The Jefferson City Council recently approved the first pay estimate toward the downtown revitalization project.

The Council approved $21,945 to Pinnacle Construction for work done on the project. The contractor is still tearing down the front facades of the 13 buildings that are involved. City Administrator Mike Palmer says some of the buildings require more work than others to restore, like Muir Embroidery.

“Essentially the front of that building will have to be removed. That’s not a total surprise. We anticipated some of this was going to be happening. That’s why the company started on this building first of all to take the toughest one first, so we can get to the ones that need the most work and get those out of the way so we can be done by November.”

Palmer adds once the front of the building is removed, the architect and contractor can assess how much work needs to be done before a new facade can be put on. He points out that they have contingency money added into the overall $1 million budget specifically for additional work that may need to happen. Palmer says he’s impressed with how well Pinnacle Construction has handled every building.

“You can tell that these guys have done this (before), just by the way that they work with the owners and keep them updated. And just how they keep the sites so clean all the time. They’re very meticulous about making sure that there’s access to the property, everything is swept up, and looks neat and everything is secured.”

The project started last month and is expected to be completed by November.