Flint Township View

Demo bid awarded for Brookstone apts.





FLINT TWP. — Some of the derelict Brookstone Valley Apartments buildings off Flushing Road finally have a date with the wrecking ball.

At its Monday night meeting, the township board unanimously accepted a $185,000 bid from Blue Star Inc. of Warren to raze four of the 10 remaining buildings in the beleaguered complex condemned last November.

At that time, all tenants were forced to move because, in addition to maintenance problems, the landlord had not paid the water bill in three months and it was being shut off.

Since then, vandals have stripped the buildings of stair rails and other salvageable materials, rendering them unsafe to enter, said Tracey Tucker, township economic enhancement director, who handled the tenant relocation and also is overseeing the demolition.

Tucker informed the board that only two sealed bids were received for the project, both exceeding the $185,000 spending limit.

After consulting with the county Land Bank and Metropolitan Planning Commission, Tucker received permission to accept per building quotes included in the sealed bids.

Available funds will be spent on the worst buildings, Tucker said.

Demo costs are $48,850 each for Buildings 4500, 4700, 4900 and 5000 plus and extra $3000 to detach Building 4500 from Building 4400 which is not included in the demo. An additional $5000 is allocated to remove a garage and pool area.

Blue Star agreed to forgive $1,400 of the $186,000 total demo cost to meet the funding cap, Tucker said.

She also said that the company must complete the project by Sept. 28 to comply with a deadline to get $150,000 in Community Development Block Grant Funds which covering most of the demo costs.

On Sept. 28, the township stood to lose the CDBG funds and would not be able to recover them, Tucker said.

Trustee George Menoutes asked why the fire department could not demo the buildings as a practice site.

Tucker said the buildings were unsafe to enter. “It is such a mess up there,’’ she said.

Supervisor Miller asked about getting Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) funds to remove the remaining six buildings.

Tucker said she is working with the county to write a grant. Nine dilapidated buildings on the west side of the complex were demolished in 2010 using NSP grant funds, she said.


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