Lisa Bishop, Field Geologist for Superior Environmental Corp, oversees clean-up activity

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New Central Library Project Moves Another Step Toward Start of Construction

Clean-up of Contaminated Soil at Old County Jail Underway

December 23, 2003
By: O. J. Cunningham

Almost six months ago, June 5 to be exact, the Library Committee held a ground-breaking ceremony at the future site (Center and Jefferson) of the new downtown branch of the County Public Library.

Click Here for a flashback look at June 5 coverage.

On Tuesday, December 23rd, trucks and machinery broke ground near the old county jail. Under the watchful eye of Superior Environmental Corp, contaminated soil from damaged underground fuel storage tanks was trucked away to a disposal facility.

Terry Neering, Project Scientist for Superior Environmental said "This is an exciting moment."

However, removal of the contaminatedsoil does not mean construction is ready to start, said Steve List, superintendent of buildings and grounds for the Bay County Building Authority, which is managing the library project.

Demolition of the old jail and other buildings on the site will have to be accomplished, probably this winter. A new tentative start of construction is probably in the Spring of 2004, List said.

An area approximately 30 feet by 40 feet has been excavated in the old jail parking lot, where underground tanks were removed several years ago, and soil contaminated with gasoline has been scooped out and trucked to a landfill, according to Lisa Bishop, field geologist, Superior Environmental.

When the site is fully prepared, construction will start on a new 62,980 square foot three story building. Total cost of the new central library is estimated at $15,475,434, according to library officials.

The new central libary will "anchor" downtown Bay City on a site that is comprised of largeparts of two blocks from Madison to Adams and Center to Sixth. The front half of the westernmost block is Battery Park, so named because it originally was the site of Civil War cannon obtained in the 1880s by Congressman George Loud. Those cannon, and two others that were situated on the front lawn of City Hall, came from Fort Sumter, South Carolina, where the first shots of the Civil War were fired in April, 1861. Those cannon were donated by the city to the war effort during World War II and were melted down for munitions. There is one remaining Civil War cannon in Bay County, located in the Grand Army of the Republic monument area at Pine Ridge Cemetery, Ridge and Tuscola roads.