SAN MARCOS, Texas — Cities like San Marcos were once considered small towns. Now, in most communities along the I-35 corridor, the growth is undeniable.  

“I’ve seen the community grow and also just love living in this area,” said Andrea Villalobos, the assistant director of planning and development services for the City of San Marcos.

For a decade, Villalobos has served the San Marcos community.

“I went to Texas State, I was born in San Marcos actually,” Villalobos said.

Villalobos has witnessed the steady growth in San Marcos and is now helping the city make a strategic plan for the next 20 years.

“In terms of growth that we’ve seen most recently, since 2020 we’ve added about 8,000 new housing units in San Marcos,” Villalobos said.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, nearly half a million people moved to Texas in 2023. With more people comes more residential and commercial development, increasing the demand for energy.

“The very heavy sunshine and the heavy wind blowing, so we’ve got some natural advantages that put us in a better position than most to catch up with this growing energy demand,” said Dr. Taylor Collins, an energy economics researcher at the University of the Incarnate Word.

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) estimates the state's power grid will need to double the amount of energy it can supply by 2030. Collins says the growing population isn’t the only contributor to the energy demand.

“But it’s really because a lot of this extra demand is coming from the tech sector and data centers that have to be running 24/7,” said Collins. “That Texas is relying more on fossil fuels to make sure that energy keeps coming around the clock.”

State leaders announced plans to double the investment in the power grid, boosting the Texas Energy Fund from $5 billion to $10 billion.

“Well, it’s definitely a step in the right direction,” said Collins. “You want to err on the side of caution when it comes to electricity. Over-investing is better than under-investing.”

That money is being set aside to help construct new gas power plants to supply electricity to thousands of homes. ERCOT manages the grid for 90% of the state. Collins says they must use all energy sources to maintain reliability.

“If we want to make sure our energy system is robust and protected against different types of fluctuations, we don’t want to over-invest in just one source,” said Collins. “We want to make sure we’ve got some of everything.”