The walls come tumbling down

A front-end loader pushes over the skeletal remains of the Kendrick train depot Monday.

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Story Published: Jan 26, 2010 at 10:56 AM PDT

Story Updated: Jan 26, 2010 at 10:56 AM PDT

By Anne Harding

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KENDRICK - The fight is officially over, as what remained of the 120-year-old Kendrick Train Depot was knocked to the ground Monday afternoon.

Efforts had been made by the Kendrick Depot Conservation Committee to save the piece of history, but the depot could not become a historical landmark because the original structure had been altered nearly 50 years ago.

Crews took apart much of the depot board by board, to satisfy EPA and DEQ guidelines, due to lead paint on the building's siding.

City maintenance worker Jim Fey said they removed all they could by hand, but left Monday up to the machines.

"It's got three layers of 90 pounds felt with pounds and pounds of nails on it," said Fey, just before the final push. "It's really hard to get off and the boards underneath are almost impossible to get off by hand. They come off in toothpicks, so we're going to do it with a machine."

Mayor Dale Lisher said in 2003 the city considered restoring the depot, but a $100,000 federal grant was returned after discovering building a new foundation alone would take up most of the money. At that point he said the city decided it was best to remove it.

Fey said it's a process that went quickly.

"I thought it came down fairly quick really, for just two of us working on it," said Fey. "We've salvaged other buildings before, with bigger crews, and of course it goes a lot faster, but we've only been on it for a couple of weeks, so it actually came down real quick."

Lisher said the city is considering building a structure of some sort with photos and historical information about the depot. The land where the depot stood will now be turned into two RV parking spaces.

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