MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) — More than two decades after its closure, the former Northridge Mall will be demolished, making the assets the largest piece of land ever owned in the city of Milwaukee.
On Monday, July 1, the local media were invited inside the old building before its imminent demolition.
Inside, although there were wreckage like an old Mrs. Fields cookie sign and a damaged escalator, it’s clear that the parking lot is just a shell of what it is.
The glass shards of the attics, the floors covered with grass and mold, next to the piles of asbestos.
Graffiti of all kinds decorated almost a glance, while the benches on which the buyers sat were overturned.
“It doesn’t take long for a design like this to fall apart,” said Benji Timm, an appropriations manager at the city’s Development Department.
In addition, it has been subject to arson and vandalism for years, requiring the installation of a perimeter fence and 24/7 security.
“It’s dark there at night and with all the debris and everything on the ground, it can be a real hazard,” Timm said. “Probably in the last five years, the situation has accelerated. “
In March, the city began demolishing the mall’s former Boston store, a demolition that is now complete.
Today, the government has $11 million in ARPA’s budget for asbestos removal and destruction of the building’s exterior.
“Again, from a fitness and protection standpoint, it’s just not a smart place,” Timm said. “Most of the asbestos is on the walls and inside the columns, so they have to cover everything up to remove the asbestos. It will probably take about six months and then they will start demolishing the exterior.
Timm added that since the overall demolition of the mall will be completed next fall, they are in discussions with local businesses in the surrounding area to minimize potential disruption.
“As part of the demolition process, we will install air monitors around the site to make sure there is no ambient dust or anything spreading to the public,” Timm said.
In August, a meeting will be held to allow such businesses and members of the public to provide feedback.
“We’ll be talking about the facets of making long-term plans soon,” Timm said. “It was the mall, it had its time and place, and now, in the long run, it will be something new, and it will create new memories for someone else.
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