(Utica, NY – Oct. 28, 2013) Mayor Robert Palmieri announced that the Roosevelt School Building will undergo demolition as the City has secured a variance from the New York State Department of Labor.
“My Administration has closely monitored this situation since a portion of Roosevelt’s roof collapsed in mid-September,” Palmieri said. “We cannot turn a blind eye on this issue, and after careful deliberation, it is essential we take pro-active measures to ensure the safety of our residents.”
In addition to Roosevelt, the Mayor announced the near completion of clean-up of the old warehouse building on Capital Avenue which began demolition on Oct. 15.
“The demolition of the Roosevelt and Capital Avenue buildings will alleviate two eye sores in our community and give the City an opportunity to market the properties for potential private sector investment,” Mayor Palmieri said.
While the clean-up of the Capital Avenue building is near completion, the post demolition clean-up of the Roosevelt building may last until the spring, given the size of the facility and budgetary constraints.
Palmieri stated, “Ideally, we would be able to demo and clean both sites immediately. Unfortunately, our financial circumstances do not provide us that option at this time. My Administration will continue to work with our partners in all levels of government to try and secure any funding possible to off-set the cost to the City.”
Roosevelt operated as a school for nearly 100 years until it was closed by the City of Utica School District in 1992.