Coronado City Council candidate Ricky Hoyt wants to rebuild the city's underground infrastructure one corridor at a time.
In a written response to the Coronado Eagle & Journal's candidates forum published Oct. 8, Hoyt said if given a blank check for one project within Coronado, he would fund what he called a comprehensive critical-infrastructure resilience project to modernize the systems beneath and around the city for the next 50 years.
The plan starts with a citywide engineering assessment of sewer mains, storm drains, pump stations and seawalls, mapping their condition, capacity and risk of failure. Construction would then be prioritized where a breakdown would cause the most damage.
Hoyt, a retired Navy lieutenant commander and first-time candidate, described a "dig once" approach. When a street is opened to replace an aging sewer main, crews would also inspect and upgrade the storm-drain system, add pumps and tide gates where high tides block gravity drainage, underground electrical and communications lines where feasible, and address seawall repairs.
He pointed to the city's First Street pump station and tide gate project near A Avenue as the model. The city is already seeking bids for that project, which calls for replacing an existing diverter pump and installing a new fiberglass pump station. Work must start by mid-February 2027 and finish within 80 working days.
The proposal comes as Coronado prepares for a potentially severe El Niño winter. The city completed the $32 million Parker Pump Station in August, replacing a 1983 facility that collects stormwater from about 150 acres and pumps sewage from the Country Club area. In January 2024, heavy rain overwhelmed the stormwater system and burst a sewer line.
City Manager Tina Friend underscored the stakes at an Aug. 18 council meeting. "We are just intrinsically vulnerable. We are flat. We are at sea level. We are surrounded by water," Friend said.
Hoyt also called for backup power, redundancy and additional capacity at critical pump stations so a single equipment failure cannot trigger major flooding or a wastewater spill. He wrote that even with unlimited money, projects should still be competitively bid and managed with accountability.
He argued the investment would free up future budgets for other priorities, including the library, fire and police facilities, parks and downtown improvements. In a Sept. 28 Coronado Times profile, Hoyt had flagged the city's capital needs, saying Coronado is in a good financial position but has some big capital improvement projects ahead.
Hoyt is one of four candidates competing for two council seats on Tuesday, Nov. 3. The others are incumbent Councilmember Kelly Purvis, Andrew Gade and Rebecca King. In the same forum, Purvis said she would spend a blank check on public-safety and emergency-response infrastructure, starting with fire stations.
Election details and voter information are available on the city's election page.
