Coliseum destruction resumes

Coliseum destruction resumes

The New Haven Register, 6/8/2006, Mary E. O’Leary, Register Topics Editor

NEW HAVEN — A four-month hiatus in the demolition of the New Haven Coliseum ended this week when workers started to remove some of the concrete slabs that make up the huge structure’s garage floor.

This is the beginning of another two months of conventional demolition before the remaining steel skeleton and some of the garage bays will be ready to be imploded.

That’s not to say there is a firm date yet on when the implosion will take place, which, in August, will be one year behind Stamford Wrecking’s original target, but it’s getting closer.

Al Carbone, spokesman for United Illuminating, said their engineering consultants submitted some questions Wednesday after reviewing the detailed analysis prepared for Stamford by Weidlinger Associates on the impact of the implosion.

He said Black and Veatch, hired by UI, to protect its interest, received the report about two weeks ago and were focused on validating the assumptions and calculations in the implosion plan, which is now referred to as phase three.

Once the utility is OK with Stamford Wrecking’s methodology, they can sign off on it and a date can be set for the implosion.

"We want to set a date, but a date that is realistic," said the city’s Deputy Economic Development Administrator Tony Bialecki.

In the meantime, phase two, which consists of removal of some of the garage floor, is under way.

Taking down the arena section of the three-decade-old Coliseum, or phase one, was close to completion by February, but concerns by utility representatives brought the project to a halt.

Carbone said they are now in agreement with the city on phase two, where the heavy garage floor will be removed over sections of city streets on State, George and South Orange, where electric vaults and lines are buried.

Taking down more of the building conventionally will reduce the weight of the structure that will hit the streets when it is imploded.

Bialecki said this week they started taking down the slabs nearest the adjacent Knights of Columbus headquarters to minimize the implosion impact on the public plaza off Church Street.

Stamford Wrecking next will remove the garage floor near the corner of State and George streets before moving to the intersection of George and South Orange streets.

William McMullen, the city’s engineer on the project, said AT&T has signed off on the project and is satisfied its lines and cables will be protected.

Bialecki said that for the past two months Stamford Wrecking has been separating the arena concrete from the steel rebar and milling it, which will then be mixed with earth to act as fill for the site.

McMullen said Stamford is using a new machine to remove the concrete slab by pulverizing it in place.

"This is the first time they’ve ever used one. It was pretty successful. They did the work of a week in about a day," McMullen said of the special equipment.