The contract to deconstruct and demolish the Council administration building has been awarded to Tauranga-based AP Demolition, who have more than 20 years’ experience in construction, demolition and waste recycling.
Work is set to begin on the 91 Willow Street building next month with completion currently scheduled for September 2017.
The tender required that contractors provide consideration of deconstruction methods, meaning the salvaging or reuse of elements of the building where possible to minimise the amount of waste to landfill.
AP Demolition’s recent projects include the demolition of Whakatane Hospital, Tauranga Hospital’s Jacaranda House and Taranaki Base Hospital’s Stainton Block.
Tauranga City Council will have a number of safety measures and appropriate traffic and pedestrian controls in place on Willow Street to minimise the impact on traffic, pedestrians, businesses and services during the project.
The library car park on Hamilton Street will be closed for up to eight weeks during the project, and there will be an alternative book drop-off, access and disabled parking on nearby streets during this time. There will not be any impact to Council’s Customer Service Centre or the main entrance to the library.
Losing the car parking spaces during this time will be an inconvenience to some. The 23 new on-street spaces on McLean Street, which were completed last week, and the seven new spaces on Durham Street (outside the Kingsview) will go some way to alleviate this.
Council will continue to investigate other temporary parking and access options wherever possible to alleviate any loss of inner city parking as the city moves into a transformational time.
The project is part of the Heart of the City Programme of work, the purpose of which is to work in partnership to create a vibrant, safe and successful city centre.
Council resolved in September 2016, as part of a Long Term Plan amendment, to demolish the Administration building as soon as practically possible, following the discovery of toxic mould in the building in November 2015. Independent investigations revealed significant weather tightness, seismic and building services issues in the building.