Abandoned hotel in North Carolina undergoes demolition

Demolition began on a hotel in Five Points, North Carolina, after years of vacancy, a report by the Sun Journal says. The building was sold to Kepri Hospitality LLC of Morrsiville, North Carolina, in October 2014 for $184,000, but nothing happened at the former Days Hotel building.

On June 1, 4 Seasons Site & Demo of Wilmington, North Carolina, began demolishing the building with a 75-foot-tall excavator rather than imploding it. According to the report, the building was too contaminated with mold and asbestos to be salvaged or recycled.

The city sold the six-story building to Kepri with the intention of bringing it back up to code and renovating it to promote business in the area, but Kepri took no action and accumulated more than $31,000 in fines for noncompliance with city code. When the board of Aldermen agreed to demolish the structure, the owners unsuccessfully sued the city.

City officials say in the report that Kepri will retain ownership of the property once the building has been fully demolished, but the city could foreclose on it and retake possession of the company doesn’t pay off the lien and fines.