Fayetteville Orders Demolition of Fire Station No. 4 After Report Finds Severe Construction Failures

Fayetteville City Council voted to accept an independent engineering report. The report said Fire Station No. 4 must be torn down. Applied Building Sciences shared its findings at the Feb. 9 meeting after inspecting the unfinished station.

The report cited "major structural deficiencies" in walls, roof, drainage systems, concrete slabs, welding, and substructure. Engineers discovered pipe stubs that had bent and collapsed. Tests revealed fungal growth on six of eight samples collected from inside.

Steve Moore runs the firm's Charlotte office. He told council members the defects couldn't be repaired. "In over 17 years of work in this area, I have never recommended that a partially constructed building be torn down," Moore said, according to CityView. "However, it is our opinion that the extent, severity, complexity of potential reviews of the identified construction-related issues warrants this recommendation."

Construction started in August 2022. Workers expected to finish in 2023. The project halted after Fayetteville terminated its $9.4 million contract with W.B. Brawley Co. in April 2024. Officials had spent $4.3 million by then.

Fayetteville sued the contractor on Sept. 15, 2024. W.B. Brawley countersued weeks later. They argued the city gave them bad designs and withheld payment. Travelers Casualty and Surety Company of America also faces a lawsuit for breaching bond obligations.

Moore put the blame on the contractor alone. He pointed to improper roof panel seams, unsealed gaps, concrete poured thinner than code allows, and plumbing installed with incorrect materials.

The facility on Bragg Boulevard was meant to replace an old station. It would have improved emergency response times for about 5,000 homes. Officials will now collect updated costs for demolition and rebuilding while pursuing taxpayer funds through lawsuits.