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Demolition it is for crumbling Big Pine Care Center |
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Friday, 31 October 2008 |
 The Inyo County Board of Supervisors decided Tuesday to demolish the old Big Pine Care Center, using money from the geothermal royalty fund. Photo by Mike Gervais By Mike Gervais
Register Staff
10-30-2008 More than eight years after the Big Pine Care Center shut down and its residents were moved to a new skilled nursing facility in Bishop, the Inyo County Board of Supervisors has decided the fate of the old, deteriorating structure.
County staff brought two options for the Big Pine Care Center to the board at its meeting on Tuesday – to either tear down the buildings, or to erect a security fence and board up doors and windows to deter vandals from entering the facilities. The board ultimately directed staff to destroy the building.
Though the county did not set aside any money for work at the Care Center in this year’s budget, County Administrative Officer Kevin Carunchio identified three revenue streams the board could use to either board up the building or have it torn down.
Carunchio said the county has enough money in its deferred maintenance budget to cover the $10,000 price tag of fencing off and boarding up the structure.
According to Carunchio, Sheriff Bill Lutze said those security measures would discourage vandals, and suggested that security lighting and chaining the doors of the facility could also help.
Carunchio told the board that Lutze also said attempting to secure the facility “isn’t the answer.”
“My recommendation for the last year and a half has been to demolish the darn thing,” said Fourth District Supervisor Jim Bilyeu, whose district includes Big Pine. “There is not enough money to refurbish it, and to stick plywood and fencing out there certainly won’t fix it in the long-term. The longer we delay tearing it down the worse off we are.”
“Boarding it up doesn’t really give you the protection you need” to keep people out of the buildings and protect the county from liability, Fifth District Supervisor Richard Cervantes said.
With that in mind, Carunchio said the county is looking at spending about $262,061 for the demolition.
He said the county could combine the $163,187 in the General Fund contingencies budget and $52,801 in the deferred maintenance budget to get the ball rolling on the demolition.
Carunchio said that the county’s geothermal royalties budget has more than $400,000 available, and that money could be used for the demolition as well.
“I am not in favor of wiping out our contingencies fund,” said First District Supervisor Linda Arcularius. “The only possible way to do this is with geothermal funds.”
Big Pine Volunteer Fire Chief John Marzano said that the dilapidated state of the facility, leaves falling from nearby trees and the issue of vandals entering the care center have created an emergency situation in Big Pine.
“Something needs to be done right away,” Marzano said.
Acting Public Works Director Doug Wilson said that, with authorization for demolition and a declared state of emergency, the county could have a contract set for the demolition that would include security for the site until the demolition is complete. He said that would take about 45 days.
Declaring a state of emergency for the center allows the county to proceed with preparations for the demolition without going through the timely standard bid process.
Wilson said the county would still contact several contractors and move forward with the lowest cost, but will not request bid proposals for the work.
Once the care center is demolished, the board said it would hold a public meeting with residents of Big Pine to discuss the future of the property.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 25 November 2008 )
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