Mt. Healthy council approves roughly $37,000 bid to demolish Red Line bar

Mt. Healthy — The Mt. Healthy City Council voted to accept a contractor bid to demolish the Red Line building, approving the payment by voice vote during its Nov. 5 meeting.

City Manager Scott Bauer presented two contractor quotes and told the council the low bid from Allgeier (also referenced as Algier in contractor communications) was about $37,000. "We could, and I'm suggesting we pay out of pocket to knock down Red Line on our own," Bauer said, adding the city would include the expense in year-end housekeeping for formal budget approval.

Bauer said asbestos removal for both the Covered Bridge and Red Line properties is complete or nearly complete, and contractors indicated demolition could begin after Dec. 1, though he cautioned there was not yet a firm date. Council members raised procedural questions about procurement thresholds before moving forward; Bauer said the amount was below the competitive-bid threshold the city uses and that the council would document the expenditure in the budget process.

A councilmember moved to accept the bid and a second was recorded; the motion carried on a voice vote and council President (unnamed) declared the motion carried. There was no roll-call tally recorded in the meeting minutes; the motion was approved by voice vote.

Next steps: the city will finalize scheduling with the chosen contractor, complete any remaining demolition preparations, and include the expense in the December housekeeping amendment to the budget for formal council approval.