FORT WORTH — For at least two decades, it was hard to miss this Fort Worth house with aluminum streaming around the property.
Some people even stopped to ask, "What the heck is it?"
Louis Torres is proud of his small lot on the corner of Currie and Whitmore streets. He's prouder still of the thousands of beer cans that decorate the house and yard.
"It's a hobby," said the 68-year-old retired Lockheed Martin employee. "Just something for me to do. I'm retired. Sit at home, drink beer and watch TV."
He concedes that it has become a little more than a hobby, though.
The cans are laced from the chain-link fence to the house to an outdoor "bar" and to other shrubs.
But in a couple of weeks, all of it could be a look of the past.
Torres has sold the home as the area is undergoing massive redevelopment. His home is the only one on his block that hasn't been leveled.
"Times are a changing," he said. "They're buying up everything around here."
He'll hand over the keys in two weeks.
Torres has lived in the house — which his parents gave him when they died — for nearly 60 years. He expects the house to be demolished.
"At least there are still memories," he says.
At one time, he contends there were close to 4,000 cans on the property.
In 2012, Torres and the city of Fort Worth fought over the appearance of his property.
The cans were removed and taken to a recycling facility.
Torres eventually worked out a compromise where he could start hanging more aluminum as long as he kept it solely on his property.
He said all of the Miller Light and Milwaukee's Best that are on display were consumed during the past few years, most of them by him.
"I get asked all the time: How many cans? Did you drink these? Can I plead the Fifth on that?" he jokes.
The highlight may have come last year, when he said MillerCoors delivered a personalized Louis' Bar sign along with 10 cases of free beer.
"Doesn't get much better than that," he said.
He says when he relocates next month to River Oaks, Texas, he may start hanging empties there, too.
"It's time to start all over because I'm not going to stop."
Follow Todd Unger on Twitter: @ToddWFAA8
