Corpus Christi Water Emergency

Accelerating a Critical Water Supply Project for Corpus Christi

The City of Corpus Christi, Texas, faces a growing water supply challenge. When the work on the Evangeline/San Patricio County Groundwater Program project began in January 2026, the city’s forecasts indicated it could reach a Level 1 Water Emergency by November 2026, meaning demand is projected to exceed available supply within 180 days. While the project was launched under this tight time frame, the current forecast has shifted to 2029, providing additional time to advance solutions to the region’s water supply needs.  The challenge remains significant for the nearly half-million residents across the seven affected counties who depend on a reliable water supply.

One of the most critical efforts to address this challenge centers on the Evangeline/San Patricio County Groundwater Program, northwest of Corpus Christi. The project is designed to deliver 24 million gallons per day (MGD) of groundwater from a 23,000-acre wellfield, transporting it approximately 20 miles south through an existing 66-inch pipeline to Corpus Christi for processing.

“Evangeline is the only option that can produce the quantity and quality of water in the needed time frame,” says Chris Noe, P.E., PMP, Managing Vice President at Pape-Dawson.

Pape-Dawson is supporting the project in multiple capacities, serving as owner’s advisor, designer, and construction manager. With the City facing a tight timeline, the team is advancing this complex water supply initiative under an accelerated delivery schedule.

“We’re performing on a very compressed schedule that you don’t typically see in the market,” Chris says.

Rethinking the Traditional Project Timeline

After Pape-Dawson was contracted to perform a feasibility study in late 2025, the City established an aggressive timeline, calling for an initial delivery of 12 MGD in November 2026, with the full 24 MGD available in 2027.  Pape-Dawson took on the challenge, drawing on its experience with complex water infrastructure projects to advance the work on an accelerated timelines while navigating significant challenges, including securing water rights, land rights, and permits.

“That was an unprecedented schedule ask,” Chris says. “But we took it on confidently because we’re the best team to help the City reach their goal.”

The Pape-Dawson team leveraged their experience from other large-scale, fast-tracked Texas water infrastructure projects, including San Antonio’s Vista Ridge Water Supply Project, to help guide the effort.

Under a traditional delivery approach, the work would typically be divided into five separate projects: wells, collection pipeline, pump facility, transmission pipeline, and supporting infrastructure. Each would progress through established design milestones before construction began.

“Ideally, this would have broken up into five unique projects,” says Marshall Preas, P.E., Vice President of Water/Wastewater at Pape-Dawson. “And the process would normally start with our analysis, then move step-by-step through the full 30-60-90-100% design stages and finally move into construction.”

That process can take four to five years, making it impractical for the City’s immediate needs.

Instead, the project team worked with the City to adopt a Construction Manager-at-Risk (CMAR) approach, bringing the contractor into the process early to collaborate on design, scheduling, and construction. This allowed certain activities to advance before the design was fully complete, with construction beginning before the 60% design milestone. Lower-risk work moved forward while the team continued developing the remaining plans.

“This approach compressed the overall schedule by about two and a half years,” Preas says.

Collaboration and Coordination Keep Work Moving

Accelerating a project of this scale requires more than an aggressive schedule. The team prioritized early communication, proactive risk management, and close coordination among the City, design team, and contractor.

Key strategies for the ongoing work include documenting project assumptions and identifying risks with the City early, applying lessons learned from previous water infrastructure projects, and procuring long-lead equipment and materials as soon as possible. Weekly, and sometimes daily, coordination meetings help the team address challenges as they arise, while maintaining established quality standards and processes.

These efforts allow the team to make informed decisions quickly without losing sight of the technical requirements and long-term reliability the project demands.

Supporting Corpus Christi’s Water Future

Corpus Christi’s water supply challenges will not be resolved overnight, but the Evangeline wellfield project represents a critical step toward improving the region’s access to water. By combining early contractor collaboration, an accelerated delivery strategy, and disciplined project coordination, Pape-Dawson is helping to move an essential infrastructure project forward on a timeline that traditional delivery methods could not achieve.

The work reflects the importance of experience, adaptability, and collaboration when communities face urgent infrastructure needs, helping advance a path toward a more reliable water supply for Corpus Christi’s residents and businesses.