“The project is on the shelf at this time,” Hawkins said. “We’re waiting to see bidding become more favorable.”
The new pubic works building was scheduled to be built in 2020, but because costs have come in too high, the city will look to possibly budget for the project in 2021.
RELATED: Firefighters flock to Fairborn for experiments in old shopping center
Although the public works building is on hold, demolition of the Skyway Plaza, located at 1104 Kauffman Ave. and the future site of the public works building, is scheduled to begin within the next month, Hawkins said.
In September, a fire safety research group, Underwriters Laboratories, conducted fire experiments on the empty shopping center.
A number of different fires were lit in the building, making it a useful experiment for fire safety, but an eyesore in town. Hawkins said Complete Clearing Inc. will be tearing down the building.
After the building is leveled, the site will sit empty until the city can build the new public works facility.
The 74,000-square-foot building will combine Fairborn’s water and sewage facility, the streets facility and the city’s equipment facility.
Hawkins said the need to replace the existing, reused building housing those departments has not changed, the project has been postponed out of necessity.
The city may know by mid-2020 whether it can take up the project again. Funds for constructing the building will come from Fairborn’s water, sewage, streets, building and lands funds.
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