Demolition is expected to begin soon on the former Winfield Intermediate School, which was purchased last year by the city so the site could be used for a new public safety center.
Crews currently are working to remove any asbestos from the building. Caney-based G&G Dozer has 60 days to complete the work.
It will cost the city $327,365 to bring down the old school, located at 400 E. Ninth.
The city of Winfield plans to use the property for a project that would include facilities for fire, EMS and police. In 2017, the city purchased the building from USD 465 for one dollar.
There was initially hope that a portion of the building – originally constructed in 1951 as a middle school – could be preserved and reused.
Further study, though, determined that was not possible.
“It was not structurally rated for the weight of fire trucks or other public safety uses,” Winfield city manager Jeremy Willmoth said Tuesday. “The cost of reinforcement was more than the cost of new construction.”
Phase 1 of the project – bays for the fire and EMS departments – is in the design process. Construction could begin as soon as the first quarter of 2019.
