Demolition to Begin on CSUN Building

The demolition of the earthquake-damaged University Tower Apartments will begin next week, first with the removal of hazardous materials, Cal State Northridge officials announced.

Campus officials awarded a $948,000 contract to Clauss Construction to begin work on the six-month demolition project, said Mike Robinson, deputy program director for the CSUN campus reconstruction support office.

Clauss is expected to begin the first phase, the removal of hazardous materials such as asbestos, some time next week, said Robinson. The San Diego-based construction company is contractually obligated to finish the demolition by July 25.

The company, which previously dismantled the South Library and Fine Arts Building, was issued a notice to proceed with the demolition from university officials on Jan. 26, Robinson said.

Roger Bethell, project manager for CSUN’s main earthquake-recovery contractor, Daniel Mann, Johnson & Mendenhall, said the demolition will be carried out in a manner that causes the least amount of disruption to the surrounding residents. In particular, no explosive will be used, he said.

Under current plans, the demolition work will run Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. until completion.

The seven-story tower will become the fifth major demolition project on the CSUN campus in the wake of the 1994 Northridge earthquake. The wings of the Delmar T. Oviatt Library and Parking Structure C have also been demolished.

School officials said the apartment building, which opened in the fall of 1969 as Rincon Hall, will not be rebuilt.

Anyone with questions or concerns about the project can call the university’s reconstruction project hotline at (818) 677-5979.