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by Kara Arsenault | Oct 31, 2005 8:27 pm

(2) Comments | Commenting has been closed | E-mail the Author

Posted to: Breaking News, Business/Labor/ Economic Development

Thirty-five years ago, officials broke ground at the future site of the New Haven Coliseum. Monday, in front of a small crowd dotted with white hard hats, part of the rusty relic fell to the ground, marking the beginning of the end of the New Haven institution which rocked for more than 30 years with hockey brawls, raucous concerts and dunking Globetrotters.

In brief remarks on the corner of George and State Streets, Mayor John DeStefano said the Coliseum “served the city and the region well,” but it was time to make room for another vision of optimism. While it’s hard to say goodbye, he said, this is just a preview of prosperity to come.

The Coliseum demolition is scheduled to take place in three phases. Last week, crews finished Phase 1 of the project. This included the disconnection of all electricity and phone lines and the removal of two 10,000 gallon oil tanks. Monday marked the start of Phase 2, the “traditional demolition of the building.” Stamford Wrecking will head the effort.

Stamford Wrecking President Irving Goldblum noted that the demolition of the Coliseum is unusual because it will be done in two pieces. First, crews will remove the main concrete body of building. This will be done with one of Stamford’s “new toys” and “one of the world’s largest demolition tools” —” a bright yellow bulldozer with an enormous pair of scissors attached to the end. Goldblum noted that this machine can slice into 38 to 40 inches of heavy concrete or steel instantaneously.

Mayor DeStefano then gave a demonstration of the machine. Yelling to the crew to “fire it up,” Mayor DeStefano jumped on the bulldozer and took over the driver’s seat. Minutes later, the shears loudly snipped out the first piece of concrete. Onlookers expressed some concern:

“He seems to be doing a good job.”

“He’s a risk-taker.”

“You know he has somebody up there with him.”

“Oh, thank god.”

Following the removal of the main body, the parking garage will be imploded. This will take place in January. The date hasn’t been officially set, but officials say it will be early in the morning to avoid disruptions. The implosion marks the beginning of Phase 3.
According to a schedule handed out by the Office of Economic Development, removal of debris should be finished in April, site improvements will take place in May and interim public parking will be in place by June.

Numerous projects are slated to move onto the Coliseum’s site. Long Wharf Theatre plans to relocate there, and the Knights of Columbus may expand its complex onto part of the site. In the future, officials also hope to develop housing down both sides of George Street, build a hotel complex and add additional parking for residents and train commuters.

Comments

posted by: Bruce on November 1, 2005 11:15am

He actually jumped on the crane and kicked off the demolition?? That’s hilarious. Where are the pictures? Is he going to push the detonation pin for the explosives, too?

posted by: Steve on November 4, 2005 11:50pm

It’s a shame that our Coliseum was locked up, stripped down, and planned for the current demolition by the man on the bulldozer, our mayor. Some day soon, our town’s movers and shakers will see the obvious importance of having a small civic arena and then the photo and story of our mayor clawing down our Coliseum will just say it all…Why, as a city and region, did we not challenge the mayor’s sudden Coliseum spin back in 2002 or in the months thereafter?

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