Corpus Christi regional EDC annual update spotlights water, power and workforce needs

Mike Culberson, with the Corpus Christi Regional Economic Development Corporation, told the San Patricio County Commissioners Court that housing and employment indicators show mixed signals but that long-term infrastructure — especially water and power — remain the region’s top economic priorities. "Housing is moving along," Culberson said in the court’s annual-area briefing.

Culberson said months of housing inventory have crept up, moving the market toward a more neutral balance, and that local sales-tax receipts fell slightly from 2023 to 2024. He added that unemployment in the three-county metropolitan area (Nueces, San Patricio and Aransas) has been near full-employment levels but that the region has lagged recent state averages in educational attainment: roughly one in four residents hold a bachelor’s degree and about one in five do not have a high-school diploma.

Those workforce statistics shape the EDC’s priorities, Culberson said, including retention and expansion work led by a new business retention officer and outreach to smaller manufacturers. On water and power, he said the region must secure more reliable supply and generation capacity to support industry growth. He described industry-funded fees that were designed to seed desalination capacity and noted past initiatives to explore brackish desalination and other sources. "The industries during that voluntarily took a 25¢ extra fee per thousand gallons," Culberson said, describing how the revenue was intended to help finance desalination projects.

Culberson also addressed power-generation needs, saying solar and wind incentives are changing and that additional dispatchable generation will be needed as demand grows. He discussed small modular nuclear reactors as one piece of a far-term solution but cautioned they will not be an immediate fix. "Nuclear is not going to save us. It's part of the solution," he said.

The presentation reviewed targeted industry surveys the EDC has used to recruit manufacturing and steel-sector businesses and touted Manufacturing Day outreach to connect students and local manufacturers. Culberson said the EDC is seeking smaller, lower‑water, lower‑electricity manufacturers that can grow without large new utility infrastructure, and he announced that the CCRDC executive director job search has been posted and will be filled following a Korn Ferry-led search.

The court offered brief thanks and recognition to Culberson for his work. Culberson said he plans to retire later this year and that a search committee is moving forward with candidate review. The court took no formal action on the presentation.