Polo City Council OKs Congress School asbestos abatement contract

POLO — Congress School is one step closer to being demolished.

Polo City Council members on Monday unanimously voted to enter an engineering agreement with Willett, Hofmann & Associates Inc. for asbestos abatement of Congress School at a cost not to exceed $7,500.

Per the agreement, Willett, Hofmann & Associates will prepare and send documentation, conduct any pre-bid meeting and building walkthroughs with potential bidders, do bid opening, conduct a pre-construction meeting, do final inspection on the completed asbestos abatement work and perform a final air quality test, and review and process contractor pay requests.

There’s asbestos in part of the roof, in the floors of a couple rooms on the second floor and in a few other places, Public Works Director Kendall Kyker said previously.

The city plans to demolish Congress School, which is located at 208 N. Congress Ave.

The city has not yet sought bids for demolition of Congress School, and isn’t yet sure how much it will cost, City Clerk Sydney Bartelt said in a previous interview. They anticipate the cost to mitigate the asbestos to be around $80,000, she said.

On Aug. 7, 2023, council members unanimously voted to spend up to $15,000 on the purchase price of the Congress School, plus $2,500 for related expenditures, according to meeting minutes.