Rachel Contracting wins bid for industrial demo job

The Minnesota-based firm will demolish buildings on a 14-acre parcel in Fargo, North Dakota.


St. Michael, Minnesota-based Rachel Contracting has submitted the winning bid to the Fargo, North Dakota, city council to demolish a set of abandoned industrial buildings in the downtown section of that city.

The Fargo-based Inforum.com website has reported Rachel Contracting’s $307,000 bid was accepted by the city to demolish 10 buildings on 14 acres of property that used to serve as the home of Mid America Steel. That steel fabrication firm moved to 40 acres of land in an outlying part of the city in 2019.

According to the online news report, the city of Fargo prioritized the demolition of the vacant buildings after one fire each in March and April of this year. A city planning department staff member quoted by Inforum.com said the city expected bids to be in the $570,000 range.

It is likely the current buoyant market for ferrous and nonferrous scrap contributed to the bid coming in at a lower total cost. However, the city also notes that two underground storage tanks and the potential for asbestos to be found on the site may lead to abatement costs.

Rachel Contracting, which placed number 19 on Construction & Demolition Recycling’s 2018 Largest Demolition Contractors List. Its CEO Don Rachel served as president of the National Demolition Association in the previous decade.