The water tower in Port Isabel being demolished, and the Laguna Madre Water District wants to build a bigger one.

The water district covers South Padre Island, Port Isabel and Laguna Vista, and they hope to be able to supply more water to a growing area. 

The landmark of Port Isabel has been here for more than 50 years, providing the community with storage of 300 thousand gallons of water.

“The new one will be 600,000 gallons," Laguna Madre Water District General Manager Carlos Galvan said.

The Laguna Madre Water District delivers water to South Padre Island through two 16 and 24 inch pipes that have to span two and a half miles across the Laguna Madre.

The Laguna Madre Water District wants to add another 24 inch pipe to make the water service more reliable.

“And this way we have three sources crossing to South Padre Island," Galvan said.

South Padre Island and Port Isabel are adding more homes and water connections. Galvan says the population is growing at two to three percent.

The demolition of the water tower in Port Isabel will be done by next week. The new water tower will be up a few blocks away in 2026. 

To keep serving a growing area, the district is also moving forward on its desalination pilot project that is set to start in April 2025.

READ MORE: Laguna Madre receives $10 million loan for desalination project

“It'll be an alternative source of water to have the desalination to provide water for the public,” Galvan said. “If we run out of the river water since we're the last, second to last to pick up the water in the river."

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