A pedestrian walks past the now closed RCMP department building on Doyle Street in Kelowna on September 26, 2018.
(JOHN MCDONALD / iNFOnews.ca)
September 27, 2018 – 8:00 a.m.
KELOWNA – It’s doubtful that too many people have fond memories of the place – ending up in the RCMP division was a sign of bad behavior in Kelowna for 56 years.
But anyone with a better mood for the old building now has one last look at how Kelowna’s former RCMP division on Doyle Street faces its own penalty for facing the tow ball sometime in November.
And that’s not a metaphor. The hardened concrete in and around the cell blocks calls for an old-school wrecking ball.
“It just pulverizes it,” said one site worker. Other than that, it’s a pretty straightforward breakdown. “You will be surprised how quickly it will sink,” he added.
Scott Bushell, project manager for the city of Kelowna, said the crews are working inside, removing hazardous materials like asbestos, lead, circuit boards and refrigerants from old machines.
The demolition company McColman & Sons Demolition Ltd. is taking over the demolition of the building for $ 493,000.
Kelowna RCMP has long since moved everything sensitive from the old department to its new police building on Richter Street and Clement Avenue, which opened in June 2017.
The building was last used to house the defendant in the murder trial of gangster Jonathan Bacon, which closed last spring.
What remains are kilometers of cables from CCTV and alarm systems from its time as a functioning police station from 1962.
The $ 48 million replacement building holds nearly 400 civil servants and employees and is equipped to the modern standard that the old building lacked.
Once the site is uncovered, the Kelowna City Real Estate Department will begin marketing it, although there is already strong interest from developers in the high profile property. The current zoning would allow for a 12-story condominium on the site, though a developer will almost certainly have to ask about height variations.
The city previously announced that it would raise up to $ 2.6 million through the sale or long-term rental of the property.
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News from © iNFOnews, 2018
