CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — On Thursday folks got the chance to plead their case to the City of Corpus Christi Building Standards Board on why their dilapidated properties shouldn't be torn down by the City.
The structures that were up for discussion were homes and old buildings that are considered beyond repair and unsafe to be in.
But just how big of a problem is this in our city and across the Coastal Bend?
Some of those cases are sad to hear, usually involving elderly residents who have passed away and their homes become unkept or abandoned.
Most of the structures have seen years of neglect and overtime have become rundown to a point they end up on the city's demo list.
There were nine new cases being considered for demolition Thursday by the City.
"We currently have 75 active cases the City is working with owners on," said Tracy Cantu.
Cantu is with Development Services and said once a building ends up on their list, the City reaches out to work with the property owner or any next of kin who might have an interest in it.
"Notify any and everybody who might have a responsibility for the properties," she said. "We have notified up to 60 people for one structure."
They're given 30 days to take action or make the needed repairs.
"People think we are taking the property and that's not the case, we are eliminating a blighted structure, a dangerous structure, so its not a negative impact on the neighborhood," she said.
Cantu said a vacant home can not only bring down property values of a neighborhood but also becomes an invitation for criminal activity.
"Somebody breaks a window, opens a door, they go in and see if there's anything of value in that property a continuation of vandalism," she said.
"That's my grandparents house," said Valarie Charles as she addressed members of the Building Standards Board in an effort to save a home located on Shaw Street.
"As you can see there is a sale on the house we are just waiting for it to close," she said.
The board granted her an extension.
In the last year the City has demolished 38 structures across the city.
Anthony Ruiz, a code enforcement officer with the City of Alice, was among those who attended the meeting and spent time taking notes.
"It's something we've been working on, really ramping up our own program, get an idea of what other municipalities are up to," Ruiz said.
He showed 3NEWS the active cases they have in their city through 'Project C.L.E.A.R,' a large scale effort to revitalize Alice.
"Something we've been working on trying to identify substandard structures right now we have maybe 130 that are in dangerous situations trying to figure out what we can do," he said.
Cantu said the demolition of a building is ultimately the responsibility of the owner. If the city demos the structure, the owner is billed for it.