Heated public comment on Inner Harbor desalination; council adopts drought policies and authorizes surcharge mechanism

The City Council spent much of a special meeting on June 2 hearing public comment and discussing water policy and a proposed Inner Harbor desalination plant. More than 100 people signed up to speak; most public‑comment speakers who addressed the desalination proposal urged the council to halt or delay the project because of environmental risk, cost and equity concerns for the Hillcrest neighborhood. “Vote no for the Inner Harbor desalination plant,” Alyssa Cuevas told the council during the public‑comment period. Several other residents, scientists and business owners warned the council about potential ecological harm, long‑term contracts and rates.

Council members and staff also reviewed a far‑field modeling study produced by Spheros Environmental. The modeling team led by Dr. Pradeep presented an EFDC‑based three‑dimensional water‑movement model calibrated to 2023–24 conditions; staff tested vertical resolution (10 vs. 20 layers) and ran “with‑and‑without” desalination scenarios and a committee‑requested “worst‑case” run. The model found that any salinity increases caused by an Inner Harbor discharge would be concentrated near the outfall and largely at depth. Typical predicted increases in bottom salinity in the immediate vicinity were on the order of about 0.5 parts per thousand (ppt) and, in conservative upper‑bound runs, up to about 1–2 ppt; outside the channel the model showed changes generally below 0.1 ppt. The city’s modeling did not include dissolved‑oxygen calculations, and several scientists on the city’s advisory committee urged independent peer review before council action.

Council members then debated drought‑contingency rules staff had proposed for a potential Level 1 water emergency. Chief operating officer Nick Winkelman explained a recommended 25% curtailment percentage across customer classes with monthly allocations for residential and commercial accounts, seasonally adjusted baselines for wholesale and large‑volume customers, and an online variance process for owners who can show special circumstances. Council approved the drought‑policy ordinance on a second reading and a separate one‑read resolution that authorizes the city manager to implement surcharges when a Level 1 water emergency is declared. Under the adopted surcharge resolution, customers are charged $4 per 1,000 gallons for use above their allocation and an additional $8 per 1,000 gallons if they exceed their historical baseline; staff said surcharges would take effect only on the date the city declares Level 1 and would be lifted when the emergency ends.

Council also amended and approved three short‑term airport land leases (items 7–9) — shortening the terms to three years and removing automatic three‑year renewal options — after staff explained FAA and site‑management requirements and said a shorter interim term would permit broader future solicitations to the farming community.

What council did not do at the June 2 hearing was award a construction contract for the Inner Harbor plant. The council heard a separate presentation on a design‑build proposal and a projected cost estimate of about $979 million and was told a 60% design and guaranteed‑maximum‑price could be produced within about a year if the council chooses to authorize that next step. Staff and outside scientists said additional review time would be useful; independent scientists on the advisory committee said they expected to take approximately two months to peer‑review the final modeling deliverables once the city releases the complete model inputs and outputs. Mayor Paulette Guajardo and council members flagged timeline tradeoffs tied to grant and financing deadlines if council requests further study.