14 Oct Nueces County Hires Contractor to Tear Down 1914 Courthouse

The old Nueces County Courthouse is coming down. Commissioners voted unanimously Wednesday to hire Camacho Demolition LLC to remove the asbestos and tear down the 1914 building for $1,308,441.

Camacho gets about 130 days to finish the job after its insurance and other paperwork is in order. Crews are expected to start in early 2027, with a finish no later than spring. The county attorney still has to sign off on the agreement, though commissioners set it up so the contract won’t have to return to them.

Seven companies bid on the job, and Camacho was the low bidder, county officials said at the meeting. Judge Connie Scott put forward the motion, and Commissioner Mike Pusley, who joined by video, seconded it after years of working on the project.

The building has sat empty since 1977, when the current courthouse opened. County leaders spent years trying to find a way to save it, but the price kept climbing. Pusley said earlier this month that a restoration might have run north of $100 million. Last year, the Texas Historical Commission lifted the easement and historic designation that had blocked demolition.

A downtown tax increment reinvestment zone put $2 million toward the teardown back in May. The county has until Dec. 31, 2028, to finish the job or pay that money back, according to the Corpus Christi Caller-Times.

Not everything will be lost. Under a state antiquities permit, the county has submitted photos and an inventory of pieces it wants to save. Scott cautioned that fragile, century-old elements may not make it. A speaker at the meeting also voiced hope that the building’s sundial, gone for over a year, turns up. Otherwise, nothing may leave the property, and the county has said it won’t hand out bricks or other souvenirs.

In related business, commissioners extended Hanson Engineering’s demolition work through July 1, 2027. County Engineer Juan Pimentel will manage the project alongside Pusley.

Commissioners called the moment bittersweet but said the time had come. Next, the county will turn to deciding what happens with the land once it’s cleared.