DEAN KOZANIC/FAIRFAX NZ

CLEARING THE WAY: About half of the homes in the red-zoned suburb of Bexley in east Christchurch have been demolished. The homes that remain are cracked, warped and filled with silt.

Demolition of the residential red zone needs to accelerate so all homes on the flat land can be cleared by the end-of-year target.

The Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (Cera) has missed its demolition targets, but promises that the pace of clearance will accelerate next month.

New clearance data provided by Cera shows that more than half of the red-zoned houses have been demolished.

Figures up to March 4 show that 3920 homes have been demolished, with 3919 to go.

In October last year, Cera hoped to be demolishing 400 homes a month by the end of 2013. In November last year, 295 homes were demolished and 182 were demolished in December.

Cera still hopes to meet the target of 5000 homes demolished on flat land by June, with the remainder of flat-land homes demolished by the end of the year.

Port Hills clearance will take until the end of 2015 at the earliest.

Cera operations general manager John Cumberpatch said it needed to demolish 300 homes a month to clear flat-land homes by the end of the year.

Original post:
Demolition rate to ramp up next month

KNOXVILLE Demolition of Gibbs Hall, the longtime home of University of Tennessees athletes, began Tuesday, with the entire structure expected to be down next month.

The crew will then begin razing Stokely Athletic Center, which is attached to the former dormitory. Footings for the new residence hall will begin as soon as next month, said Bill Pace, a UT architect and the project manager for the site. Sabre Demolition, a New York-based firm, has the $2.44 million contract to raze the buildings.

UT plans to build a 600-bed co-ed residence hall on the east end of the site, a 1,000-space parking garage on Volunteer Boulevard and football practice fields a combined $100 million project that could be complete by 2016.

Stokely and Gibbs were first approved for demolition in July 2012. The arena, on the corner of Volunteer and Lake Loudoun boulevards, was vacated more than a year ago as part of an agreement with the fire marshal because the gyms safety systems, including fire exits paths and sprinklers, were not up to code.

More details as they develop online and in Thursdays News Sentinel.

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Demolition begins at Gibbs Hall; Stokely to follow

Campaigners battling to save Christchurch's Majestic Theatre are staging a rally against its demolition.

The future of the 1930s-era building - the city's first fully steel-framed building - has been in doubt since its inclusion in the Christchurch Central Development Unit's (CCDU) street-widening plans for Manchester St.

It was also subject to a Section 45 notice, meaning it was considered a dangerous building.

Heritage campaigners will today march from the Valuing Our Heritage display in Cathedral Junction to the Majestic from 12.30pm.

Ross Gray, the deputy chairman of Historic Places Canterbury, said demolition should not proceed because the building had both heritage value and value as a performing arts space. "There's virtually nothing of that stature left in town, and certainly nothing from that 1930s [era]," he said.

Engineering reports he had seen showed the extent of the damage "varied greatly".

Traffic could veer around the Majestic if Manchester St was widened.

A CCDU spokesman said a contract for the demolition had been awarded and it was expected preparation for work would begin "over the next couple of weeks".

- Fairfax NZ News

Link:
Demolition brings out heritage protesters

Demolition of the residential red zone needs to accelerate so all homes on the flat land can be cleared by the end-of-year target.

The Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (Cera) has missed its demolition targets, but promises that the pace of clearance will accelerate next month.

New clearance data provided by Cera shows that more than half of the red-zoned houses have been demolished.

Figures up to March 4 show that 3920 homes have been demolished, with 3919 to go.

In October last year, Cera hoped to be demolishing 400 homes a month by the end of 2013. In November last year, 295 homes were demolished and 182 were demolished in December.

Cera still hopes to meet the target of 5000 homes demolished on flat land by June, with the remainder of flat-land homes demolished by the end of the year.

Port Hills clearance will take until the end of 2015 at the earliest.

Cera operations general manager John Cumberpatch said it needed to demolish 300 homes a month to clear flat-land homes by the end of the year.

''We are still on target for the end of the year,'' he said.

''We have got everything in line.''

Read the rest here:
Only half of red zone homes demolished

Game 1 Demolition

By: Edwin Vazquez

Original post:
Game 1 Demolition - Video

Workman were seen moving heavy machinery into the Boyd Theater's auditorium Monday morning, leading Philadelphia preservationists to conclude that its owner, Live Nation, has begun demolition of Center City's last art deco movie palace.

The Preservation Alliance's advocacy director, Ben Leech, said he could clearly hear hammering sounds when he walked past the theater's Sansom Street exit doors.

"I can't think of what else they'd be doing other than demolition," he said. He noted that a demolition permit was posted on the theater's Chestnut Street facade this weekend.

On Friday, the Historical Commission granted Live Nation permission to raze the historically designated theater on the grounds that the building had become a financial hardship. The company, which is required under the decision to maintain the Chestnut Street facade, intends to sell the building to a Philadelphia developer to erect an eight-screen multiplex for the Florida entertainment company, iPic.

