CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — There is an increase in apartment complexes and single-family homes being built on the Corpus Christi South Side.
Experts said that people are moving to that area from other parts of Corpus Christi and from out of town, saying new schools and newer infrastructure could be a factor in drawing people to the area..
The majority of Corpus Christi District 5, where the South Side is located, is mainly families, according to city officials. They join single people who are also moving to the area and into these new homes.
"A lot of families are looking for kind of a newer place to live and have access to the good schools and a nice part of town that's doing really well," builder for Azali, Karo Azali said.
The company Azali builds apartments and homes across the Coastal Bend. Azali said the Corpus Christi South Side is one of the popular areas for building. He said schools like Veterans Memorial High School, which is across the street from a new 332-unit apartment complex, are a factor.
"That's really what drives our demand here," he said. "And once we see that a lot of people want to move to this area, that's usually what we're focused on for one of our upcoming projects."
He said there is a similar trend for people buying houses on the South Side. He explained that younger and middle-aged people are moving to apartments, and middle-aged and older people are moving into houses there.
Corpus Christi District 5 City Councilmember Gil Hernandez said amenities like a new swimming pool at Bill Witt City Park and new hike and bike trails could be why people are moving to the South Side. He said sometimes it can be the stage of life someone is in, too.
"You buy your first home, you get the starter home, there's areas where you can buy those homes on the South Side or you can move to a larger home," Hernandez said.
He also mentioned that as people move around to different areas of Corpus Christi, it opens up their old home for someone else to move in.
"It's not a bad thing, I think it's good to have that kind of movement and it allows people to move up as their life goes," Hernandez said.