1920s Apartments Could Be Slated For Demolition

Published: Friday, May 17, 2013 at 11:04 p.m. Last Modified: Friday, May 17, 2013 at 11:04 p.m.

LAKELAND | A demolition company has been chosen to tear down the Lincoln Square apartments to possibly make way for new single-family homes.

Lakeland city commissioners will vote at their meeting at 9 a.m. Monday on whether to spend $836,000 to hire Lakeshore Environmental Contractors, a Birmingham, Ala., company, to demolish the building and remove any asbestos from the area.

If commissioners approve hiring the company, demolition and asbestos removal is expected to begin June 15 and last about 90 days at the units at 805 W. Seventh Street, said Tamara Sakagawa, the city's community redevelopment agency manager.

Sakagawa said the city has a budget of $1.2 million for the project, but she expects it to be below $1 million even after an environmental consultant is hired to oversee the asbestos removal.

Demolition was set to occur in spring 2012, but initial bids ranged from $1.4 million to $5 million. City officials canceled the bid because of the high cost and hired a consultant to rewrite the bid specifications.

The 120 concrete apartment units, which cover roughly five acres, were built in the 1920s. The ground floor of each unit has a kitchen and living room. Upstairs, there are two bedrooms and a bath.

The property has been vacant for more than a year.

After demolition occurs, Sakagawa said, city officials plan to have several meetings with members of the neighborhood about the future of the property.

She said Friday that single-family detached homes would be a nice addition to the neighborhood.

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1920s Apartments Could Be Slated For Demolition