A building that survived decades of housing the deathly ill then special needs children will not outlast the wrecking ball this week.
The brick structure of Building 26 on The Ridges, formerly the Beacon School and tuberculosis ward, started to come down on Wednesday as Ohio University followed through on its promise to demolish the building during spring break.
The demolition’s cost is estimated to be $450,000, according to a previous Post article.
Associate Vice President for Facilities Harry Wyatt has previously said the building would not be destroyed until late march, but announced on February 28 during a conference call that the timeline had moved up.
“The plan is that it be demolished and gone by mid-march,” Wyatt said during the conference call.
The site will be turned into green space upon completion of the demolition, Wyatt said.
Building 26, built in 1926, was registered with the rest of The Ridges in the National Register of Historic Places in 1980, according to documents filed to put The Ridges' buildings in the registry.
Over 700 people have signed petitions to keep the building from being torn down, said Ron Luce, Athens County Historical Society president.
“I don’t think (Facilities has) explored all the possibilities for taking care of the building,” Luce said. “There is nothing that I can see that is to be gained by destroying this building. The real issue is not building 26 but this blatant lie that they (were) not planning to tear down any of The Ridges — it’s a blatant lie.”
Luce cites OU’s 2006 Master Plan that states “the time has come to consider selective demolition of portions of the complex” as evidence that OU is planning to do away with much more than Building 26.
OU has said the destruction of Building 26 is currently the only slated change to The Ridges, citing the master plan as a “reference document,” according to a previous Post article.
“Like children, they need to win for the sake of winning,” Luce said.
Wyatt could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday evening.
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