BEAUMONT, Texas — Beaumont City Council passed a motion Tuesday that would allow the city to continue to pursue bringing Battleship Texas to Beaumont.
This motion doesn’t authorize city to spend any money yet, but only to look further into what will be needed to bring Battleship Texas to the area.
Community members were present at the city council meeting at Beaumont City Hall on Tuesday to voice their opinions.
A petition created to bring the 110-year-old ship to Southeast Texas is less than 1,00 signatures away from hitting its goal of 2,500 signatures.
The biggest concern from Southeast Texas is now how much will docking the ship in the area cost the city.
Beaumont City Councilman Mike Getz says it will be between six to 24 million dollars to actually build the infrastructure that would allow the ship to be in Beaumont.
"That funding will come from three different sources, the state of Texas, the Battleship Texas fund, and some from the City of Beaumont," he said.
Beaumont native Cierra Henry thinks this will be good for the kids in the area.
"I mean we actually need more stuff in Beaumont, you know especially for a piece of history to be brought here. It will give the kids a chance to learn about something," she said.
District 4 Texas Senator Brandon Creighton has recognized Councilman Getz's efforts and supports the idea.
"In order to support Battleship Texas' relocation to Downtown Beaumont and the countless benefits it will bring to the community, I pledge to work with my colleagues in the Legislature to secure funding to assist with the cost of bringing Battleship Texas to downtown Beaumont," she said.
This motion being passed is only the beginning.
"We aren't asking for any money today, but it is the first step in what could be a rather lengthy process," Getz said.
In July 2022, council members hired an engineering firm to help them determine the cost of getting the battleship to Beaumont. The city paid $20,000 for the engineering firm to do this.
Option one would cost the city $6.5 million and it wouldn't require any additional dredging.
Option two would cost $21.6 million and option three would be $24.5 million.
The council agreed options two and three, are out of the question.
"I'm not gonna support spending that kind of money for the dredging. That it would take, I never was going to support that," Getz said.
Option one would require the federal government to de-authorize the Neches River ship channel, which means the feds would not be responsible for fixing damage from natural disasters.
For this reason, Council Member Audwin Samuel voted against moving forward with the project.
"Someone else would have to pay for those damages and that means that would be the city. That means there's gonna be additional liability or additional cost," Samuel said.
Getz meanwhile, remains focused on finding federal support.
"Congressman Weber and Congressman Babin will be the ones that we're going to be asking to attach this to a bill to ultimately be signed by the president," Getz said.
Getz says he is optimistic, but he knows it's not going to be quick.
If Beaumont becomes the ship's new home, the historical floating museum will dock in the Neches River behind the Edison Plaza. Drivers will be able to see it as they travel along Interstate 10.
The ship was moved from the San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site in La Porte to Galveston in August so it could undergo much-needed repairs. Once those repairs are complete, the ship will not be returned to La Porte.
Galveston, Baytown and Beaumont are all vying to become the battleship's new home.
The city announced it was looking into the possibility of moving Battleship Texas to Beaumont in July 2021.
Early projections showed that bringing the ship to Beaumont could cost more than $5 million on the low-end estimate. The estimate does not include parking requirements, the location for ticket sales, or a gift shop.
Getz previously said he believes Beaumont is the only logical place for Battleship Texas to be.