CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — "An eye sore" is what Corpus Christi City Manager Peter Zanoni called the abandoned Sunrise Mall — which is on one of the busiest freeways the city has.
The city has been in contact with the absentee property owner, consistently notifying them of the unsecure access to their building. While the city has taken action in the form of various citations, Zanoni said they are keeping their options open.
"(The building is) a priority, so we’re beginning to look at that situation of what we can do above and beyond of what we generally do, which is citations and abatement," Zanoni said.
The city is looking into either more securing of the building or potentially demolishing the entire structure.
Zanoni called it an extreme hazard. The city does not have a time frame or a financial plan to demolish the abandoned building yet.
"Its really a financial matter to demolish a structure like that. It would be significant in the millions, so we’re looking at our financial resources," Zanoni said.
Until the city has financial means, Zanoni said all they can do is work with code enforcement to fine the property owner as much as they can — even fining up to hundreds of dollars in citations. However, there is an alternative.
"Or until they finally realize you know what, this has turned into a bigger problem than what we thought it was. They may say, okay we need to do something. So it may trigger some additional business thoughts on their part," Zanoni said.
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