CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The local landmark has been out of commission since Hurricane Hanna badly damaged it in 2020, and now Bob Hall Pier demolition has begun.
Heavy machinery, dumpsters, and workers in hardhats were at the site Wednesday that's closed off from the beach by a chain link fence on three sides, and the Gulf of Mexico on the fourth.
The tear-down is scheduled to take between 100-130 days.
People who often visited the pier when it was open are happy to see demolition begin so the rebuilding process can eventually start, as well.
“We’ve seen it closed for so long," Padre Island resident Marilyn Knapp Litt said. "I think everybody’s really anxious to just see it built and opened up again."
The Nueces County Commissioners Court has approved more than $25 million to build a new Bob Hall Pier once demolition is complete.
Commissioners still need to approve the final design plans, but the commissioner for Precinct 4 — where the pier is located — believes they'll do so over the summer.
“I think it’s going to be something that everybody is going to think is just epic," Commissioner Brent Chesney said. "I mean, it’s going to be awesome."
Chesney repeatedly praised his fellow members of the commissioners court for unanimously approving the funding of the large project.
He says it'll be worth the price because of all of the people who will want to use the new pier.
“It’s an iconic pier," Chesney said. "It’s a worldwide destination point. People come from all over the country — all over the world. I mean people love to come to Bob Hall Pier."
He guessed that construction of a new Bob Hall Pier would take nine months or more, but Chesney says an estimated timeline is better left to the project's engineers to determine.
However long it takes, Litt is looking forward to her first visit — especially since public feedback is going into the design.
“I’m glad that the community's had input into what they’re going to build," she said. "I’m really excited to see a bigger, better Bob Hall Pier."
