Construction on downtown Corbin’s Farmer’s Market Pavilion delayed again

The construction of the new Farmer’s Market Pavilion in downtown Corbin has hit another snag, with a failing brick wall on one side of the property needing to be replaced before work can continue. With this latest setback, Corbin Tourism Director and project manager Maggy Monhollen is now hopeful for a grand opening sometime before the end of the summer.

Monhollen explained that repairs to, or total replacement of, the wall was not included in the original estimates for the pavilion, as it was not an issue that anyone expected would need to be addressed. However, original plans also did not include having to remove several feet of dirt from the lot, located at the corner of First and Monroe streets, in order to remedy a problem related to excess ground water. This additional excavation work has unfortunately caused damage to the aging wall, resulting in this latest halt in progress.

“The best course of action will be to remove the existing wall, and replace it with a pre-engineered wall,” Monhollen said, explaining that the new wall will be pre-certified and all materials to complete it will be delivered to the contractor, ready to be installed.

By not having the wall specifically engineered, Monhollen said that a significant amount of time and money will be saved.

In all, Monhollen has requested an additional $59,328 from the Tourism Commission’s general fund to cover the cost of the wall replacement. She said that, when coupled with the work earlier this year to fix the ground water issue, the project is currently approximately $100,000 over what had been originally budgeted.

However, Mohollen also said that, despite the extra cost, the Tourism Commission is not currently in any danger of having to cut funding to any other programs in order to complete the pavilion later this year. She also explained that, once the wall is replaced, the next step will be to start building vertically, which she expects will go much smoother than the work that has taken place at the ground level.

Monhollen’s request for the additional money from the tourism general fund was approved by the Corbin Tourism and Convention Commission Board during a special called meeting Monday morning, and she anticipates the installation of the new wall to be complete in a few weeks’ time, pending weather. After amending the budget to account for this additional expense, the commission is still operating with a surplus of just over $2,000.