Downtown demolition begins: Bluefield's 400 Block starts coming down
Feb. 27—By GREG JORDAN
Bluefield Daily Telegraph
BLUEFIELD — A steel claw biting into bricks and dropping them into the street below was the first step Monday for demolishing a block of downtown Bluefield's buildings.
Work on demolishing seven buildings standing in downtown Bluefield's 400 block is now underway. Traffic is currently moving through the downtown.
Project Manager Chase Fitzwater with the contractor Reclaim and other employees got excavators and other heavy machinery ready on Scott Street, which has been closed off between Bland and Federal Streets.
"As of right now we're continuing to unload our attachments for our equipment, fencing and crane mats to help protect sidewalks and roadways," he said. "Our guys are getting into position and shifting the machine up here for the J.C. Penney building, the tallest part here and start demolition after lunch. We'll start at the corner of Bland, work down Scott Street to Federal and work our way down the block to the rest of the buildings."
The buildings will be demolished from the top down.
"We'll start at the top to bring everything down in a safe manner, and then that way we can really go to work inside the buildings' footprint," Fitzwater said.
Bland and Federal Streets will stay open during most of the demolition work. When the contractors reach the nine-story building at the block's other end, Federal Street will be temporarily closed with traffic rerouted, but "that will be quite a few months away," he said.
Jim Spencer, executive director of the Bluefield W.Va. Economic Development Authority, said the demolition project started in 2019 with a Brownfield Assessment grant that let the city assess several structures including the building now occupied by Intuit, the Bluestone Clinic and the building which once stood in the Bluefield Avenue space now occupied by a Dollar General store.
In October 2020, the city of Bluefield deeded the properties over the economic development authority.
The demolition contract calls for the work to be finished in 270 days.
"I don't know if it will take that long, but they want to do it slowly and safely to make sure there is no impact," Spencer said. "A brick could fall and bounce and come across the road, so safety is a big key on a project like this."
Parking will be closed along the downtown's 400 block. The public will be notified when traffic needs to be rerouted.
The city is still considering ways to use the 400 block's space after the buildings are gone. Spencer said that people with ideas for the open space can contact him at jspencer@bluewv.org on the internet.
"This is the best day I've had as mayor in Bluefield," Mayor Ron Martin said as bricks fell. "It's been a long process. It's truly a testimonial to the team effort of Bluefield. I don't think there's a person in the city's administration who hasn't had a hand in this."
People gathered outside to watch the demolition get underway and shoot videos.
Doris Sue Kantor of Bluefield remembered when a Trailways Bus station operated at the demolition site. She said that her father, the late Judge Jerome Katz, practiced law there. Businesses long-time Bluefield residents can remember such as Steckler's Men's Shop and the Kresge's store — known for its lunch counter and fresh doughnuts — once stood there.
Years of preparation led to Monday's start of demolitions, Spencer said. Steps toward preparation included:
—Brownfield Assessment Grant — Awarded October 2019 — The grant was a joint project with Bluefield, Va.
Key outcomes of the grant included: — Former Summit Community Bank building is now Intuit. — Former downtown building which smelled "like a wet dog" is now the Bluefield Health Clinic with technical assistance support for Downtown Appalachia. — The former block which now is home to Dollar General on Bluefield Avenue. — Assessment of the 400 Block on Federal Street.
October 26, 2020, Bluefield City Board of Directors vote to deed 400 Block to the Bluefield Economic Development Authority.
Phase 1 — EPA Cleanup Grant for the 400 Block awarded October 2021. — Matching funds provided by Shott Foundation. — Phase I asbestos abatement completed October 2023.
Phase II demolitions started Feb. 26 — Funding from the Shott Foundation, city of Bluefield, West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection, city of Bluefield, West Virginia Department of Environment Protection REAP funds and the Bluefield Economic Development Authority.
Spencer thanked the economic development authority's board of directors, the state Department of Environmental Protection REAP program, the Shott Foundation, the city of Bluefield, EPA Brownfields Program, Stantec, Region I Planning and Development Council and Downtown Appalachia REI.
— Contact Greg Jordan at gjordan@bdtonline.com
Contact Greg Jordan at gjordan@bdtonline.com
