The Island Moon Newspaper, 14646 Compass Drive, Suite 4, Corpus Christi, TX (2026)

09/10/2026

Around the Island
By Dale Rankin
It’s been a good week here on our little sandbar. Labor Day wasn’t much work Around the Island this week as the beaches were full but not packed, about like a mid-summer weekend, as the late arrival of Labor Day seemed to tamp down the OTB invasion.
Historically our tourism season was considered to be 100 days starting with Memorial Day and running steady through September but as state-mandated back to school days moved steadily into August our season is now closer to 75 days but our shoulder seasons in April and October have consistently been busier in the years after Covid when we were overwhelmed. Our tourism industry is changing and our Island is changing with it as we can see by the new construction going up Around the Island.
Longtime real estate professionals report that potential buyers are now migrating to Padre Island as prices from Rockport to Port Aransas have jumped with the rebuild after Hurricane Harvey and there is upward pressure on the price of Padre homes even in the current tight market. We have been discovered.
Open Enrollment
For Islanders of a certain age the annual Medicare Enrollment Period, when you can select a plan, is October 15 – December 7 this year. Enough said.
Open canals
We continue to await the removal of the sand plug on Lake Padre to open Island canals to water flow. There was nothing public to report this week but like the proverbial swan who looks so placid above the water line beneath the surface the feet are creating turbulence. The process of getting water moving through our canals is now $40 million down the road in the form of bridges and twenty-two years since the bond election for what is now the Don Patricio Bridge which has been waiting for the water to flow for more than two years now. We build the bridges then we build dams…maybe when our hurricane season effectively ends this month we can pull the plug.
Beach bollards
City crews continue to work to widen the beach along the Michael J. Ellis Seawall to get it to 150-feet wide. City officials told the Island Strategic Action Committee this week the width of the beach has been increased by thirty feet over the summer and they will continue to move sand from the pile north of Packery Channel to the South Packery Beach through the winter months. The 150-foot width is the magic number at which state rules allow for the wooden bollards to be removed to allow for vehicle traffic and the goal is to push the line of bollards south by next summer.
We’ve hit the sweet spot of the season where the beach crowds thin out and maybe at some point the weather will cool off as we hit the height of the beach going season. October is just around the corner when we hold festivals to truck crops and farm animals and we can stop white-knuckling the hurricane season. It’s a good time to be on our little sandbar, so get out there and go to the beach…and say hello if you see us Around the Island.

Aerials By Augs for use by Island Moon Publishing

09/10/2026

This weeks edition of The Island Moon is now available at islandmoon.com and on newsstands around the Islands today!

09/09/2026

42 homesites under contract at Whitecap development
Special events space nearing completion
By Dale Rankin

Builder Esperanza Homes has placed 42 homesites under contract at the Whitecap development on Padre Island.
According to a release by the company the McAllen based Esperanza Homes is nationally recognized as a Builder Magazine Top 100 Builder and has been named to the Inc.5000 list of fastest growing private companies in the US. A statement from Whitecap developers says: Esperanza Homes and Whitecap are working together to develop a new cottage series of homes designed specifically for Whitecap.
“This is about more than adding another builder to Whitecap,” said Terence Johnson, EVP and GM/Ashlar Development. “We are working closely with Esperanza to create a cottage product specifically for this community. They understand what we are trying to accomplish at Whitecap and have embraced the opportunity to design something that fits the character and lifestyle we are creating.”
Esperanza Homes said construction is anticipated to begin in early 2027. Design work on the cottage series is underway, with plans, elevations, pricing and other details to be released as the product is finalized.
“The addition of this cottage series gives us another important housing choice within Whitecap,” Johnson said. “Our objective is to offer a thoughtful range of homes and price points without losing the overall design quality and identity of the community. Esperanza is helping us accomplish that.”
Events Center
The special events area at the Whitecap development is also nearing completion with portions expected to be open to the public by the end of 2027. The area includes pickleball courts, an outdoor events area, boat docks, restrooms, and a restaurant site for future development.

Aerial photographs By Augs Services for Island Moon Publishing

09/08/2026

Nueces County Commissioners held a groundbreaking today for the $8 million construction of the new Briscoe King Pavilion at Padre Balli Park.
Barcom Construction was awarded the contract low and their submission states the construction will take 395 calendar days. A total of three companies submitted bids with the highest at $9.8 million.
The work includes construction of a new 6730 square-foot pavilion the new facility and improvements to the existing building.
6730 square-foot Briscoe King Pavilion will go out in April following a vote this week by the Nueces County Commissioners Court. Funding for the project which will be built adjacent to the existing pavilion comes from the Island Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone #2.

