SAISD Approves $316K Demolition of Former Sam Houston Campus

SAN ANGELO, TX — The San Angelo ISD Board of Trustees voted 5–1 Tuesday night to demolish the former Sam Houston Elementary School campus, ending a month-long delay while the district gathered community feedback on the property’s future.

The board approved a $316,460 contract with Reese Albert Trucking of San Angelo for demolition and AML Environmental for asbestos abatement. The total includes a $40,000 contingency.

The decision follows last month’s vote to table the item so residents could share ideas and express interest in the vacant building. During Tuesday’s discussion, Director of Purchasing Jason Henry said the site was no longer needed after the district’s special programs moved to the Oakes campus.

“This move left the old Sam Houston campus vacant and no longer needed,” Henry said, explaining that drawings and specifications for full abatement and demolition were prepared with the help of King’s Consulting.

Henry said the demolition will remove all buildings, foundations, and playground equipment. Some asphalt and cement will remain on site, but the area will be leveled and cleared. The basketball goals will come down, while the perimeter fencing will stay in place to prevent access until future plans are made.

Board member Karla Cardenas reiterated her concern about spending district funds before exploring a sale.

“We owe it to the taxpayers of San Angelo to save them the $316,000 to demo this building before we at least put it out to the public,” she said.

Other trustees said clearing the site would make it more valuable and prevent it from deteriorating like other closed campuses.

“My biggest fear would have been that someone would buy it and leave it like they did Travis,” Trustee Gerard Gallegos said. “That's not fair to a neighborhood.”

The board heard that only two residents expressed informal interest in the property — one who declined after learning there was no gymnasium, and another who offered $25.

"I spoke to another individual who said, 'Well, I could give you $25 for it, and you wouldn't have to spend the money to tear it down,'" Merl Brandon said, the school district's deputy superintendent of finance and operations. 

The motion to approve the demolition was made by Gallegos and seconded by Kyle Mills. Cardenas was the lone dissenting vote.

Trustees and Superintendent Christopher Moran said the cleared property could later be sold for residential or commercial development, potentially generating new tax revenue, with the help from the city. 

"They would come in and provide water and sewer and provide the infrastructure so that it could be sold to a developer for homes and things like that," Moran said.