It couldn’t come soon enough.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection recently unveiled its brand-new, $25 million facility in Corpus Christi, Texas. Rosendo Hinojosa, Chief Patrol Agent of the Rio Grande Valley Sector, revealed that the new CBP facility provides Border Patrol agents with nearly 8 times the square footage of the old facility. The new facility is 30,000 square feet, while the old facility was just 5,000 square feet.
The new Corpus Christi CBP facility will house about 100 Border Patrol agents, as well as a few Immigrations and Customs workers. The new space, says Border Patrol agents, will allow them to better collaborate with other agencies, including the Coast Guard and the Office of Air and Marine.
The new facility, in addition to boasting much more space for agents, is situated on nearly 30 acres. It includes it’s a mechanic shop, a fueling station, and even an employee fitness center. The large size of the facility can also accommodate up to 200 undocumented immigrants at any given time which, says Border Patrol agents, is very useful, considering the increase in instances of immigration smuggling and the increase in arrests at the checkpoint in Highway 77 in Sarita.
With the oil industry in Texas swiftly expanding, the increase in port activity means that Immigration and Customs officials will experience an increased workload at the Port of Corpus Christi.
About the Corpus Christi Facility
The new Corpus Christi CBP facility, which was a partnership between the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Galveston District) and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, was built in accordance with Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver certification standards.
It includes a geothermal heating and cooling system that is expected to decrease energy consumption by more than 35 percent.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says that the new station will provide enough space for future expansion.