09/08/2026

TxDOT invitation to SH 361 Safety Conversation
Monday, Sept. 21, 4:30-6:30 p.m.
Island in Son Methodist Church

Sept. 8, 2026
CORPUS CHRISTI – The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is inviting residents, businesses, commuters and visitors to join a community conversation about safety along the SH 361 corridor.
The SH 361 Corridor Safety Conversation will be held on Monday, Sept. 21, 2026, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at Island in the Son United Methodist Church, 10650 SH 361, Corpus Christi, Texas 78418.
The event will be conducted in a come-and-go open house format, giving attendees an opportunity to stop by at their convenience, talk directly with TxDOT staff, review ongoing safety efforts, and share their thoughts about the corridor. No formal presentation will be given.
Whether you travel SH 361 every day, live nearby, own a business in the area, or simply use the corridor from time to time, TxDOT wants to hear from you. Community feedback will help shape both near-term and long-term strategies aimed at improving safety along the corridor.
"We know the people who use SH 361 every day have valuable insights into the challenges and opportunities along the corridor," said TxDOT officials. "This conversation is an opportunity to listen, share what we've learned so far, and work together toward safer travel for everyone."
Attendees will have the chance to learn more about current and future safety initiatives, provide comments and discuss concerns directly with TxDOT representatives.
Your experience matters. Stop by, share your perspective and help shape the future of safety along SH 361.
For questions about the event or TxDOT's ongoing efforts along SH 361, contact Rickey Dailey, TxDOT Public Information Officer, at [email protected]

09/07/2026

On the Rocks
By Jay Gardner
Well, we finally hit the crescendo of summer. This is marked by the sun starting to set a minute or two earlier every day and starting to wane towards the south on the horizon, a light southwest winds in the morning off the Wild Horse Desert, and a deafening chorus of chicharras (cicadas). The mornings have been pleasant enough to coax me out of bed a bit earlier than usual to enjoy my yard coming to life.
One of the first things I notice is the heated aerial dogfights between the growing numbers of hummingbirds. I’m not sure if these new birds are the young-of-the-year, or early migrants, or a mix of both. I mostly have ruby-throated, and a few black chinned mixed in. I’m keeping my eyes peeled for a specialty bird like a rufous, and I’m missing my buff -bellies. Make sure to get those feeders up, spread them out, use a 4-1 water/sugar mix, and put them in the shade. I make a double batch and keep a pitcher in the fridge at the ready.
The upwelling just won’t go away! I’ve never seen it last this long into the season. While the water temperatures in the middle of the gulf look like actual fire, it remains cool and turbid along our coast, and well down into Mexico where this stuff all starts from. The water clarity is a 5 out of 10, and water temps are a little lower than the 90 degrees that they normally would be.
The large gyre that calved off from the Loop Current is actually re-joining the Loop Current, which is slowing down in response to the El Nino weather patterns we’re experiencing. That basically just means that we wild continue to be spared of the sargassum seaweed that other places are getting whomped by, including Belize, the Mexican Riviera, and the Florida Keys. Speaking of water conditions, I hear they’re installing the NOAA/TCOON station off the end of Bob Hall lately. Having this station back up and running will be a big help in predicting tides and flooding. There should also be atmospheric testing equipment (wind speed, air temperature, etc) that will give us all a better idea of what conditions are like out that way.
Speaking of the gulf and beach, Sonja came down from up high in Austin and joined us for a couple of adventures this past weekend. Big Al called me Friday and coaxed me to an early morning jaunt to the Fish Pass jetties to see what was shaking, and Sonja walked over from Mustang Island as she only has a 2-wheel drive. I walked to the end of the jetty and only had one small skipjack on briefly. I should have stayed up by the beach, as Big Al wore the trout out in the first gut. He caught a few keepers but also caught probably 3 dozen undersized trout. He was just fishing for fun anyway.
After a few hours of goofing off, we bumped a mile north and caught up with Mardi, his mom, and Flo who were attempting to catch some pompano. Even though the tide was out, the guts there by Fish Pass are much deeper than they are along most of the rest of the beaches, and being height-impaired folks, none of us could get through the wade gut to get out past the first bar. Your odds of catching pompano dramatically increase the farther out you can cast. Mardi got at least four stingrays and a handful of smaller whiting, before doing a hero cast and catching two small pomps (released). Oh well, it’s better than catching hard heads.
The rest of the weekend was nice and relaxing, and I needed it. Plus it was hot outside! I got to hang out with a couple of ginger kids in the pool, and visit with some of my fellow Moon Monkeys. Dove season has started, and we’re headed into the final weekend of the summer season with Labor Day. Y’all please drive safe and don’t get too crazy out there. Stay hydrated, drop me a line at [email protected] and we’ll see you next week on a short week On the Rocks.

