Built in 1929, the Ritz Theater is one of the oldest buildings in Corpus Christi. It is a hometown staple that many organizations and people have been trying to rebuild.
The Ritz has been under the care of the Corpus Christi Patch, a non-profit that has made efforts to restore the theater. Until recently, they’ve had a hard time raising the funds for restoration.
But, a match agreement with the Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone, a city group that sets aside money for the rehabilitation of the downtown area, has agreed to match funds for the Ritz.
The TIRZ board will give $100,000 to the Ritz once they raise their own $100,000 and make repairs to the theater. Some of those repairs are fixing the roof, fix the air conditioning units and plumbing.
Once everything is set in place, then the TIRZ board will give that money to the theater as a reimbursement.
A big fundraiser that the theater is hoping to gain some help from is their new festival coming up in September. It’s the first ever taco festival called “Que Bueno Taco Fest.”
Monica Sawyer of C.C. Patch says they still need help with volunteers and sponsors and all of the money raised will go to restoring the Ritz.
For more information on the taco festival: quebuenotacofest.com