Nueces County officials are preparing to receive proposals for a restaurant at the new Bob Hall Pier as construction continues toward an October completion.
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Construction on the new Bob Hall Pier is moving forward, with work on the restaurant portion of the project progressing as Nueces County officials prepare to seek proposals from potential operators.
County leaders say the next step is opening a request for proposals process to determine which restaurant will eventually occupy the new space on the iconic pier.
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Visitors already have ideas about what they would like to see when the restaurant opens.
“Tuna fish and rice!” said seven-year-old Ian, who was visiting the pier with his grandfather.
Ian said spending time at the beach and looking for sand dollars with his grandfather are some of his favorite activities.
“Me and my grandpa like to look for sand dollars,” he said.
Other visitors said seafood should play a central role in the restaurant’s menu.
“They should put like a ‘you hook it we cook it’ type of thing,” said Luciana Molina.
“That would be really good!” added Daniel Castillo.
The pair, who were visiting the pier from California for the first time, said they envision the restaurant as a welcoming gathering place for families and visitors.
“A little restaurant where family and dogs and just everybody is like welcome,” Molina said.
For many residents and visitors, Bob Hall Pier represents more than a fishing destination.
“It’s iconic. It’s been since the, what, late 40s, early 50s,” said Scott Cross, Director of Nueces County Coastal Parks.
Cross said demolition work on the previous restaurant structure is nearly complete.
“They’ve done all the demo. And I think the last thing for them to do on the old observation deck there was to tear off the shingles,” Cross said.
Under the current plans, a concession stand will be located on one side of the pier and the restaurant on the other.
County officials are preparing to open a request for proposals process that will allow interested restaurant operators to submit plans for the space.
“I’ll allow those proposers that are out there an opportunity to put together whatever they think is going to fit best for that operation up there and we’ll see what we get,” Cross said.
Cross said the restaurant has historically generated significant economic benefits for the county.
“A tremendous amount of revenue. What the revenue that that pier generated, whether it was us running the pier or our negotiations with our concessionaire services up there combined,” Cross said.
According to Cross, the proposal process is expected to take about three months from the time the request is issued until a restaurant operator is selected.
County officials said they estimate that construction on the new Bob Hall Pier will be completed in October.