Paused for many months, demolition work at the complex will resume once the transaction is complete, according to Jim Musselman, who spoke to the Mirror by phone Friday.

Demolition work at the site is 30% to 40% complete, but once restarted should be finished by the group — although that isn’t likely to occur before the end of the year, according to Musselman.

Demolition work by SafeGate, a firm created for the mill project by Safeco Environmental Services of Dilliner, Pa., and Newgate Global Resources of North Canton, Ohio, began a little over two years ago, and was predicted to take 18 to 24 months.

At both ends of the site Friday, there were twisted piles of metal, with major buildings still standing.

Demolition of the former Appvion Paper Plant in Roaring Spring is stalled. Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski

The demolition work requires considerable care because of water lines into the site from Spring Dam, because of Halter Creek, which runs through the property, including under a building, and because of a water treatment system and lagoons, according to Musselman.

Those conditions create the potential for environmental problems and issues with the state Department of Environmental Protection, he said.

Two years ago, at a public meeting in the borough, the ownership group and representatives of Altoona Blair County Development Corp. spoke of plans to create a recreation complex on the 300-acre property that could include a track, football and soccer fields, green space and trails, with the potential eventually for a public amphitheater.

The announcement may have helped mitigate the distress community members felt at the time about the loss of such an asset and source of jobs, according to Musselman.

Plans for a recreational complex aren’t necessarily in play anymore, according to Musselman.

“It is what it is,” he said of the site.

It’s likely the group will sell the property once demolition is done, Musselman said.

There are potential buyers, as he understands it.

The stoppage of work seems to have coincided with a dip in prices for scrap metals, according to Borough Manager Lisa Peel.

The group has been “sensitive” to the market for such metals, Stephen McKnight, president/CEO of the Blair Alliance for Business and Economic Growth, said Friday.

“That can influence the degree of activity there,” McKnight said.

SafeGate principal Nate Delaney spoke briefly by phone to the Mirror Friday, then excused himself to resume an interrupted call. He did not return the call for comment.