The demolition of a former gas station-convenience store on 16th Street was the “last piece of the puzzle” before construction can start on development. That includes Chick-fil-a.
Mayor Larry Spears Jr. talked about city projects with KOGT’s Gary Stelly Wednesday during The Morning Show’s ‘People in the Know’ segment.
The popular fast food chicken restaurant is the only business that has officially been announced for the acreage along 16th Street and the new Interstate 10 frontage road. The old store was the last part of the area that needed to be cleared out before construction can begin.
“A lot of EDC money and a lot of incentive money has gone into that spot,” the mayor said.
The City of Orange Economic Development Corporation has invested in the development through the past few years, including for the demolition of the old gas station and removal of the tanks. Spears said the drainage projects, along with the water and sewer services are all completed.
The mayor said he hopes Chick-fil-a will get here quickly. “It is the Lord’s chicken place,” so it shouldn’t take too long, he said.
Stelly asked Spears about bringing God into topics and saying he prays for answers and guidance. The mayor said he’s taken criticism from people who say that religion and government should be kept separate. But he won’t change.
“I’m going to glorify his name and give him the praise,” he replied.
Spears said converting the old Natatorium to a community center is “an answered prayer.” For years, he has heard people said kids need someplace to go and things to do.
The city has budgeted bond money to fill in the pool and convert the building into a recreation and community center that will include areas for volleyball and basketball. Stelly compared it to a “new and improved Thomen Center,” referring to the city’s longtime community center that was demolished almost 15 years ago.
The mayor said the city will be getting architectural plans soon, but the council delayed immediate action until after the Texas legislature met this year and what tax restrictions might be created for cities. He said the city will need to budget for a director for the community center.
The council last year set projects for spending $8 million in bonds, with the bulk going to street improvements. Besides the community center, another big expenditure will be a covered pavilion at the Boat Ramp park area.
Spears said the architect has made preliminary plans and is working with John Thomas of OCARC and Soon-to-Be County Judge John Gothia. Thomas has overseen OCARC benefit tournaments for 30 years and Gothia has been instrumental in bringing professional fishing tournaments to Orange.
However, the pavilion will be used for more than fishing tournaments, Spears said. It will be available for churches, family reunions, and events for different organizations. “We definitely want to utilitze it in many different ways,” he said.
He told Stelly he is considering changing the name of Simmons Drive, which runs along the Boat Ramp acreage. Two weeks ago, at the end of a council meeting, he simply mentioned changing the thoroughfare’s name. The road had “such a negative connotation for what used to happen there, he said.
In the 1980s through the 1990s, Simmons was known for drug deals and prostitutes.
Changing the name would “rebrand” the street to let people know it is along the Sabine River, he said. At the meeting, he suggested Riverside Drive as a name.
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