• Public or private venture?
• Or both, with the city as a paying partner?
• Should the historically and architecturally noteworthy but deteriorating Memorial Coliseum be saved, torn down, or partially gutted?
• Does the community want upscale condos, affordable apartments, retail shops, an open-air market?

The next City Council will direct the process to sort through those questions and find a proposal on which a developer, the city and the public can agree. No further action on the coliseum is expected until after council elections in April and the installment of council members in May.  Six of the nine council members are running for re-election, with Garrett and Kelly unopposed. The election is April 14 and a runoff is planned for May 12.
 
City Manager Skip Noe said public participation will be crucial in the second round of proposals for Memorial Coliseum. The next council, which will include at least three new members because three incumbents aren't running, likely won't take up the issue until June at the earliest.

"There's no question that the next go-round there's going to have to be public input," Noe said Friday after a news conference announcing negotiations ended between the city and TRT Development Co.

Four proposals were submitted to the city in 2005 concerning the development of the  Memorial Coliseum area.
The proposals were as follows:

1. TRT Development Co.:  Proposed a $30 million amusement park called Boardwalk by the Bay. TRT proposal was the only one of four submitted to the city that did not require public funds or incentives. This might have been the main reason it was originally chosen in January of 2006 by the city. City Manager Skip Noe announced Friday that talks stopped early last week with TRT Development Co.

2. Landlord Resources: Submitted a proposal focused more on how the city should go about choosing a developer and a plan than on what the development should be, telling the city more public participation was needed for the Memorial Coliseum site. Business partners Mel Klein and Leon Loeb warned in a letter in December 2005, along with their proposal, that the city's chosen manner of selecting a proposal would fail.

Memorial Coliseum

3. Wiznia Associates: Their development called, Paseo del Mar would offer 60 apartments, a retail center and use the Coliseum to open an upscale grocery store and night club.

4. NRP Group: Proposed Vista de la Bahía which included apartments and retail space as well.  The Coliseum would be gutted for use as an outdoor public venue and the plaque commemorating WWII veterans would be displayed.

Corpus Christi residents will now have to wait until after the election to hear any news about any changes that might occur to this site.  Since their participation will now be taken into consideration for the initial process, residents will have to decide how the face of this premium property will change and how much they are willing to contribute to make the changes possible.  

Changes in this area which offers rare access to a busy beach just across the street can bring many benefits to the residents of the area. It can become a major tourist attraction as well as provide upscale accomodations for those seeking to retire or purchase a vacation home near the water. With a mixed-use development including retail stores, hotels and a possible amusement park new job opportunities will be available as well as improving the appearance of the area and repurposing the Memorial Coliseum structure.

Built in 1953 the Memorial Coliseum was a 5,400-seat multi-purpose arena which hosted local sporting and social events prior to the American Bank Center opening in 2005. The Memorial Coliseum has been vacated and the city is now paying $40,000 to $50,000 a year for insurance on the building.

Ref: Denise Malan Caller-Times