Caswell Plumbing volunteers to raze Bradley buildings
A Millsboro contractor is volunteering to take down the former offices of Lewes pediatrician Earl Bradley for free.
Harry Caswell of Harry Caswell Plumbing and Mechanical said he will gladly take care of the permitting and equipment needed to take down Bradley’s old BayBees Pediatrics offices.
Caswell said he would disconnect the sewer and water, and then work with Delmarva Power to get the electric disconnected. He said the next step would be to arrange for the material from the building to be dumped at a landfill, then call dumpster companies to bring in dumpsters.
Caswell said if he can’t get dumpster companies to chip in, he has dump trucks that can be used to haul the material to the landfill.
“I want to try to get this to be a community thing, get some help from the community, and put this whole thing to bed and put it in the past. Level that building and clean it up. I think what would be ideal for our community right now is to get that put to bed,” Caswell said.
He said all he needs is the go-ahead; once Caswell has permission to start work he can make the arrangements with the county and state, pick a date and take the buildings down.
“I got 50 employees, and I know a lot of my guys will help too. We’ll do it on a Saturday if we have to, and take this thing down on a Saturday and Sunday and level this place and be done with it,” Caswell said.
He said he would do all the work on his own dime, at no charge. “I think I can get all the fees waived, because this is a big community deal,” Caswell said.
He said if the fees cannot be waived, he would pay for the demolition himself.
“Whatever it takes, we’re going to make it happen,” he said.
Caswell is hoping to get in touch with the owners of the property, an unnamed third party that has pledged to take the buildings down.
The prospective owners are waiting for the state to settle a tentative lien it has on Bradley’s personal property at the site.
Bradley was convicted on 24 counts of rape, assault and sexual exploitation of his child patients and is awaiting sentencing at 10 a.m., Friday, Aug. 26 in Sussex County Superior Court.
Billboard variance request
Motorists driving past the former Bradley offices on Route 1 will notice a yellow sign at the entrance to the parking lot.
The sign is a notification for a public hearing by the Sussex County Board of Adjustment to take down and rebuild the billboard in front of the main Bradley office building. According to the Sussex County Planning and Zoning Office, the billboard owner, First State Signs of Dover, is taking down the billboard, which is nonconforming, and replacing it with a conforming billboard.
Representatives from First State Signs could not be reached for comment.
