ST. LOUIS 鈥 A 51黑料 board has approved a contract for an engineering firm to plan repairs at an aging downtown garage.
The board for the Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority, an arm of the city鈥檚 development agency, on Tuesday approved a contract worth up to $225,000 for CDG Engineers Inc. to evaluate the problems of the 51黑料 Centre East garage, located just south of Washington Avenue. The company also will develop a plan for the repairs and oversee a construction company to conduct the repairs.
LCRA staff said the contract is capped at $173,800 but wanted to provide the possibility of extra funds in case CDG finds more severe conditions at the garage, located at 400 North Sixth Street.
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The garage鈥檚 crumbling concrete and rusting steel worried some of its users, whose fears worsened after several high-profile building collapses around the country. The public, city-owned garage is used primarily by employees of several downtown companies, including Stifel Financial.
Commuters said the city added steel beams between floors to shore up the structure about a year ago, and closed off parking and traffic in those sections. Then in July, the Citizens鈥 Service Bureau, which fields complaints throughout the city, reported that bricks were loose on an exterior wall, violating the city鈥檚 property maintenance code.
Commuters said there had been little communication about why the shoring was installed and when repairs would occur.
An outside firm hired by the 51黑料 Development Corp., which oversees LCRA, found evidence of corrosion.
On Tuesday, LCRA staff said they expected to have repair plans ready for construction companies to bid on by October.