09/07/2026

One hour and 48 minutes!
Three PM Monday can you guess how long the wait to get on the Port Aransas ferry to Aransas Pass is?

09/07/2026

Happy Labor Day! Port A Beaches are still full today! But traffic leaving Port A is way worse. Traffic or beach? 🧐

09/06/2026

Joey Farah's Backwater Fishing Adventures
By Joey Farah
The first flock of white pelicans of the season caught my eye as we steamed south, headed for the flat where we started that morning at sunrise. The moon had sunken below the horizon a few hours passed and I was anticipating a good Noon:30 bite. I watched the stream of white birds pitch and swing with the wind I knew that they were the first of many to come south from the Great Lakes for the fall and winter months. They were a sign of change in season coming upon us here. Just a few moments later I saw a mass of baitfish swimming against the waves. The water exploding with Shad being busted from the whitewater. Rolling orange torpedoes swirled and slashed like Mad Sharks upon a feeding frenzy. I readied my anglers with rods in hand and wizzed up to the school of giant redfish with the trolling motor. I pitched over and into the school with the plastic and saw one giant redfish turned and bolted towards my jig. As I pulled the rod to a bend the school scattered and busted the water up like bombs. Two casts later all three of us were hooked into 40” Giants! These are the daily happenings within Sept and October, some of the greatest gatherings of bait and gamefish you will ever see. Sitting in one location can bring good things but being loose and mobile gives anglers a much needed advantage in finding big concentrations of activity.
Separate the Bay into Zones and check for bait sources. Ultra clear water is not often productive water, hunt down dusky green conditions that show a tide carrying small particles and sediment. Water too clear makes hunting minnows and shrimp hard for predatory gamefish. Sunlight penetrates and heats up the bottom and gets in their eyes during an attack. Stay close to the changes in depth and structural transitions in the bays to stay along the strike zone.
Pick a good drift, line up your drift with the wind to carry you down and along the sweeping edges of bottom change. The more time you spend in that transitions zone the better. When the wind is dead stay out deep! When its gusty fish will feed more readily in the clear and shallow waters.
The Surf and offshore fishing have been outstanding! Flat seas have opened up the Gulf to small boats and folks along the shore. Nothing quite beats walking the edge of the world barefoot at sunrise dancing a topwater over the ocean, except the sound of a trout, snook, or Spanish Mac slamming the plug and ripping drag. First and last light are always best as offshore gamefish push bait and corner them against the beach at night. The super clear water also makes fish with great eyesight shy away from hooks and leaders, dawn and dusk.
Shiny burps of oil came to the surface along the edge of the grassy flat as the sun peaked over the sand dunes of Padre. The slicks reflected the yellow and orange glow only to be broken by the slapping of baitfish on the surface. Schools of Shad had encompassed the area during the night and feeding fish now burped up oily digested Shad. When these slicks reach the surface the oily spots tell anglers where to find the gamefish. I can smell the difference in certain kinds of food sources that are being eaten, just in smell alone. A few dozen casts and fish into our morning I slipped the boat up close to some skirting menhaden, pointed a cast to my guest and watched as his lure landed just where the Shad had bolted from. Seconds later I saw the rod tip dip and a silver face of a giant trout rise with a slash of whitewater. As she cart wheeled her body over a wave, baitfish jumped as if they were diving from her grips. Her tail slapped the water then pushed her into a drag peeling run. Around the boat she ran, rebelling each attempt to bring her to the edge of our vessel. When she came up again her thick black shoulders turned and shined silver and blue to our eyes. When the yellow mouth opened and my net passed under her she laid flat and fat in our clutch. I lifted her and placed her into the live well so she wouldn’t slam against the floor of the boat. Her eyes reached mine as I gently kept water over her body. The big ones are smart, intentional, and special. We took a few pictures of the old trout, 8-10yrs old and dipped her back into the Sea. Contact with trophy caliber fish is always more than a goal achieved. It’s a pivot point in life and fishing. When something that you love in the highest form comes to hand, and then you set it free to be what it is, and Loved For.
The Next few months are going to be magic on the water. Our tide has started to rise and the enormous migrations of fish will roll to the ocean. Weather patterns are going to be changing and bringing new life to us all.
Let’s find YOUR DAY this fall and remember to follow all of our fishing on Facebook and Ticktok at Capt Joey Farah’s Backwater Fishing! 361-442-8145

