The sign of the former NStyle Nails and Spa lays on the parking lot of a group of buildings on West Collins during early demolition on Tuesday, Nov. 27, 2018. The spa moved into a new location on Second Street downtown after being evicted this year. Several small businesses along West Collins were displaced or forced to close to make way for a new state office building. (Dan Cepeda, Oil City News)
Early demolition has started on empty buildings along West Collins.
The new complex will replace the aging state building on Midwest and Center and consolidate all state agencies under one roof, ending the need to rent various offices around the city. Nearly 400 state employees will be housed in the building.
Overall the building will have 110,000 square feet of space, with room on the third floor for growth. There is also room on the 11 acres of land for building additions or another building in the future if needed.
The early stages of the project were met with resistance from tenants of the buildings on W. Collins earlier this year. The businesses eventually reached a settlement with the state before vacating the buildings.
Asphalt is torn up as demolition starts on buildings along West Collins across the street from the Natrona County High School football field on Tuesday, Nov. 27, 2018. The land is being cleared for a new state office building. (Dan Cepeda, Oil City)Demolition starts on buildings along West Collins across the street from the Natrona County High School football field on Tuesday, Nov. 27, 2018. The land is being cleared for a new state office building. (Dan Cepeda, Oil City)Demolition starts on buildings along West Collins across the street from the Natrona County High School football field on Tuesday, Nov. 27, 2018. The land is being cleared for a new state office building. (Dan Cepeda, Oil City)Plans for the new Casper state office building were revealed during the first task force meeting on Monday, May 7, 2018, at City Hall. Several small businesses will be displaced to make way for the new complex, which has been given the address of 444 W. Collins Dr. (Dan Cepeda, Oil City)
