Carroll School: Asbestos removal bids to be opened

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Opening of contract bids for the removal of asbestos from the former Carroll Elementary School building in Carroll Township is scheduled for Nov. 1.
Mark Messa, director of the Ottawa County Regional Planning Commission, said he expects a contract to be awarded in early November.
In addition to asbestos, federal regulations identify categories of materials of what are called “universal wastes”: batteries, pesticides, mercury-containing equipment, lamps and aerosol cans. Those wastes will also be covered by the contract, Messa said.
When the contractor completes the asbestos remediation and waste disposal, demolition of the building can proceed.
The county commissioners opened bids last week on the demolition portion of the project. Of the 11 bids submitted, A.J. Riley was the lowest with a bid of $118,500. Varga Contracting, with a bid of $425,000, was the highest.
Messa said he expects a demolition contract to be awarded this week. The completion date in the project specifications is March 31, 2023, weather permitting.
The planning commission was notified earlier this year its application for a Brownfield Remediation Grant was approved. Messa said at the time he expected the $500,000 grant would be sufficient to cover the costs of demolishing the building and remediation of soil on the property.
His office has been working with the consulting firm, SME, Cleveland, on the project. The property had already qualified for an assessment by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.
In 2013, the Benton-Carroll-Salem school board approved the sale of the building to Carroll Township for $15,500.
The board opted to close the building along with Graytown Elementary School in 2011 as part of a consolidation plan of the district’s schools.
The Carroll Elementary building covers about 24,000 square feet and housed pre-kindergarten through fifth grade classes.
In June, Jim Meek, a Carroll Township trustee, said the township didn’t have any immediate plans for the site once the building is torn down other than to leave it as a green space.