ERVING — The Selectboard, Capital Planning Committee and Finance Committee unanimously accepted a bid proposal from Tighe & Bond on Monday for the partial demolition of the former International Paper Mill, thus moving the town forward with a plan that officials say is the best one they’ve seen in years.

A base bid proposal of $379,000 to $400,000 for demolition, abatement and structural repairs for building sections 5C, 7A and 7B — with the inclusion of an alternate bid to demolish a smokestack — as well as two alternate bids that could be added later were approved by the three boards.

The MassDevelopment Site Readiness Grant of $600,000 that was awarded to Erving in fiscal year 2023 will be used for the project.

“This is the best plan I’ve seen in about 10 years,” Finance Committee Chair Daniel Hammock said. “It’s the best plan for us to use and not lose the $600,000 grant.”

Selectboard Chair Jacob Smith agreed.

“It’s the best thing I’ve seen for years for maximizing and using that money, instead of turning back at this point,” he commented.

Reached after the meeting, Town Administrator Bryan Smith expressed hope that the decision is a step toward maximizing the Site Readiness Grant, while also allowing for strategic planning of demolition if potential developers show interest in the property.

“I think it’s progress and it’s an attempt to maximize the use of a resource that has been presented to us,” he said. “We’re hoping that we’ve been strategic and we are not inadvertently shutting down an opportunity to potentially have somebody interested in the site.”

The new proposal

At a prior meeting, the Selectboard had asked Tighe & Bond to create a more cost-efficient bid proposal that could accommodate a partial demolition. The $1.49 million property at 8 Papermill Road, which was seized by the town for back taxes in 2014, was built in 1902 and closed in 2000. It consists of eight buildings constructed over the years.

In May, a $3.7 million debt exclusion to supplement the $600,000 grant for a complete site demolition was shot down by Erving voters, leaving the town with only the grant money to demolish the mill complex. A goal of partial demolition has been investigated by the town to make the best use of the grant funding.

“[The proposal] communicated the guidance from the last meeting where you wanted to have an option presented to you that would minimize any infill or reconstruction, maximize as much demolition progress as possible and avoid roof repairs that had been contemplated,” Bryan Smith said of the new idea.

Multiple alternate bids were also presented. The idea for these bids came from the concern that adding further demolition costs to the base bid may be unfavorable to a construction firm, thus risking the loss of a base bid. Alternate bids could be incorporated at a later time if desired.

“The idea of doing a bid alternate is just because we are trying to be realistic about the numbers and put in those contingencies,” Bryan Smith explained. “Sometimes a bid alternate gives you an opportunity to prioritize the work that the base bid is absolutely going to get done.”

The alternate bids include a proposal to demolish the 40-foot smokestack above the boiler room for $75,000. Another alternate proposes demolishing the boiler room for $95,000, with an extra $46,000 for any abatement, infill or roof repair. The total cost for both alternates is $280,000, including conditions and fees.

The decision was made to include the smokestack demolition within the base bid, and the two alternates were decided to be the demolition of the 5D boiler room as the first alternate and slab removal within building sections 7A and 7B as the second alternate. The shifting in proposed alternates during the meeting means an estimated cost will need to be amended. These two alternate bids can be done in addition to the base bid.

“This gets after what I was looking for,” Jacob Smith said of the revised proposal.

Following the approval of Tighe & Bond’s bid, Bryan Smith explained the plan will be presented to MassDevelopment so funding can be released for the project. After that, a formal bid package will be prepared.

Erin-Leigh Hoffman can be reached at ehoffman@recorder.com or 413-930-4231.