05/09/12 The South Gateway Project is moving forward full steam ahead with the demolition of the Cook/Dimmitt Building. Sunday morning more than a dozen folks gathered for a tailgate demo party to see the final walls of the structure come crashing down.
Local architect Brent Martin said the demolition crew started about 6 a.m. Sunday morning and the front of the building came down about 7 a.m. The crew worked from the back of the building and took down the remaining sidewalls, floor and roof leaving only the front wall. They then used a big claw on the end of an excavator to grab the top of the front wall and pull it towards the elevator shaft that stood on the south side of the building. The whole wall can crash down and there was a cheer from the crowd.
Although South Michigan Street had planned to be closed from 6 a.m. to 11 a.m. the crew was able to have everything cleaned up off the street by 9 a.m.
This demolition is the first part of the South Gateway Project. Work will continue on the site to clear out the foundation and then build a beautiful retaining wall with a decorative walking path on the top of it that will eventually join the Greenway Trail.
