- GRU voted 3-0 to hire SGLC for $458,000 to demolish Power District buildings and remove asbestos by Thanksgiving.
- The Power District has been vacant since 2011 and covers nine acres with deteriorated buildings showing serious neglect.
- GRU plans to sell the land, estimated to yield about $7.5 million after demolition costs, as no future strategic use is foreseen.
Gainesville Regional Utilities (GRU) will hire SGLC to demolish buildings in the Power District and remove asbestos as the utility weighs future uses for the property.
The decision came after a 3-0 vote at Wednesday’s GRU Authority meeting, and demolition should begin at the end of the month and finish by Thanksgiving. The SGLC bid said it would do all the demolition for $458,000.
The Power District, located northeast of Depot Park and containing around 10 buildings that were used by GRU, has sat empty since the utility consolidated into its Eastside Operations Center in 2011.
The Gainesville City Commission tried to gather momentum to redevelop the site, but the work never resulted in on-the-ground changes. Now, the GRU Authority will consider the site and a potential sale.
Barrie Corp, director of administrative services, said no maintenance or upkeep has occurred since 2012, causing a serious deterioration of already leaky buildings.
“I would not recommend anyone going in there unescorted. It’s terrible,” Corp said. “From the outside, most of the buildings look overgrown with vegetation, and when you get inside, it’s much, much worse than what you see on the outside.”
Corp said SGLC would demolish most of the district’s buildings down to their concrete pads, increasing the property’s value for potential buyers. The buildings and surrounding property cover about nine acres.
A 2023 study placed the land value at $8 million, minus $1.6 million for demolition and abatement. But rising land values and a cheaper demolition quote could result in at least $7.5 million in revenue if sold.
Ed Bielarski, CEO of GRU, said he’s been in touch with interim City Manager Andrew Persons about the project, noting the city has long seen the Power District as a link between the park and other private development in the area.
Bielarski said GRU would sell the land rather than pursue a partnership. He said he does not see a future strategic use for the property, though any plan would return to the authority and could call for keeping some land while selling the rest.
Other vacant parcels are also for sale in downtown Gainesville, including the old fire station lot and the St. Francis House building that closed earlier this year. Lot 10 has had fits and starts for development but has not yet succeeded in being developed.
Further west and closer to UF, a handful of eight- or more-story buildings have risen in the last five years, and another one plans to join within the Innovation District.
Along North Main Street, three buildings were planned for demolition before a last-minute sale. The owners said they planned a renovation.
The Downtown Advisory Board discussed the vacant storefront rate (at 22%) earlier this year, and Mayor Harvey Ward pointed to The Streatery’s recent opening as a sign of business support for the area.