by Anna Erickson,
Staff Writer
The city hopes to have repairs done for the northwest corner of Wadena's northwest fire hall, which has settled about five inches and has caused damage to doors and the sheeting.
An old house had been at the location before the fire hall and was torn down. A lot of concrete rubble from the basement demolition was left underground and has caused the footing to sink over the years, said Byron Larson, Wadena planning and zoning director. The demolition was done before the city bought the property, he said.
Larson recommended excavating, removing and replacing the footing and foundation wall on the sinking corner. To do this, the building would be lifted and the old concrete rubble would be dug out. The area would be filled in and the building would be repaired and set back down. The estimate is $25,000-$30,000 to fix the fire hall, Larson said.
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The city council budgeted $1,000 for this in 2007, said City Administrator Brad Swenson. The council said it would come up with a plan in 2007, he said.
Fire Chief Sam Waln Jr. said the building is getting really bad and it changes with the seasons.
Swenson said if the council wanted to fix the fire hall this year, it could look to "the famous word -- reserves" or put it off and budget for 2008.
"It's gotten considerably worse in the last year," Waln said.
Larson said this solution seemed to make sense. Another option would be mud packing but for that to work, there would need to be a solid base under the building, which there isn't, he said.
"This isn't like putting paint on a turd?" Phillips asked, meaning it won't continue to rot or be a temporary fix.
The plan should fix the problem, Larson said.
The council approved having Larson get moving on the project by getting quotes and to pay for the project with reserves, and try to budget for it next year.
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