Pembina Hills trustees passed a motion during their June 22 meeting in Barrhead to proceed with the demolition of the former W.R. Frose School in Fawcett at a projected total cost of $189,231.
Supt. Colleen Symyrozum-Watt said trustees had previously directed administration to tender out the demolition of the building, which has sat empty since the end of the 2013-2014 school year.
A company called JADA Solutions has been contracted at a cost of $5,565, including GST, to oversee the removal of hazardous materials — namely, asbestos — from the school.
On the division’s behalf, JADA sent out bid packages to companies seeking bids to assist with the removal of hazardous materials. The lowest tender they received was for $17,535, including GST, from DMI Services Ltd.
Assistant Supt. of employee services and facilities & transportation Dave Garbutt said administration then posted a request for proposals on the Alberta Purchasing Connection website for the actual demolition.
Garbutt said there are basically two options: they can either remove all excess demolition materials to a landfill, or they can crush the concrete on site and use it as fill.
The second option would be cheaper, since it doesn’t require any transportation of materials, he indicated.
The lowest tender received came from Canadian Demolition Ltd. at a cost of $158,220 plus GST. This bid was based on crushing excess concrete on site.
“Given the information that’s provided here, administration would recommend that if you decide to proceed with demolition, the recommendation would be to use the (preceding) companies,” said Garbutt.
The accumulated cost of the demolition project would $189,231. “We’re about $60,000 less than what is being provided by the ministry,” Garbutt noted.
The board unanimously approved administration’s recommendation. However, for the demolition to actually proceed, there will have to be provincial approval for the project.
That approval will ultimately determine when demolition begins. Garbutt noted it will take about four days to remove the asbestos from the school, then a few weeks for demolition to be completed.
