Asbestos removal delays demolition of Liberty inn

Delayed demolition and the economy are freezing interest in the Ramada site.

STAFF REPORT

LIBERTY — Economic concerns have halted any plans for the site of the Ramada Inn slated to be demolished, a real estate manager said.

Township Administrator Patrick Ungaro said demolition of the dilapidated former hotel at 4255 Belmont Ave. is delayed due to the delicate and costly removal of asbestos.

Workers at the property, which has sat vacant for seven years, have encountered higher-than-estimated amounts of the toxic insulator.

“This project with the asbestos is much bigger than [workers] anticipated,” Ungaro said, adding that more was discovered Wednesday in the hotel’s restaurant and bar.

Removing the newly found asbestos requires approval from the Ohio Department of Health, he said, as well as an estimated extra $10,000. Still, Ungaro confirmed, “This should be cleaned up — one way or another — right away.”

He said that clearing the building of the asbestos has accounted for the demolition delay but that he expects workers to begin tearing the structure down as early as next week.

But even after the site has been leveled, which is estimated to take as long as two months, real estate manager Stan Nudell said the site is without a concrete future for now.

“We’ve talked to a number of individuals interested in the property,” said Nudell, of Youngstown firm Lewis Realty. “But the economic uncertainty has put a stop on development for the next 30 days. People are waiting till next year to see what happens.”

“There are no plans yet,” said Nudell, who clarified that the nationwide mortgage crisis and lending concerns have caused buyers to withhold offers on the property, even though officials consider its location near Interstate 80 to be a coveted spot.

“The Ramada is the hottest property [in Liberty] right now,” said Ungaro, who has received the most corporate interest for the nine-acre plot.