ROGERS — The first step in razing a part of the city’s history — the restaurant, Daisy Center and a cabin at Lake Atalanta — is the removing asbestos from the buildings.
City officials hired Environmental Protection Associates for $14,517 to dispose of the substance.
“It will take about three days to remove the asbestos,” said Terry Blaylock, president of Environmental Protection.
The majority is in the former Lakeside Restaurant building.
“I’d say about 98 percent of the asbestos is in the old restaurant,” Blaylock said. “There is a little in the window caulking of the cabin and the roof of the Daisy Center.”
The Daisy Center is the former roller rink.
The asbestos will be bagged and wrapped in plastic and must be disposed of in a Class 1 landfill with a plastic liner to keep the asbestos from getting into the ground water, Blaylock said. The Tontitown landfill is a Class 1 landfill.
The money for the asbestos removal will come from the bonds paid for by an extension of the 1 percent sales tax approved by voters in 2011.
“The majority of the bond money in this draw went to the sports park and the aquatic center,” said David Hook, city facilities management director. “The $14,517 shouldn’t be a factor for the Lake Atalanta project when we make the next draw in two years.”
City officials set aside about $5 million in bond money to renovate Lake Atalanta.
“We need to get the asbestos out of the way so we can raze the buildings and the old swimming pool, which we hope to get done within the next few months,” Hook said.
At some point city officials will devise a master plan for the Lake Atalanta restoration.
“We need to get it back to green space to see what can be done with the property,” Hook said.
The Lakeside Restaurant, pool and skating rink were built in 1949, said James Hales, a local historian and author.
“From the 1950s through the mid-1960s, the restaurant, pool and skating rink were the center of entertainment for Rogers families,” Hales said. “It’s a shame it has to be torn down. I understand why, but it was an important part of the city’s history for many years.”