Washington, D.C. - U.S. Rep. Randy Weber (TX-14) announced allocations of federal funding to advance the Coastal Texas Project, also known locally as the Ike Dike or the Coastal Spine.  The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is set to receive $500,000 for preconstruction engineering and design of a segment of the overall project.   The segment—known as Ecosystem Restoration feature G-28---refers to the Bolivar Peninsula and West Bay Gulf Intracoastal Waterway Shoreline and Island Protection feature.  This marks the first federal dollars allocated for this vital project.

“It is imperative that we get the Coastal Texas Project completed as soon as possible, ideally before the next big storm comes barreling at the upper Texas Gulf Coast, and this is a great step in the right direction,” said Rep. Weber. “The Texas Gulf Coast is home to millions of people, countless homes and jobs, and numerous refineries. I remain steadfast in my commitment to championing this project in Washington.”

"The Gulf Coast Protection District is ready to kick-start design efforts on the Coastal Texas Project. We look forward to working side-by-side with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Texas General Land Office to quickly progress towards this initial construction contract,” said Gulf Coast Protection District (GCPD) President Michel Bechtel. “Projects of this scale and magnitude require ongoing funding and long-term partner collaboration, but we cannot discount the critical importance quickly moving forward with the design and construction of initial segments of this transformational project.”

“The Texas General Land Office is proud to be a partner in this transformational project, which aims to safeguard our coastal communities from hurricanes and fierce storm surges. As someone who grew up on the coast and lived there for over a decade, I know firsthand how debilitating these storms can be to our Texas communities and global commerce,” said Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham. “I could not be happier to kickstart this critical project and work toward forever protecting our coastline and restoring the vital ecosystems surrounding it.”

“The Coastal Texas Project is one of the largest projects in the history of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers,” said Col. Rhett A. Blackmon, USACE Galveston District commander. “This project is important to the nation for many reasons. Not only will it reduce risk to the vulnerable populations along the Texas coast, but it will also protect vital ecosystems and economically critical infrastructure vital to the U.S. supply chain and the many global industries located here.”