Tekoa accepts $15,000 bid to tear down Cohn building

The City of Tekoa approved one of two bids Nov. 18 to demolish and remove the red-brick former Cohn Motors building on Crosby Street. A snow load three years ago caused the roof of the building to cave in.

Ladd Construction of Liberty Lake submitted a bid of $88,827 and E.C. Hay and Sons of Tekoa $15,000.

Councilman Roy Schulz made a motion to accept the E.C. Hay and Sons bid, to begin as soon as possible. Bethany Fletcher seconded and it passed unanimously.

By law, the town must accept the lowest qualified bid.

“He's a local guy, he's interested in cleaning this up for the town, like the rest of us,” said Tekoa Mayor Troy Wilson.

Work is expected to start in December.

Whitman County Superior Court ruled Oct. 9 that the City of Tekoa, which does not own the building, has the right to demolish it and hold the building owners responsible for the cost.

An estimated 1,200-foot section of the roof and part of two walls collapsed in January 2017.

“This has been a long time coming,” said Wilson. “I'm very happy for one, for sure, to have this safety hazard taken down.”

Built before 1902, the two-story auto shop/gas station has not been used as a business since Redfern & Sons went out in the 1950s.