Although the 1928 movie palace is a landmarked building, only its exterior is protected under city law. Live Nation said it sought the hardship ruling because iPic needed to demolish the outer walls to construct its screening rooms. The demolition permit posted on the building was issued Feb. 25.

Live Nation's point person on the Boyd, executive James Tucker, could not be reached for comment.

During the lengthy debate over Live Nation's request for hardship, the Nutter Administration made no attempt to intervene, even after a donor stepped in at the 11th hour and offered to buy the theater at the same price iPic offered.

"We've let the process run its natural course and I don't intend to intervene," said Alan Greenberger, deputy mayor for commerce and planning. "The process has determined there is hardship. There are legal permits in place, and that's okay."

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Demolition appears to have begun at the Boyd

SOUTH BEND City officials are expressing concern about a flier going around that states a person's home is slated for demolition and offering to buy the property for cash.

Two homeowners have contacted the city about the fliers in recent days, Kara Kelly, of the mayors office, said. In each case, the person's home was found not to be on the city's demolition list.

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City warns of misleading demolition letters

SPRINGFIELD TWP.

Staff members at the Clark County Fairgrounds have completed the demolition of two deteriorating aircraft hangars, a project that will help create more parking and access for other events at the site.

The demolition of the hangars, near the entrance at the east end of the fairgrounds, was part of a project that also included the construction of a new maintenance facility near the Champions Center.

They were old metal buildings and they needed maintenance, but the main reason was to clean up the front of the fairgrounds, said Allan Hess, executive director of the Clark County Agricultural Society, which maintains the fairgrounds.

While it is not related to the demolition project, tearing down the two hangars will also make the site more attractive for potential developers, Hess said.

The Agricultural Society and other local officials have discussed construction of a new hotel at the fairgrounds, which could provide lodging for visitors who attend events at that site. However, Hess said that project is still in the preliminary stages. He said the Agricultural Society is working with a real estate group to help find an investor who might be willing to build at the site.

The hangars had previously been used to store equipment for the electrical and grounds crews at the fairgrounds. But demolishing them will create more space for parking and make it easier to host large events at the site. Hess said the fairgrounds crew was able to do the work, and after the scrap is recycled the only expenses will include labor and fuel.

He said the fairgrounds will likely break even financially, and possibly come out slightly ahead now that the project is complete.

We emptied them all out and it was just a matter of tearing the metal structure down, he said.

Meanwhile, local officials are gathering information about the events hosted at the fairgrounds and attendance figures to help show that there is demand for a hotel.

Original post:
Demolition of fairgrounds hangars to provide more parking

GEORGETOWN While town leaders discussed its future across the street, the building that housed Georgetowns first bank sat vacant and idle aside from some equipment stored inside the structure on Monday evening.

But preservationists and a majority of the Georgetown Town Council believe theres a future for the property, and they think the building is a key part of it. The council voted 4-1 to stave off the demolition of the structure for one year, as a committee charged with finding alternatives to razing the building will continue to meet in hopes of providing tangible options for the reuse of the property.

This building is not structurally unsound, said Greg Sekula, southern regional director of Indiana Landmarks and a member of the committee.

Located at 9110 Ind. 64, the building was constructed to house Georgetowns first bank in 1909. In recent years, it held the town hall until 2009, and has primarily been used for equipment storage since it was vacated.

There was concern among town officials that the building wasnt safe, and could potentially collapse or suffer structural damage.

But Sekula said a team that included engineer Nathan Grimes, developer Steve Resch and architect Ron Stiller inspected the building on March 6, and they vouched for the buildings stability.

Its not going to fall down, said Margaret Dean Hammersmith, a former Georgetown council member who was also appointed to the committee.

With a year to meet and research, the committee should be able to come up with some options to save the building for the council to consider, Sekula said.

There are matching grants available at the state level for historic building rehabilitations that the committee and town will explore, Council President Jerry Brock said.

Councilman Mike Mills cast the lone vote in opposition to delaying the demolition for 12 months, as he cited financial concerns with keeping the structure.

See the rest here:
Demolition of Georgetowns first bank delayed

SOUTH BEND City officials are expressing concern about a flier going around that states a person's home is slated for demolition and offering to buy the property for cash.

Two homeowners have contacted the city about the fliers in recent days, Kara Kelly, of the mayors office, said. In each case, the person's home was found not to be on the city's demolition list.

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Individuals who have a print subscription of the South Bend Tribune can activate their digital account to gain unlimited access to SouthBendTribune.com.

You need the phone number on the account and your ZIP code to complete this process.

Questions? Please write tosubscriberservices@sbtinfo.comor call our Subscriber Services Department at 574-235-6464.

Long distance (outside St. Joseph County, Ind.), call toll-free 1-800-220-7378.

Need an account? Create one now.

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South Bend warns of misleading demolition letters