The five-story garage, built more than 40 years ago, hasn’t been used since 2011.

Last summer, Venango County Commissioners approved a maximum cash match of $1 million for the demolition of the Oil City parking garage and the subsequent construction of a multi-use transportation facility in its place. The new facility will be owned by the county.

“The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, the county, and city believe that this will revitalize the Oil City North Side business district, enable more efficient transportation services for the citizens of the county, and benefit all county residents,” Commissioner Timothy Brooks said.

The $11 million transit hub is expected to enhance bus service and multimodal connections in the Venango County region and at the same time support efforts to revitalize downtown Oil City.

After the demolition, the plan is to build a 25,000-square-foot facility that would serve as a base for the Venango County transit operations. The hub would be located adjacent to PennDOT District 1 headquarters.

The move would enable Venango County to relocate and consolidate its existing transit operations, consisting of 25 vehicles and 33 employees. It will create a centrally located hub in Oil City — Venango County’s most populous community.

The new facility would provide space for administration offices, indoor storage of all vehicles, maintenance bays, and a wash bay. It would enhance employee safety and operational efficiency of the transit operations.

Options are being explored to determine the design that would best enhance operations of the hub, make the most efficient use of the space available, and take advantage of possible synergies between the new transit hub and PennDOT District 1.

The first step in the development is the demolition of the deteriorated parking garage that was ordered closed in 2011 due to safety concerns.

A Michigan company, Homrich Wrecking, was awarded the contract to demolish the garage. The cost is about $723,000.00.

The demolition, which could be done sometime this spring, depending on weather delays, is being done with a 800 Hitachi Ultra High Reach Excavator.

It has a maximum reach of 105 feet and weighs about 235,000 pounds.

Tim Homrich, president of the company, said they bought the used machine in 2005 from a company in Europe.

“In Europe, they’ve pretty outlawed the use of the old crane and wrecking ball machines because of safety concerns. And, using the wrecking balls has become something of a lost art.”

“You need to have good eyesight, and the younger guys know how to work the hand controls because they are used to playing hand-held games, and that’s how a lot of the equipment is configured,” Homrich said.

This is not Homrich’s first Pennsylvania job. The company demolished the Civic Arena, former home to the Pittsburgh Penguins, five years ago.

Homrich, who does work from Pennsylvania to Milwaukee and throughout Michigan, explained his grandfather started it in 1964, and it has since been passed down to his father and now to him and his brother.

“We’re pretty proud our dad could retire, and the company stays in the family.” Homrich said.

The steel that was used in the building will be recycled through Metalico, an international company that has a nearby office in Warren.

Metalico, Inc. and its subsidiaries run ferrous and non-ferrous scrap operations, as well as platinum group metal and minor metal recycling facilities. Operating three car shredders, the company has locations in New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, New Jersey, and Mississippi.

Metalico was sold a little more than a year ago to Total Merchant, a privately-held investment firm that is controlled by Chung Sheng Huang, the chairman of the board and managing director of Ye Chiu Group, a leading recycler and producer of aluminium and aluminium alloys and a prominent Asian scrap metal recycler.

Homrich is responsible for the entire demolition, site cleanup and leveling and planting grass.

Work is expected to be done sometime in June.