Old Davis demolition at standstill

It’s been weeks since workers from the Environmental Protection Agency locked the gates on the new fence around the old Davis Hospital on West End Avenue in Statesville.

Since then, there’s been no progress on removal of the buildings left standing.  

Property owner Fred Godley must submit an approved asbestos-removal plan and get permits to abate the property from the state.

None of those have been received by the state, according to Department of Health and Human Services Media Relations Manager Kate Murphy.

Reached by phone Thursday, Godley declined to comment about the project.

Iredell County Manager Ron Smith said that there’s nothing new to report from the county on the project.

“It is all still in Godley’s court,” he said.

Smith added that he hopes county commissioners will discuss the matter publicly during an upcoming meeting.  They meet again Tuesday.  

Mitchell Community College, Iredell County and the City of Statesville decided to purchase the property from Godley for $404,000 to build an allied health center for the college.

Months later, after demolition started, neighbor concerns grew over whether Godley had performed proper asbestos testing and removal and secured permits.  

When inspectors from the state stepped in, asbestos was discovered and all work was halted.

The EPA arrived a few months ago, and designated the area a Superfund site. About $1.8 million was budgeted to help with cleanup efforts, which included air sampling and containment, hauling and disposal of debris. The EPA spent about $500,000 of that budget during its time at the site, according to EPA Region 4 Director Dave Andrews.

After about a month’s work, EPA crews successfully removed all leftover debris from the original demolition efforts.