These Boundary Street buildings will be gone soon

The view on your Boundary Street commute should get better by the summer.

Some buildings along the Beaufort corridor are scheduled for demolition soon as part of a plan to create an open green space and sweeping marsh views. The former Huddle House, Sea Eagle Market and old fire building will be brought down.

The work is targeted to be finished by about June, city project manager Neal Pugliese said. But the timeline depends on how quickly the project is bid out to a contractor.

“But I want this thing done sooner rather than later,” Pugliese said.

The demolitions are part of a plan by the city, Beaufort County and the Beaufort County Open Land Trust to buy up property along the stretch of marsh and create a passive park.

The city bought the Sea Eagle Market property last year for $550,000. The seafood business relocated to another spot on Boundary Street.

Beaufort County agreed to buy Huddle House for $506,000.

The Beaufort County Open Land Trust bought the United Way building for $599,000 as one of the buildings to be removed.

The county is leasing the space from the nonprofit organization to house its engineering department while relocating staff from the Arthur Horne building, deputy county administrator Josh Gruber said. The arrangement is expected to be temporary and the county will tear down the building as planned when staff moves out, Gruber said.

Other buildings targeted for removal include the Wendy’s fast-food restaurant and a gas station. Those owners have not yet agreed to sell.

Another project should also improve views of the marsh.

Work has started to remove wooden safety railing on a boardwalk built as part of the ongoing Boundary Street road project. Steel cables will be installed in its place and on other stretches of boardwalk along the street after complaints the wooden railings blocked views.

The new materials will cost about $144,000. Steel cabling should look better and last longer, Pugliese said.

The $33-million Boundary Street work includes burying utility lines, new sidewalks and raised medians. Contractors are in the process of building an underground bank on the north side of the road to bury lines.

Work is expected to be completed in 2018, about two years after the project started.

This story was originally published April 5, 2017 at 3:47 PM with the headline "These Boundary Street buildings will be gone soon."