Demolition at the Farmland site has taken longer than originally planned.

When Rogers, Minn.-based Veit Construction first started, they planned on finishing the project by the end of May. May came and went. A dispute over the costs of removing asbestos put the project on hold for a few months.

The next goal was the end of July. That has passed.

Monday night, City Manager Paul Sparks said the project would likely last four-to-six more weeks. He said the company found more concrete under the building than expected. He also said the sub-contractor that is crushing the cement into fill has had problems with their machinery, which has also slowed the project down.

Farmland’s insurance is paying $3 million of the cost of demolition. If the cost goes over that amount, the city would have to foot the rest of the bill. Sparks said the cost of the project is looking as though it will be less than $3 million, and said Farmland will most likely have money left from the insurance proceeds.

Once the demolition is complete, the land deed will transfer into the city’s name. But before the city can redevelop the land, it will have to clean up environmental problems on the site.

To help pay for this, the city hired a Chicago-based law firm to pursue claims against the former insurance company for Wilson Foods, Inc., which is responsible for much of the environmental damage. The firm cannot pursue the claims until the city owns the land.

(Contact Peter Cox at peter.cox @albertleatribune.com or 379-3439.)