{"id":170378,"date":"2026-02-18T22:39:07","date_gmt":"2026-02-18T22:39:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/170378\/"},"modified":"2026-02-18T22:39:07","modified_gmt":"2026-02-18T22:39:07","slug":"banquete-isd-begins-demolition-of-historic-school-to-pave-way-for-new-junior-high-campus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/170378\/","title":{"rendered":"Banquete ISD begins demolition of historic school to pave way for new junior high campus"},"content":{"rendered":"

Banquete ISD begins a historic transition as it demolishes its 1938 elementary school to make way for a new junior high, blending tradition with modern growth.<\/p>\n

BANQUETE, Texas \u2014 It is the end of an era and the beginning of something new for Banquete ISD.<\/p>\n

Demolition crews on Wednesday began tearing down the District\u2019s original elementary school on Fourth Street, clearing the way for a new, state-of-the-art junior high campus.<\/p>\n

The original building, constructed in 1938, has served generations of students. It was renovated in 1975 to add air conditioning and at one point housed all grade levels in the district. Over the years, it transitioned from serving both elementary and junior high students to functioning solely as an elementary school.<\/p>\n

District leaders say once the demolition is complete, construction will begin on the new junior high. Plans include a performance-style gymnasium and community spaces designed to reflect Banquete\u2019s history and growth.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s huge for our community. It\u2019s just a staple of the new growth to have and the changes we are trying to make here,\u201d said seventh-grade teacher Jordan Lerma.<\/p>\n

Lerma said the District is focused on honoring its past while embracing the future.<\/p>\n


\n \"\"<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re all about tradition here in Banquete and wanting to see the growth as well, so wanting to mix tradition we\u2019ve always had with the new changes,\u201d Lerma said. \u201cWe\u2019re trying to build and establish a positive culture here in Banquete.\u201d<\/p>\n

The long-term plan includes demolishing the existing former elementary school to build the new junior high, followed by the demolition of the current junior high building.<\/p>\n

Superintendent Adriana Tagle said the project represents progress and opportunity for students and families.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis has been a long time coming for our community and for our kids, and so that\u2019s why we are demolishing the building to make way for new opportunities and new memories for our students,\u201d Tagle said.<\/p>\n

She called the moment meaningful on multiple levels.<\/p>\n

\u201cDefinitely a sweet moment as a parent, a sweet moment as a superintendent and a sweet moment as a community member,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The new junior high gym is expected to be a centerpiece of the campus.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe junior high gym will be unlike anything we\u2019ve ever seen. It will actually be our crowned jewel, if you will,\u201d Tagle said.<\/p>\n

District leaders say the school\u2019s design will incorporate community gathering spaces, a nod to the meaning behind the name Banquete, which refers to a banquet or gathering. The design will also include subtle elements inspired by the nearby railway system, such as timber accents, to reflect how the community was established.<\/p>\n

Junior high students are expected to begin the 2027\u201328 school year in the new building.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Banquete ISD begins a historic transition as it demolishes its 1938 elementary school to make way for a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":170379,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[155,157,156],"class_list":{"0":"post-170378","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-corpus-christi","8":"tag-corpus-christi","9":"tag-corpus-christi-headlines","10":"tag-corpus-christi-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/170378","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=170378"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/170378\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/170379"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=170378"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=170378"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=170378"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}