Demolition crews from Reclaim Company LLC of Fairmont, West Virginia this week began work to tear down the 210-foot-high brick and concrete smokestack at the former Quin-T Tech Paper and Boards property, 140 E. 16th St.

The demolition is part of the tear-down of buildings and structures at the roughly 5-acre property, which fell into disrepair since being abandoned more than 15 years ago.

Some pre-demolition work and environmental remediation, including asbestos removal, began in April 2021. Erie Mayor Joe Schember’s administration has proposed using federal American Rescue Plan dollars to create a large public park and recreational facility at the site.

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On Thursday, from inside a basket suspended from a crane, crews used hand tools, such as sledgehammers and crowbars, to take down the top of the 210-foot stack, said Andy Emery, project manager for Reclaim. Once the structure is reduced to about 60 feet in height, power equipment will knock down what's left of the smokestack, which is made of brick, terra cotta and concrete.

Reclaim submitted the lowest responsible bid of $493,888 for the bulk of the Quin-T demolition and site clearance work, which is expected to be completed sometime this year. The Erie County Development Authority is handling the project.

The smokestack will take at least two weeks to tear down.

"Slow and steady wins the race," said Emery. "And safety is paramount, for our crews and for the public."

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Contact Kevin Flowers at kflowers@timesnews.com or on Twitter at @ETNFlowers.