At the close of business Friday, St. Laurent, Pike Industries' subcontractor to demolish the Haggett building on Wiscasset's Water Street, did not yet have a certificate of insurance for the project, so work will start near the end of the work day Tuesday or early Wednesday, an inspector on the state’s downtown project said at the site Tuesday morning.

When it begins, the work will still start with removing the 1916 building’s sign and surrounding bricks to preserve them; they will go on pallets for safe transport, location to be determined, Robert Clewley of Kleinfelder in Augusta said. 

In response to a question from the Wiscasset Newspaper, Clewley told the reporter and Coastal Enterprises’ retired president  Ron Phillips they were the only onlookers to visit the site so far this morning.

Phillips wanted to be there that morning because, he said, the building is in excellent condition, is iconic and it was unfortunate it was going to be demolished, adding the nonprofit, taxpaying Midcoast Conservancy that had leased it from CEI after CEI moved to Brunswick would have otherwise still been in it.

Maine Department of Transportation plans to make parking there.