Odem auto repair shop is ready to be retired

Picture this - it's the late 1940's in Odem and people make a pit stop off Voss Avenue to fill up on gas. That everyday routine became a source of many memories of a time now long gone.

"They tell me, I remember when I used to come here with my parents. I was in the back seat. That was a long time ago,” Odem native Danny Salinas said.

Salinas is the current owner and he’s familiar with the building's back story. He can even tell customers who first owner was - he’s honored them by hanging up a picture.

"These are the Sipes, and this is one of their workers,” Salinas said, pointing at the photo.

Salinas said the Sipe family ran the gas station for several years and even gave it a second life.

"It was torn down in 1958 which was the wooden one. This one was constructed in 1960,” Salinas said.

The building has stood the test of time. In 2005, Salinas moved in and opened his auto repair business.

“When we bought it still had pumps. We pumped has for a year and then we did away with that. It's a good building. It's just time to get torn down,” Salinas said.

The building will be demolished next week. But locals will remember it now in countless conversations.

"It's a good place. My buddy Alex told me about it. We've been coming here for years,” Refugio resident Ruben Longoria said.

"The mechanics here aren't going to change. The memories are still there,” auto repair customer Alex Torres said.

The new Xtreme Towing mechanic shop will be located on Voss Avenue near the Planters Co Op.

The shop is scheduled to open in August.