DEMOLITION NEXT WEEK

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32351, 17 July 1970, Page 1

DEMOLITION NEXT WEEK

A landmark in Cathedral Square since 1898, the Dalgety building is about to be demolished. Work will begin next Thursday; it is expected that by the next Tuesday the site will have been cleared.

The building, which was built at a cost of £31,560, is being demolished to make way for the 12-storey, $3 million State Advances Corporation building. Mr B. Ryan, of Ryan Broth-

ers, the firm which has won the demolition tender, said yesterday that the building contained more than 8000 tons of materials. Some of the rubble would be taken for filling at the Ferrymead Historic Park.

“We are hoping to save some of the Oamaru stone for the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament and the Christchurch Cathedral, but the stone is in very poor condition,” Mr Ryan said.

He said that in order to minimise interruption to traffic, work on removing the interior of the building would be done on the first two days, and the two walls fronting the Square would be demolished on the Saturday. Work would continue on the Sunday only if any portion remaining presented a danger to the public. The two-storey building, of 12ft stud, has an area of 20,629 sq. ft, a frontage of

138 ft and a basement of 1219 sq. ft Mr Ryan said that the contract called only for clearing the site to ground level, and clearing the basement walls.

The Fletcher Construction Company, which has the contract to. build the State Advances Corporation building, will make a major excavation on the site. This may be as deep- as 25ft. The first job will be to put down test bores to 50ft.