A contractor has been chosen for the implosion of Knapp and Storms Halls in July.

Peterson Contractors Inc. of Reinbeck was determined to be the most qualified bidder and is slated to receive the $1,482,500 contract.

“We have ironed out and verified everything we need to verify,” said Dean McCormick, assistant director of construction services for facilities planning and management. “Our next step is to make a recommendation to the Board of Regents office on who to award the contract to.”

He said the board office should make a decision within the week. During the next two weeks, facilities planning and management staff will meet with Peterson representatives to work out details such as insurance, subcontractors and construction bonds.

“That’s when we’ll start to discuss staging, schedule and specifics,” McCormick said.

The exact date of the implosion has not yet been determined and depends on details such as weather and contractor preparation.

“We may not know the specific day of the implosion until just a few days before it,” McCormick said.

He said the target window for the demolition is still July 5 to 21.

“Our anticipation, based on what we know, is that it will happen later in that period rather than earlier,” McCormick said.

Cork Peterson, vice president of Peterson Contractors Inc., said the company has done several projects for Iowa State, including constructing the National Soil Tilth Laboratory, the Molecular Biology Building and excavating the site for Howe Hall.

“We’ve done a lot of work there over the years,” he said. “We’ve got long roots at Iowa State; I graduated there in ’66.”

Peterson said that his company was awarded the contract because it was the lowest responsive bidder.

Bidding took place on May 19. McCormick said a decision was not reached until last Friday, after the lowest bidders provided paperwork about their qualifications for the job.