State wants Docking State Office Building gone by March 2016 at cost of $7.5M

The state plans to demolish the Docking State Office Building in less than a year at a cost not to exceed $7.5 million.

While plans to tear down Docking have been known for some time, documents posted to the Department of Administrations website give the most detail to date on the process leading to the buildings implosion. The state wants the building obliterated between December 2015 and March 2016, with demolition preparation beginning this August.

The information comes in a bid solicitation for a new energy service center. The center supplies cooling and heating to the Capitol complex. It currently sits underneath Docking, but the state wants to build a new one near the Eisenhower Building.

A spreadsheet posted as part of the bid solicitation gives a month-by-month timeline for the deconstruction of Docking. According to the timeline, the state was supposed to select a firm for the demolition between December and January.

John Milburn, Department of Administration spokesman, confirmed the timeline which is dated Oct. 10, 2014 is accurate, but said the demolition firm hadnt yet been selected, though proposals have been received.

Asbestos abatement is scheduled to begin this May. The process involves removing asbestos from the building and is slated to last six months. Removing asbestos can require sealing parts or all of a building. Milburn said the state would ensure no workers are put in danger during the process.

The timeline estimates the asbestos abatement at $1.5 million.

Preparation for demolition will run mostly concurrently with the asbestos abatement. Implosion of Docking itself is scheduled between December and March. Milburn said he doesnt know what form the implosion will take whether it will be a controlled explosion or a wrecking ball will be used.

The implosion itself will cost $5 million, according to the timeline. It is expected to generate about two acres of debris five feet deep.

Milburn emphasized the costs in the document are estimates. He said while the bid documents indicate a cost of $7.5 million, the actual cost is expected to be lower. Efforts to recycle material and store debris on state land will drop the final price tag, Milburn indicated.

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State wants Docking State Office Building gone by March 2016 at cost of $7.5M