Allen County commissioners may rethink how they will proceed to remove the old Allen County Hospital to make room for a grocery and other development. WEBER, in a presentation before contractors toured the hospital, said the deadline for bids was July 6, but that could be altered if contractors thought they needed more time.
In recent weeks a plan had evolved to have an auction of personal property in the hospital, as well as copper and other metal and material that had salvage value.
Thursday during a tour of the structure a handful of potential demolition contractors urged County Counselor Alan Weber to have commissioners reconsider. To a one they said the county would come out ahead if it made salvage a part of the demolition contract. Their point was that if someone won salvage rights and then jerked wire, pipes and other metal from ceilings and elsewhere, there was a distinct danger of asbestos contamination.
“You could spend a lot,” perhaps several thousands of dollars to clean up asbestos and other hazardous materials before demolition could start, several said.
A prior report said asbestos was not a significant concern in the building, that only a portion was friable, meaning small pieces easily would float about in the air. Most is non-friable and poses no immediate problem, but that could change quickly, contractors said, if disturbed by someone without knowledge of how to handle it.
Also, several contractors questioned whether sale of remaining property in the hospital would reap the county any dividend.
One said when he razed a hospital in Larned, toilets, doors and such things were separated from the building and sold at auction. “All together, they brought $10,” he said. Another recalled when his company demolished a Veterans Administration home, doors and windows failed to draw a bid and were hauled to a landfill.
Initially commissioners talked about having salvage rights a separate issue from disposal of personal property — as contractors recommended — but then talked about making them a part of an auction. They have contracted with Allen County Realty, represented by John Brocker, to perform an auction, with a guaranteed commission of $600.
Whether that will change will be a topic at the commissioners’ meeting Tuesday, Weber said.
He said the anticipation was to have all personal property and salvage out of the hospital by Oct. 1, and for demolition to begin soon thereafter. The hope is it will take about three months, so the property will be ready for development early in 2016. In addition to the building, the north parking lot, made of concrete and asphalt, will be removed to facilitate construction of a new G&W Foods grocery.
Weber is to prepare a contract for the grocer and commissioners to review. It will include a purchase price of $29,000 for the land G&W wants.
On query from the Register, one contractor said completing demolition in three months might be difficult, with work having to be done without infringing on the medical arts building — it will stay in place just southeast of the hospital — and almost certain foul weather in fall and early winter.
Once demolition begins, the site will be closed to the public by a six-foot-tall chain link fence.
Demolition material — one contractor mentioned 12,000 tons of concrete — will be disposed of at the Allen County Landfill without charge. Weber also noted the county had ample rock and dirt for leveling the property — the extensive basement area will be brought to grade as part of the structure’s razing.
Streamlined ACH demo urged
