Tulare County's Tagus Ranch to be demolished

TULARE COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) -- Another piece of Valley history is set to be torn down soon.

Tagus Ranch just off Highway 99 between Visalia and Tulare will be demolished in the next couple of weeks.

Right now, they're just waiting on a final evaluation on a gas line that runs under the building. Once that's done, this piece of history that's stood next to Highway 99 for more than 50 years will be gone.

There's not much to see of Tagus Ranch now. Windows have been broken, wiring stripped out -- signs of vandalism everywhere. But this used to be the place to be.

Dr. Sarjid Malli bought Tagus Ranch in 2000 with plans to restore it to its former glory. A bad back shattered those dreams, and now he says Tulare County wants the building gone.

"I wish the powers that be would look at historical landmarks like this and know once they're gone, they're gone forever," said Malli.

Tagus once employed hundreds to run the ranch and thousands to work in the neighboring orchards.

"Its heyday was back during the '30s, the Dust Bowl era," said Chris Harrell, a curator with the Tulare Historical Museum.

Harrell says people fleeing the dust found jobs and a new life here.

"It basically became a city within the city of Tulare," he said.

Old photos and memorabilia are just a few things left to prove what Tagus once was. Malli says he plans to save the sign and restore it. He's hopeful a developer will have his same vision to rebuild here -- bringing back a restaurant, music hall and a fruit stand.

"This area will be thriving again," said Malli.

But until then, the next time you make this drive, it will likely look very different.

Demolition is set to begin within the next three weeks.