JACKSONVILLE, Fla.

Its been almost a week since a massive fire destroyed a century-old building in downtown. Most of the structure has already caved in, but demolishing the rest of it is on hold for now.

The city is waiting to review a possible asbestos survey. A letter was sent to the owners of the building, saying the building is unsafe for a proper asbestos survey to be conducted. If a survey is conducted, the city said itll need to review it to see if the materials were adequately surveyed. It took minutes for the building in downtown to be taken over by flames late Friday night. Now, the charred remains and scattered debris are still onWest Forsyth Street. Its a sight that frustrates downtown regular Melissa Garrett. I want to see the area improve and we have buildings burning down like this. It's indicative that we have too many empty and abandoned buildings, Garrett said.

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The building has since been condemned, but its now been almost a week since the fire and a demolition has yet to happen. The city sent a letter to the owners of the building, the Jacksonville Historic Properties. It details the citys concerns about an asbestos survey being conducted at the site. The citys environmental quality division says, considering the age of the structure, it is likely that asbestos is present. Due to the condition of the building, all areas of the building will not be accessible to obtain samples to determine if asbestos is present. But if a survey is conducted, the city will review. If it determines that not all materials were adequately represented in the sampling, the city will require wet demolition of whats left of this building. Having to demolish the building that way obviously changes the price tag for the work. If the wet demolition happens, the debris will have to thrown away at a landfill that accepts asbestos containing material which is required by law. So far, the city said its doesnt know when the survey will be completed.

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Demolition of fire-destroyed historic building waiting on asbestos survey

The wise guy who illegally dumped truckloads of dirt along a busy stretch of Steeles Ave. W. has more nerve than a toothache.

Theres no other explanation for a half-dozen large piles on the north side of Steeles, between Yonge and Bathurst Sts., as unlikely and outrageous as it may seem.

We got an email from Ian Serota outlining his frustration over the dirt piles on the boulevard in front of his condo building at 520 Steeles, west of Palm Gate Blvd.

Its been there for seven months, but the City of Vaughan and City of Toronto will neither help remove it or do anything to get it removed, said Serota, whos president of the condo board.

They keep blaming it on not being able to find a work order, he said, adding, people are pretty upset. It is something I want to have some sort of answer to before my annual general meeting in mid-January.

Serota told us by phone that part of the curb lane on westbound Steeles was closed for road work last spring, around the same time the dirt appeared. He figured one had to do with the other.

But when he contacted Toronto and Vaughan, they knew nothing about any work that might have produced the dirt, he said, and showed no interest.

We went there and soon figured out it has nothing to do with road work, and why no work orders can be found; its dirty fill from a demolition job that was illegally dumped.

The soil is riddled with bricks and broken foundation concrete, not what youd find in dirt dug out of the road or a boulevard. But its standard stuff that must be cleaned up at a demolition site before construction begins.

Instead of paying tipping fees to properly dispose of it, whoever trucked it out of the site dumped it on the boulevard on Steeles and kept coming back with more.

Originally posted here:
Dirty demolition fill illegally dumped on Steeles: The Fixer

A bill to allow the ACT Government to begin its buyback and demolition of more than 1,000 Canberra homes contaminated by Mr Fluffy asbestos has been passed by the Legislative Assembly.

The Assembly unanimously passed a bill to allow $750 million to be used to begin the Mr Fluffy buyback scheme.

Chief Minister Katy Gallagher said the vote would provide greater certainty for 28 Canberra families prior to Christmas.

"We know that with the funds that the assembly has just agreed to... 28 homes will be sold and that transaction [will be] complete by Christmas," she said.

It comes a day after an ACT Legislative Assembly committee report recommended major changes to the scheme to allow more flexibility and responses tailored to individual circumstances.

The report recommended 62 changes to the controversial Mr Fluffy asbestos buyback and demolition scheme after emotional public hearings on the issue.

Recommendations included allowing homeowners to retain their land after demolition without the need for a buyback and a "go it alone" option for homeowners who wanted to remediate their own properties.

Notwithstanding the suggested changes, the committee recommended the Government pass the bill so money can start to flow to those who have signed up for the scheme.

The ACT Government indicated earlier on Thursday, it was willing to look at about a quarter of the recommendations from the report.

Breathing in asbestos fibres can lead to the deadly lung cancer Mesothelioma developing several years later.

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Mr Fluffy demolition, buyback scheme passed by ACT Legislative Assembly

Minecraft: Cube SMP - Episode 149 - Skyscraper Demolition
Welcome to the Cube SMP! This a private whitelisted invite only server, thanks for watching! 🙂 Cube SMP is hosted by Mineplex.com Cube Reddit: http://www.reddit.com/r/cubesmp/ Graser: http://ww...

