Abatement, demolition planned for former Colfax Upper Elementary School in Springdale

Another Springdale landmark will soon be demolished — but it’s not a former power plant.

Allegheny Valley School District officials set an April 10 demolition deadline for the former Colfax Upper Elementary School. The 64,000-square-foot building served students in the Allegheny Valley School District for more than 90 years before the district closed it in 2018.

It’s been vacant ever since.

Superintendent Patrick Graczyk said crews began removing items left in the building last week.

New Kensington-based Canzian & Johnson Associates is the architect for the project. Kane Specialty Group of Pine won a $404,000 demolition contract.

Those agencies have applied for permits to raze the building and await approval of the last permit, district spokeswoman Jan Zastawniak said.

Safety addressed

Graczyk said that once the remaining items are removed from Colfax, crews will erect an 8-foot fence around the building and secure the area.

Then, it will begin asbestos abatement, which is expected next week.

Graczyk estimated the abatement will take four to six weeks. Environmental consulting group AGX Inc. will have an onsite lab to test air quality, he said.

Jay Zangrille, the district’s buildings and grounds supervisor, said there are no health hazards to the surrounding community regarding demolition.

Colfax will not be razed until AGX is satisfied the abatement requirements have been met and the building is cleared for demolition by the Allegheny County Health Department, Zastawniak said.

Demolition work must be limited to between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. daily, Zangrille said. It’s not anticipated neighbors will feel anything during demolition, he said, because no explosives will be used.

There will be no road closures while machinery takes down the structure.

The district budgeted $1.6 million for the demolition — roughly $1.2 million more than the bid it received. With the savings, the district considered hiring a project manager but ultimately decided against it, Graczyk said.

“With three (contractors) and knowing there will be a site dedicated for air quality, we’re going to keep it in-house,” Graczyk said.

Notifications

District officials, Canzian and Kane will meet every other week for project updates during the abatement process, Graczyk said.

During demolition, they will meet once a month.

“Safety is on everyone’s mind,” Graczyk said. “We’ve addressed that with the contractor, and that’s the reason for our meetings — so things are being done correctly and safely.”

Neighbors near Colfax received a hand-delivered letter notifying them of the upcoming plans, Zangrille said.

The district will continue to communicate to neighbors that way throughout the process, he said.

The district also will post updates about Colfax’s progress on its website at avsdweb.org under the Colfax Demolition link at the bottom of the homepage.

The district has yet to decide what it will do with the property once the building is razed, Graczyk said.