09/06/2026

A little Island history
Padre Island in 1968
A snapshot of history through the eyes of a person who lived it
Four burger joints, 19 surfboard rental shops, three Hippy Communes
Editor’s note: When Mike Ellis founded the Island Moon 2007 he began collecting Island memorabilia that ranged from the original drawings of the original development to broken guitars from memorable events, to the flying pig that graces our front office today. The idea was that one day we could have an Island museum to display the history of our island and in the 19 years since we took over the Moon in 2007 the memorabilia has kept coming in as long-time islanders moved away, passed away, or cleaned out their attic and found items that, as Mike liked to say, was just a little bit too good to throw away.
A few years ago long-time islander John Trice stopped by the office and dropped off a cache of items he had accumulated since the 1960s and included in it was a box full of photos and letters covering an array of island topics and in the next few issues we will feature bits of island history from that box.
The first is this letter written in 1999. It is written in longhand and difficult to decipher in some places so we have come as close as we can on the sir names, it is unsigned but we believe it was written by Gladys Johanna Lehman who passed away in 2007. Here it is:
By Gladys Johanna Lehman
This is my story about when I came to Padre Island in 1968.
My first husband and I came out to The Island and put a hamburger stand called the Sandyburger and surfboard rental business one mile south of Bob Hall Pier. In that year my husband’s sister and husband had a place on the beach called Byrds Nest, a hamburger place and rentals. In the 1970s two more hamburger stands and a grocery store came to the beach and 19 rentals businesses all lined the beach. At that time there were lots of people coming out to the beach from Laredo Air Force, Arlington Air Force, San Antonio soldiers, Naval Air Station, sailors and nurses. The beach was crowded for four to five days with people everywhere. People rented tents on the beach also. We had five buildings we rented for $10 a night, nothing in them but one light bulb – they would sleep on the floor or rent cots that we had for rent. There was also a building named the Sand Dollar on stilts that had been there before 1968 and sold b**r and food. Holly Fauts (sp) also had a horse stable on the highway to the National Seashore. He rented horses; he closed in 1974.
This is some stuff about other businesses that came out later.
Ira’s. Ira Vanoy (sp) built the building that is now Tradewinds. I had a hamburger place there in 1972 which Tom Hale bought in the 1970s. He was the next business out here after ’76, then there was Frenchy’s, and shell shops. Seven Seas opened a shell shop past Tradewinds, which burnt down in 1974. Jito’s opened a store and eating place, closed in the 70s. These were the places that came out in the 70s.
I forgot the motel where Island Italian is now (the building currently being torn down), also the motel next to Tradewinds, they also had a bar next door, and also the JFK Bridge in the 70s, can’t forget the Million Dollar Inn and all the hippy communes and the sand dunes. There were three communes and hundreds of hippies living in the dunes for a long time - a couple of years. They built places to live in out of anything they could find and they could stay there for a long time. Not like today when they have to leave the beach every day. This used to be a fun place, but now there are too many regulations. We never had any problems in years past, everyone just wanted to have fun – with no problems.
E.O. Lehman and his first wife Rae and two children moved to Padre Island in 1950 because his wife’s doctor told him to move to an island where there was no poisons, they had allergies from the farm where they were living in the London community. He built the first business on The Island, (a motel). All that were here were bait stands. The motel had a house and four rooms which he rented for $10 per day. He also worked at the Toll Gate and laid brick, also sold real estate when Padre Island Development came to The Island.
E.O. closed the motel when his wife passed away in 1975 and never reopened again. He said he was tired of working 24 hours a day seven days a week. He never left The Island when a hurricane came, he built this place to withstand high winds. In 1962 Hurricane Carla washed out the draw bridge, his kids had to go to school by boat. He had very little damage to the motel. In 1970 Hurricane Celia did little damage to roofs and windows. He let crews from CP&L stay at the motel and fed them – to repair service to Flour Bluff and Padre Island.
I guess he was the oldest living person when he passed away on The Island in 1994. He had started the Better Business Bureau in Flour Bluff in the 60s and also started to get the National Seashore here as The Island also got Lady Bird Johnson to be here to dedicate the seashore.
I was very enmeshed on this island for many years. I married E.O. in 1977 until his death in 1994. I was the last business to survive on the beach. A hurricane in 1977 took my place and I couldn’t reopen because the state took all the land all the way to the dunes. The landowners lost the land to the state. I was there for ten years, there was no electricity, running water, or telephone. We stayed in a bus the first few years. No conveniences until 1975. We finally got electricity and a trailer.
I may not have written everything that I know about this island. I have been here for 31, but I would not live anywhere else. I love this island. There have been so many things that have happened on this island I can’t think of everything that has gone all these years. This is the Sandyburger story, if you want to know anything about this island come by. I also remember everything about Frenchy and all his businesses.

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