CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Over the past few weeks, residents may have seen the rubble and debris from the demolition of the former CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital-Memorial location.
The Nueces County Hospital District said demolition is 95 percent complete.
It was knocked down because Nueces County Hospital District CEO Jonny Hipp said the cost to replace the building would be more of a burden to taxpayers.
"The building had to come down," he said.
In 2012, local officials decided the old Memorial hospital was more than 20 years past its useful life.
The hospital was originally made up of two buildings -- both well over 50 years old. Hipp told 3NEWS that the west building was built in the 1940's, and the east building in the late 1960's and early 1970's.
He also said some of the equipment located in the basement of the east building was manufactured in the 1950's.
"The place had been added to and the equipment and the infrastructure and hospital -- the air conditioning and the electrical and stuff," he said. "And those things were, were the things that were way past their useful life."
Because those utilities are embedded in the building, Hipp said they cannot be easily replaced.
"After an extended period of time, when they're that far along, they start to become unsafe," he said.
So the building came down. However, questions have have come up about what will replace the now-empty lot.
Hipp told 3NEWS that CHRISTUS Spohn is leasing the property until 2036.
There will also be plans that will go towards expanding the Dr. Hector P. Garcia Clinic.
"There may be some other support buildings that will be added to the east end of the campus," he said. "So there's not a long-range plan. But there are things in the works right now."
Hipp said that, if all goes according to plan, the demolition should be complete by July.
CHRISTUS Spohn sent 3NEWS the following statement that reads:
CHRISTUS Spohn Health System is working with the Nueces County Hospital District (NCHD) to meet the healthcare needs of the community. The demolition of CHRISTUS Spohn Hospital Corpus Christi – Memorial started last October and there are plans to create a green space in that area. We will continue to support and work with NCHD. We will also be sure to make the community aware of any solidified plans, as they arise. CHRISTUS Spohn Health System has been a part of the Coastal Bend community for over 100 years, our patients and those we are blessed to serve remain at the forefront of our mission of extending the healing ministry of Jesus Christ.
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