The Texas Sealife Center on Padre Island will soon begin construction on a new animal hospital, funded by $500,000 in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds and a Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act (GOMESA) grant from Nueces County.
“Now that we have the funds, it’s great. It’s great. Like I said, we’re busting at the seams,” Amanda Terry, the Texas Sealife Center Rehabilitation Director said.
The center has been operating on Padre Island since 2012, and Terry has been involved from the beginning.
“New hospital, extending our tour, giving us room, we’re busting at the seams here. You know, it’s time. We’ve been here for twelve years, thirteen years now. It’s time to finally kick in and get that expansion going,” Terry said.
The new animal hospital will allow volunteers to rehabilitate more injured sea turtles, birds, and more animals than their current facility can accommodate.
Scott Cross, the Nueces County Coastal Parks Director, praised the center’s growth over the years.
“If you knew where it came from, and where it is now, I mean it’s a rags to riches story. Because they started out with nothing. I mean they have really done a good job,” Cross said.
The funding comes from a combination of sources due to the center’s long-term lease agreement with Nueces County.
“Nueces County and the park board matched that $250,000.” Cross said, “Which we took GOMESA grant money and pledged another $250,000 to match his $250,000, to give them $500,000 to work with.”
While the funds are specifically designated for the new buildings and expansion, Terry explained there will be indirect benefits for other Sealife Center activities, such as public sea turtle hatchling releases.
“Those funds are allocated specifically for new buildings and the expansion. But that will allow us to be able to have. But that will be able to allow us to have more visitors, which does help with funding for the releases, so in a roundabout way. Those funds are specifically dedicated for just the expansion,” Terry said.
Texas Sealife Center is hosting a public sea turtle hatchling release on Father’s Day Sunday, June 15 at 11:00am at the Wyndham Corpus Christi Resort on Padre Island.
Construction on the Texas Sealife Center expansion is expected to begin in a few months.
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