All work has now been bid for renovations and remediation at the old Missouri State Penitentiary, and officials still are planning on resuming public tours this spring.
The state recently received bids for cleanup and roof replacements, and Ryan Burns, spokesperson with the Missouri Office of Administration, said contracts should be awarded this month.
Late last year, the city agreed to split with the state the estimated $2 million cost of repairs and mold remediation at MSP, in exchange for a long-term contract with the Jefferson City Convention and Visitors Bureau, or CVB, for use of the facility.
At the end of September, the CVB temporarily suspended all tours of the historic prison site, only to later announce the cancellation of all 2013 tours because of mold found at the site.
Officials previously stated the goal is to reopen the prison by April, in time for the 2014 tour season.
The state received three bids for interior cleanup and repairs on Housing Units 1, 3, 4 and the gas chamber:
• Asbestos Removal Services Inc. of Holts Summit, $536,000
• LVI Environmental Services Inc. of Shawnee, Okla., $1,375,000
• Midwest Asbestos Abatement of St. Peters, $715,440
The state estimate for the cost of interior cleanup and repairs was $939,283.
The state received four bids for roof repairs and replacements on Housing Units 1, 3, 4 and the gas chamber:
• Weathercraft Inc. of Hartsburg, $566,501
• Watkins Roofing of Columbia, $570,800
• Missouri Builders Service of Jefferson City, $555,618
• Schlacks Construction of Fulton, $608,800
The state estimate for the cost of roof repairs and replacements was $616,223.
Burns said the projects are tentatively scheduled to be complete by late June and noted "ongoing construction will not prohibit the start of public tours at the Missouri State Penitentiary."
Burns said earlier last week that the CVB is expected to announce an
official start date for the 2014 tour season within the next several weeks.
Included in the bid documents available on the Office of Administration website (oa.mo.gov/fmdc/dc/list.htm), were a series of letters from Trey L. Coas, senior project scientist with SCI Engineering. Each letter, all dated early December, addressed a different MSP building, those that are featured in CVB tours, and detailed the findings of a survey, which identified environmental concerns on the property.
According to the letters, mold was found in Housing Units 1, 3, 4 and the gas chamber, with "heavy mold growth" found in Housing Unit 1. The heavy mold was found in the "guard/office area" in the first floor entryway and "excessive" mold growth was found in the assembly room and underlying kitchen, also in Housing Unit 1.
The primary concern for all four buildings was "potential exposure to elevated concentrations of airborne mold," though Housing Unit 1 also had elevated concentrations of pigeon droppings. Unsecured windows and damaged roofs were the most common primary sources of moisture, though "openings in the building envelope" and flooding in the gas chamber were also noted as major sources.
The letters detail recommendations for remediation and cleanup in each building, as well as a recommendation to develop maintenance plans for each building and completion of a comprehensive asbestos survey.
Burns said OA has addressed all recommendations in the SCI Engineering report and a comprehensive asbestos survey was completed in December.
"The Office of Administration will perform all cleanup activities as noted in the current SCI Engineering report as part of the overall cleanup project at the Missouri State Penitentiary," Burns said. "Upon completion, all known hazardous materials will be encapsulated or remediated."