnola, president and CEO of the Galveston Regional Chamber of Commerce, said the new bridge would be “vital to the growth of this city and the region.”
“The job creation and the opportunities to invest over there are endless,” she said.
The next step is for Galveston County to spend roughly $2 million on preliminary engineering and environmental studies. Ford ultimately expects the vehicular bridge to cost $100 million, and it could be constructed in five years.
After the preliminary studies, a developer will seek funding sources for the bridge, Henry said. The funds could come in many forms, such as private money, federal or state money, or a combination.
Ford said the county has given the rail district $120,000 to determine if the project was feasible and if so, to help kick-start it. He said the money was used to hire Goodman Corp. as a consultant that helped create the plans for the bridge rights-of-way.
He said he does not know what might happen to the current bridge, which is owned and operated by the Galveston County Navigation District No. 1.