CHARLESTON, W.Va. — It’s going to cost several millions of dollars to make repairs to the capitol dome, the Capitol Building Commission learned Wednesday.
After hearing the information about a cabling and water problem, the commission gave the Department of Administration approval to take the project out for bid.
Department of Administration Secretary John Myers said a cabling system that enables the outer dome to hold up the inner dome through tension has weakened over the years and needs replaced. The tensioning system was last replaced about 20 years ago, Myers said.
“We want to repair that tensioning system and put monitoring devices on it so that in the future when there are places where it gets slack on a certain cable or connection the General Services Division will be able to tighten it up,” Myers said.
The water issue reared its head several months ago. Pipes designed to catch the water from the outer dome have deteriorated and caused damage to the interior rotunda. Some of the damage is visible and some is not. It’s a safety issue, Myers said.
“We want to make sure that nobody walking through there has a big piece of plaster fall out and hits them in the head–that’s something that’s really a concern to us,” he said.
The project is expected to go out to bid next month. It will likely include an elaborate scaffolding system on the inside of the capitol along with some equipment placed on the outside of the dome, Myers said.
The work could cost as much as $8 million. Myers said the his department would seek a supplemental appropriation. He said the work must be done.
“Our citizens have an expectation that when they come here they want to be able to look at it (the dome) and for us it’s something that we can be proud of,” he said.