SOUTH PADRE ISLAND, Texas — A 9 1/2 -mile-wide bay separates rural Willacy County from a seeming paradise: Padre Island's isolated beaches, a nature retreat for bird watchers and what's considered some of the best sport fishing in the country.
For about 40 years, the county has sought direct access to the riches of the narrow barrier island, with no success. The land to the north of a man-made ship channel dividing the island is the federally protected Padre Island National Seashore, a wilderness area.
That leaves South Padre Island. But the most convenient access point for county residents -- on the north end of South Padre -- is owned by the Nature Conservancy and it is a haven for rare and endangered species such as Kemp's Ridley sea turtles, the most endangered sea turtle in the world; piping plovers and brown pelicans.
So what's a county to do when an environmental group says the land's not for sale?
Willacy County is exploring its eminent domain rights to seize the land, an option that has stirred a caldron of controversy.
Willacy is a financially foundering county on the northeast end of the Rio Grande Valley. It has fewer than 18,000 people and no real industry.
Its bright spot is Port Mansfield, a sleepy town with fewer than 500 residents. The town has no access to the island's beaches or the Gulf of Mexico's fishing.
To reach the island, visitors must drive 25 miles up the coast from South Padre Island, a bumpy trip that requires a four-wheel-drive vehicle and knowledge of tides that can trap a motorist on the return trip. The county recently bought a ferry, but has no place on the island to dock it.
"If you don't have access to the island, then what's the purpose for coming here?" asked Willacy County Atty. Juan Angel Guerra.
Enter the county commissioners. They voted in November to use eminent domain to seize the land, angering conservancy members who fear an influx of beachgoers will threaten wildlife in the 1,500-acre area.
Eminent domain gives governments power to take private land for public use -- usually for projects such as highways or mass transit systems.
Gov. Rick Perry signed a bill into law last fall that limited eminent domain use in Texas, saying government should not encroach upon private property rights unless there was an eminent public need.
"Eminent domain for private use is a great threat," he said.
