After years of debate about what to do with a town-owned building at George J. Mitchell Field, demolition of the Cold War-era structure is underway. Residents voted to take down the long-vacant waterfront building, known as the administration building or Building 126, in June. The town hired Cumberland-based Lakeside Concrete Cutting to remove the structure for $144,100. The U.S. Navy put up Building 126 when it constructed a fuel depot at the site in the early 1950s.
Debris clutters an open end of the administration building at Mitchell Field in Harpswell during demolition on Dec. 18. The contractor has until Jan. 31 to finish the job. The deadline was initially Dec. 31, but a combination of mechanical problems and issues related to the disposal of hazardous materials delayed the start of work. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
An excavator scoops debris from the administration building at George J. Mitchell Field in Harpswell on Dec. 18. “They overbuilt it. They wanted it to last a long, long time,” equipment operator Andrew Weymouth said about the solid construction of the former military building. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