By: StrauberryJam

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Minecraft: Cube SMP - Episode 149 - Skyscraper Demolition - Video

2014 CDL World Cup of (toy car) Demolition Derby. Round 1 Day 1
The journey for the 64 qualified national teams begins today. The quest for the top spot on the podium in the 2014 CDL World Cup of Demolition Derby. Today #39;s 1st round match-ups Qatar VS...

By: James Hulse

The rest is here:
2014 CDL World Cup of (toy car) Demolition Derby. Round 1 Day 1 - Video

3M Building, Bracknell, Demolition, Regeneration 6

By: Marie Griffiths

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3M Building, Bracknell, Demolition, Regeneration 6 - Video

3M Building, Bracknell, Demolition, Regeneration 9

By: Marie Griffiths

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3M Building, Bracknell, Demolition, Regeneration 9 - Video

A Neu Building Demolition Best. Stock Footage
"This is a preview video. Download high quality footage at: http://www.pond5.com/stock-footage/307012?ref=silverstepper More stock media here: http://www.pond5.com?ref=silverstepper Editing...

By: Levi Claussen

Originally posted here:
A Neu Building Demolition Best. Stock Footage - Video

PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

3-Dec-2014

Contact: Petr Hradil petr.hradil@vtt.fi 358-400-209-593 VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland @VTTFinland

With good planning, it is possible to promote the reuse of construction and demolition waste and thereby both conserve the environment and save on material costs. In the future, it will be even more important to assess how buildings can reasonably be repaired or demolished into parts, together with how the remaining service life of the parts can be utilized in new applications. The best method is to implement demolition planning already as a component of construction design.

Reuse of construction parts is always worthwhile from the perspective of the environment, and can also be considerably cheaper than using secondary raw materials. The production of building materials and construction itself are, together with energy consumption during the usage stage, the most significant factors associated with building stock that cause environmental load. By reusing salvaged parts, the embodied energy equivalent to that required in the manufacture of the new product is retained as well as their economic and cultural value.

The current focus in basis of design is easy and efficient constructability, but in the future the designer shall to assess how buildings can sensibly be repaired or deconstructed into parts and how to utilize the remaining service life of those parts in new applications. In addition, the use of natural resources will be optimized in the manufacturing processes used for building materials and products, and recyclable materials will be favoured.

In practical construction, planning for the purpose of reuse and recycling is seen in accordance with the requirements in configurable or modular solutions in which the structures and materials are long-lasting and easily reclaimed. With good planning, the maintainability and repair potential of buildings and building service technology can be facilitated and the expenses incurred reduced.

The best way to promote the reuse and recycling of salvaged building parts is to introduce a demolition plan already into the further planning associated with the project. It should be an essential component in the design concerning the management of the life cycle of buildings and structures. In the demolition plan, it is important to assess the material quantities that can be utilized in various ways, as well as the demolition methods available. These are currently presented only when applying for a permit to demolish a building.

VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland studied the reuse of structural elements in the ReUSE (Repetitive Utilization of Structural Elements) project, which recently ended. VTT also proposes the development requirements for improving the planning linked with demolition and repair. Of these, the most pivotal are the development of the guidelines and legislation supporting reuse, in addition to showing, by means of example targets, the commercial and ecological benefits that can be obtained.

###

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VTT: Demolition planning as part of construction

Council to discuss as petition pushes for historical landmark status

By Mitchell Schmidt, The Gazette

December 2, 2014 | 5:59 pm

IOWA CITY With demolition permit applications submitted and conflicting structural integrity reports for three mid-19th century cottages south of downtown, the Iowa City Council now plans to pick up discussion on the fate of the buildings.

The council decided Tuesday to schedule a special meeting within the coming week to discuss whether or not to schedule a public hearing on pursuing historic landmark status for the three cottages. If a public hearing is scheduled, a 60-day moratorium would be placed on issuing a demolition permit for the roughly 150-year-old cottages at 608, 610, and 614 S. Dubuque St., which were submitted Nov. 25 by Ted Pacha, the owner of the properties.

"I think the fair thing to do would be to schedule a special meeting to resolve this ...Its going to bring on an even greater avalanche of pressure on both sides," said Mayor Matt Hayek.

The demolition permit applications follow a Nov. 20 structural engineers report that states the buildings are unsafe and need to be razed.

Owners of the businesses occupying the three buildings, the Book Shop, Suzys Antiques and Gifts, and Moy Yat Ving Tsun Kung Fu Academy, have since been notified that they have to vacate the premises so they may be repaired or demolished by Dec. 8.

Demolition permits could be issued as soon as Dec. 10 unless a moratorium is enacted,Iowa City transportation planner John Yapp said.

However, a Dec. 2 report from Shanna Duggan, structural engineer with Morning Star Studio in Cedar Rapids, from her Nov. 24 evaluation of the three buildings, states that the cottages are structurally sound, despite some exterior cracks and deterioration, which is expected with buildings of their age.

See more here:
Developer seeks demolition permits for Iowa City cottages