Natural infrastructure offers a promising, soft-path solution to water security challenges, but the scientific framework for siting and measuring the efficacy of such restoration projects is nascent. In this study, we addressed this research gap in the Brazos River basin, the largest river basin in Texas, USA, and a basin undergoing intensifying extremes (drought and flood). Our analysis is motivated by the tension between changing extremes and the resilience of coastal manufacturing in the region, but with an eye for guiding corporate water stewardship “beyond the four walls” of manufacturing facilities and towards a broader basin-scale view of water stewardship. To this end, we developed a scientific framework and financial toolkit for quantifying the potential impact of constructed wetlands on streamflow (water outcomes) and cash flow (investment outcomes) compared to a purely built, or hard path, infrastructure project heightening an existing dam.