Sinclair smokestack can be saved, but at what cost?

The Sinclair smokestack has been damaged by a century of freeze/thaw cycles, but could be repaired for considerably less than the city's estimates, according to a new report.

Oak Park Chimney Corp., of Forest Park, Ill., inspected the 160-foot tall smokestack at the former Sinclair meatpacking plant, 1600 Third St. SE, after the city's Historic Preservation Commission secured private grants.

The company priced repairs at $420,425, less than half of the $1 million quoted by city officials.

Maura Pilcher, chairwoman of the Historic Preservation Commission, said the group will discuss the next step at its meeting at 4:30 p.m. Thursday at Community Connections, 1501 First Ave SE.

Pilcher noted that the report provides a breakdown of repairs and not all would necessarily need to be undertaken. Brick replacement and repairing masonry cracks are the biggest expenses, at $200,500 combined.

Some funding could potentially come from mitigation funds provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency for damage to historic properties, she said.

Details of the Feb. 16 assessment showed several large cracks in the masonry and the concrete cap in poor condition.

Embedded climbing rungs were deemed unsafe to use above 60 feet, so some of the inspection was performed using binoculars and a digital camera with zoom lens.

Vertical cracks as wide as 2 inches were noted in the report, likely due to moisture infiltration from freeze/thaw cycles.

An engineering report by Cooley Engineering Associates of Wheaton, Ill., recommended removing embedded steel rungs so they do not continue to oxidize and exert stress into the masonry.

The report also recommended the full height of the chimney be banded to limit further expansion of the weakened masonry walls and the surface restored to a weather-tight condition to prevent moisture infiltration.

In late January, the City Council told the commission it needed to act quickly to find funds to study the smokestack, as the council readied to award a demolition contract for the site.

After two fires last year at the plant, city workers declared the brick smokestack an imminent threat.

The commission received a $3,000 emergency grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a $2,000 grant from Silos & Smokestacks, the 37-county National Heritage Area in northeast Iowa, and business and individual gifts to fund the $10,000 study.

Twelve Sinclair structures, including the smokestack, are eligible for the National Register of Historic Places.

Also known as Wilson & Co., and later, Farmstead Foods, the plant at one time was among the four largest meatpacking plants in the world and city's largest employer.