January 19, 2024

Castro, Cuellar, Gonzales, Casar Push for Full Ecosystem Restoration of Martinez Creek on San Antonio’s Westside

WASHINGTON – Today, San Antonio representatives Joaquin Castro (TX-20), Henry Cuellar (TX-28), Tony Gonzales (TX-23), and Greg Casar (TX-35) launched a bipartisan push for Congress to approve a full aquatic ecosystem restoration of Martinez Creek on the Westside of San Antonio. Under their proposal, Martinez Creek would be eligible for the full range of measures that are available for San Antonio’s San Pedro, Apache, and Alazán creeks. 

“Martinez Creek and the adjacent historically underserved neighborhoods and disadvantaged residents deserve to have the full array of ecosystem restoration measures implemented similar to restoration efforts on the San Pedro, Apache and Alazán creeks. The Westside Creeks Ecosystem Restoration Project is a high priority for our community, and as such the Bexar County Commissioners Court has committed to being the local funding partner for the local match requirement…This project will provide a range of environmental, recreational, social and health benefits that our constituents have been sorely lacking, and we request your full consideration,” the lawmakers wrote in a bipartisan letter to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. 

“For years, I’ve been proud to work with my colleagues in the San Antonio delegation to bring new federal investments to Westside Creek restoration projects. As we create and expand new trails and public spaces for families to enjoy, the people who live around Martinez Creek deserve to see a full creek restoration in their neighborhood as well. I thank Reps. Cuellar, Gonzales, and Casar for working with me on this project, and I hope that our request will be swiftly approved. Martinez Creek is a beautiful part of San Antonio’s natural history and heritage, and I look forward to seeing the benefits that a full creek restoration will bring to the entire Westside,” said Congressman Castro.

“As a member of the Appropriations Committee, I have long fought for robust federal funding for the Westside Creeks Ecosystem Restoration Project. I’m pleased to join my colleagues from the San Antonio delegation to push for the full ecosystem restoration of Martinez Creek, which will enhance the water quality and ecological health of the region while providing additional outdoor recreation activities to our constituents. I thank Reps. Castro, Gonzales, and Casar for their partnership in protecting this essential watershed,” said Congressman Cuellar.

“The Westside Creeks Ecosystem Restoration Project has been a long-awaited project for the city of San Antonio, with far reaching community and environmental benefits for the historic Westside,” said Congressman Gonzales. “For many in the area, this project revives the area’s storied past and deep roots, and I look forward to continue working with my colleagues in San Antonio delegation to see this project through.”

“Restoring the historic Martinez Creek will bring huge benefits to Texas Congressional District 35 residents — with new neighborhood trails and parks, safer paths and roads, and improvements to more than 200 acres along the creek,” said Congressman Casar. “Thank you to Reps. Castro, Cuellar, and Gonzales for prioritizing this important project for Westside residents. Together, we’re ensuring that San Antonio gets the investment it deserves.” 

In 2021, Reps. Castro and Cuellar voted to pass the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which provided $75 million to fund the federal share of the design and subsequent construction of the Westside Creeks Ecosystem Restoration Project. The project aims to transform 11 miles of Alazán, Apache, Martinez, and San Pedro Creeks by restoring the aquatic ecosystems with native grasses, wildflowers, and trees. When completed, the project will improve environmental and water quality conditions in densely populated urban areas, promoting comprehensive watershed management, advancing neighborhood transportation safety, providing access to outdoor recreation activities in the Westside core, and reconnecting residents to urban creekway systems through an outdoor living classroom for students. In 2022, members of the San Antonio delegation secured an additional $2,340,000 through Fiscal Year 2022 appropriations to support the project.

The full letter on the Martinez Creek restoration can be viewed here and below.

Dear Chairman and Ranking Member:

Thank you for your strong leadership in working to draft critical Water Resources Development legislation and building the consensus to move these efforts forward. This commitment to address the nation’s water resources and environmental needs is important to our colleagues and the communities we represent, and we appreciate your great efforts.

As you move forward with drafting the Water Resources Development Act of 2024, we ask that you consider our request to provide full aquatic ecosystem restoration of Martinez Creek within the San Antonio Channel Improvement Project (SACIP) / Westside Creeks Ecosystem Restoration Project.  

The specific legislative request is to modify the Westside Creeks Ecosystem Restoration Project by modifying the selected plan to direct the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) to construct a pilot channel, riparian woody vegetation, and slackwater measures to Martinez Creek along with a 5 acre wetland adjacent to Martinez Creek known as Alternative 7 in the January 2014 report to allow for full restoration of the Martinez Creek in order to match the full restoration of the other three creeks included in the SACIP.

The project is located in a dense urban setting and adjacent to three Opportunity Homes (formerly San Antonio Housing Authority) properties: The Alazán-Apache Courts, Cassiano Homes and Lincoln Heights housing developments. These apartments house approximately 4,525 people and are the largest low-income housing based on population in the City of San Antonio. In fact, the vast majority of the Westside Creeks Ecosystem Restoration Project is within the 78207 zip code, which has a poverty rate of 42.5%.

San Antonio is the 7th largest city in the nation and the 78207 zip code has an approximate population of 55,500 residents. 94% of the population identify as Hispanic, 3.5% as white, and 2.5% as African American. Of the students attending public schools, 97.2% are Hispanic and 96.8% of the total students are eligible to participate in the national free or reduced-price lunch program. The median household income from the 2020 census in 78207 is $27,205. For comparison, the 2020 median household income in the United States was $67,521.

The January 2014 Final Report for the SACIP, General Re-Evaluation Report (GRR) and Environmental Assessment for the Westside Creeks Ecosystem Restoration Project recommended partial restoration of Martinez Creek based primarily on the cost of utility infrastructure relocations. At the time of the feasibility study the major wastewater service utility for the community was just beginning their work to satisfy their United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Consent Decree to repair or replace their wastewater infrastructure. The wastewater utility’s subsequent improvements to their wastewater infrastructure, in support of the EPA Consent Decree, moved their infrastructure from the center line of Martinez Creek to locations supportive of the future Westside Creeks Ecosystem Restoration Project. With this work complete the cost of utility relocations has been significantly reduced.

Martinez Creek and the adjacent historically underserved neighborhoods and disadvantaged residents deserve to have the full array of ecosystem restoration measures implemented similar to restoration efforts on the San Pedro, Apache and Alazán creeks. The Westside Creeks Ecosystem Restoration Project is a high priority for our community, and as such the Bexar County Commissioners Court has committed to being the local funding partner for the local match requirement.

The GRR studied the full restoration of Martinez Creek as Alternative 7, and we support the implementation of Alternative 7 as a modification to the Director’s Report. It should also be noted that this modification was included in Section 7001 of the 2023 Report to Congress on Future Water Resources Development, dated February 2023.

We have worked closely with the USACE and their local partner in San Antonio, the San Antonio River Authority (SARA), on a number of key water resources and ecosystem restoration projects. SARA has worked successfully with the USACE to advance features of Corps’ projects, including the award-winning Mission Reach Ecosystem Restoration Project, which brought a wide range of benefits to our community.

This project will provide a range of environmental, recreational, social and health benefits that our constituents have been sorely lacking, and we request your full consideration.