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GROVES — After years of sitting idle and deteriorating, the former Renaissance Hospital has a new owner.

Groves Interim City Manager Lance Billeaud said he was informed last week of the sale.

The new owner, Brett Smith, paid a total of $60,000 in fees owed the city, which included at least $53,000 in a past due water bill, and the rest were liens on the property for grass cutting.

The former hospital and doctors offices are located at 5500 39th St. in Groves and have been closed for approximately 10 years, during which time vagrants prowled the property, stealing copper and damaging the facility.

Last year a businessman came forward, unnamed at the time, with the idea to demolish the structures and construct an assisted living facility for senior citizens who are semi-mobile.

Billeaud said he’s heard of two possible plans for the property, including the retirement-type facility that is not a nursing home.

The details are not honed down but the owner has a vision, he said.

Billeaud said the development of the property is a positive for the city. This would mean revenue from water and sewer, having the property back on the tax rolls and more.

“It makes that part of the city look nice again. That corner has been looking run down for a while, and the city has put liens on it for grass cutting,” Billeaud said.

Background

The property, which was opened as Doctors Hospital decades ago, closed in April 2013 following a change in ownership that led to employee complaints and an investigation by the Texas Department of State Health Services.

It was bought and sold several times before being acquired by The Medical Center of Southeast Texas in 2017.

According to the Jefferson County Appraisal District, the last owner is listed as Seaboard Development LLC.