Members of the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly gave the borough the greenlight to tear down and take out what remains of the ZipMart building in Sterling.

The building, located on Swanson River Road, started to collapse earlier this year and has been out of operation for more than two decades. The property the building sits on was added in 1995 to the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation’s Contaminated Sites Program.

After the ZipMart closed in 2000, investigation of the property found soil borings and groundwater monitoring wells that were contaminated with fuel. In all, it’s estimated that ZipMart fuel tanks released 53,000 gallons of fuel into the ground and that the spill area spans 3,000 feet long and 800 feet wide.

In considering whether or not to demolish the collapsed building, the borough secured an agreement with the State of Alaska formally stating that, by taking over the building, the borough will not assume liability for the contaminated ground underneath. Assembly members approved that agreement earlier this month.

Approved by assembly members on Tuesday was the use of up to $30,000 for demolition and removal of the building, and an order of condemnation allowing demolition work to move forward.

Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor Peter Micciche told assembly members during committee meetings on Tuesday that he first started hearing concerns from Sterling residents about the building last year.

The building’s roof and walls started to separate after the first major winter storm, Micciche said, but the borough didn’t visit the property until it had started to collapse. During that visit, Micciche said the borough found that people had been living inside of the structure.

Although the borough has decided to move forward with demolition of the site, Micciche emphasized that the borough is not in the business of demolishing private property.

“This is not what the borough does for a living,” Micciche said. “We do not remove private property that we don’t own. However, this is a special case.”

Kenai Peninsula Borough Planning Director Robert Ruffner during the same committee meetings agreed, saying that, to his knowledge, the borough has only condemned one other building, about 10 years ago.

Micciche said the borough considered the location of the building relative to Sterling Elementary School and the Sterling Community Center before deciding to take it down. He said he also gets frequent reports of young people climbing on the building.

“This is simply about removing a very real risk from our community where I fear someone is going to get hurt or worse in the near future,” Micciche said.

Kenai Peninsula Borough Purchasing and Contracting Director John Hedges told assembly members Tuesday that the borough has put out a request for quotes and received interest from three contractors. The lowest bid for demolition and removal work, he said, was about $25,000. Assembly members on Tuesday approved up to $30,000 for the project to make contingency funds available.

Tuesday’s assembly meeting can be streamed on the borough’s website at kpb.legistar.com.

Reach reporter Ashlyn O’Hara at ashlyn.ohara@peninsulaclarion.com.