The old Town Hall is set to be demolished in the next few weeks.
Council approved the $103,000 needed to demolish the building Tuesday, May 10 during its regular meeting. Included in the process by Visco Contractors is the abatement of the asbestos in the building, explained Dave McPhee, director of operations and property services.
Also included in the cost is $14,000 needed to retain RH Services to monitor and conduct testing of the demolition and while council hoped to avoid the extra cost, McPhee said it is a requirement under Occupational Health and Safety regulations.
Start time is expected in the next few weeks and the process is estimated to take approximately 20 days.
Of all the bids for the job, Visco came out on top in both quality of work and cost, said McPhee recently during a committee of the whole meeting. The next lowest bid was by All West Demolition at $175,000.
Money for the project will come from the development reserve.
Demolition of old rental house
The town’s rental house behind the old Town Hall is also set for demolition.
An estimate of the demolition is expected at $60,000 to $65,000 and while council doesn’t necessarily need to provide permission for a project this small, it is still provided as a request because the building belongs to the town, explained CAO Albert Flootman.
The structure and interior of the building is no longer livable, explained McPhee. He added the estimate does not include inspection fees.
Coun. Teri Underhill asked if the Ponoka Fire Department could use the building for fire practice and while it can, McPhee said it is unsafe to burn it down as part of that practice.
Coun. Carla Prediger asked if it is possible to use Visco Contractors to do the work considering the company is demolishing Town Hall. McPhee said the town received an estimate from Home Alyze of Red Deer and as it would only take approximately two days, felt this was the best option.
Money for the project will come from the general benefit reserves.
The request was approved.