After awarding a contract for $28.6 million in May of last year, completing about 19 percent of the renovations, then cancelling it for further assessment, government has determined that the Martin Gallant Building in Stephenville Crossing will need to be demolished. As well, plans for redevelopment of the former College of the North Atlantic campus into a courthouse will not go ahead. Last fall, Strum Consulting was retained to assess the existing block wall and evaluate requirements to allow the contractor to continue. They found widespread cracking throughout block walls and there was so much distress at one location above a doorway, the area had to be barricaded. The floor slab appeared to be built on uncompacted fill, with varying thickness and no reinforcing. The building did not have expansion or contraction joints, which would lead to more cracking and anchors could not be installed in the beams. Government will now move forward with plans to safely decommission and demolish the building while ensuring all environmental requirements are met.
