CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — In September, the Building Standards Board ordered the demolition of the building at 1214 to 1220 N. Staples St.
“This building is one of the most severely compromised buildings that I've ever seen,” Tracey Cantu, a code enforcement officer for the City of Corpus Christi said.
Owner of the building, Priscilla Tryon Cambric appealed that decision based on the historical impact that building has had on the Washington-Coles Neighborhood.
The dance hall was a staple of the neighborhood decades ago, but now it's the only building that remains from a once thriving block.
Cambric had the idea to apply for the building to be preserved.
In fact, the Nueces County Historical Commission, Texas Historical Commission and Texas Dance Hall Preservation agreed the building would be eligible to be preserved if it is restored. This is a costly and time consuming process.
To appeal that decision, Cambric and her attorney Matt Manning were given a few minutes to plead their case to Corpus Christi City Council, who would decide the fate of the building.
After much discussion, City Council took a vote to demolition the building and it failed.
Councilman Everett Roy proposed a new vote. His plan would give Cambric the chance to prove the building can be restored to meet historic preservation standards.
Cambric has 14 days to fully secure the building with a 6 ft fence all around the building, sidewalk included. She must board up the entrance to the second floor. Also, within 60 days, she must present a report from a structural engineer who can make a physical assessment of how sound the the building is for restoration.
A fence has already been up partially up around the building.
Cambric had mixed feelings on the decision, but she is glad demolition has been put off, for now.
“My thing is, if I get all of these things done in 14 days as they say and then they still come to the conclusion that they want to tear the building down, that means I'm out of money. And, I really don't have that kind of money to throw away, as such," she said.
City Council members primarily voiced concerns about public safety and how the state of the building can put people at risk. Cambric told the council she's repeatedly had to board the place up because of trespassers.
She also said that only some of the violations Code Enforcement issued were complied with and that's way there was still a way into the building.
“Weather rotted beyond repair, so I don’t know what it is you’re trying to save," Councilman Mike Pusley said.
The violations began rolling in back in 2022. Cambric said a windstorm brought the roof down on the building. That's what led to the order for a demolition.
"I don't agree that this building is structurally unsound," Councilman Jim Klein said. "The drone footage indicates to me, from what i can see from the drone images, that the walls are perfectly straight. The roof is certainly gone. That is certainly true. By this logic, if we were to demolish this building, by that logic, the Ritz Theatre should have been demolished 20 years ago."
Although the primary concern was for safety, the cultural and historical significance was not lost on them.
“I really do believe the story of this building needs to be told and anything that can be, whether we tear it down or not, needs to be salvaged and recognized as the significance of this building," Roy said.
Cambric had an engineering group do a visual report back in August. They proposed tearing down the second floor and repairing the first floor with a new roof. However the second floor was where the dance hall was and that’s what made the building unique.
Cambric said she is going to try her best to meet all the requirements. However, added in the resolution is a stipulation if the requirements aren’t met, city council has the authority to go ahead and demolish the building.
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