Reconstruction of the Oliva Hotel is well underway. The five-story, historic building near downtown Joplin suffered substantial fire damage in December 2020. The Joplin City Council got an update Monday at their bi-weekly meeting. KRPS's Fred Fletcher-Fierro has more.
Construction of the Oliva started in 1906 for an estimated $150,000, according to the Murphysburg Historic District. The property has been listed in the National Register since 2008. That designation didn't help the property, and it fell into disrepair.
In early December 2020, an arsonist set the top floor of the Oliva ablaze, destroying the roof—the interior of the building needed to be gutted. Blue Haven Investments of Joplin purchased the property just over two years ago and sought a quarter of a million dollars from the city to assist in rebuilding the Oliva's roof.
The city council approved the funding. Sawyer Smith with Blue Haven Investmentnarrated a video update of the hotel's progress Monday night.
"So starting from the beginning, the first thing we did was pull off the roof that was damaged in the fire and put on a brand new roof. It was a monumental effort, and (Ideal Group Inspection?) let the charge on, and they did amazing work.
From that time, we have gutted the rest of the building; you can see here down to the studs, we removed all the water-logged materials."
Monday night, the Joplin City Council, with seven yes votes, one abstention, and one council member absent, agreed to extend the agreement between the city, Blue Haven company, and Neal Construction contractor for two years. Six months longer than the two firms were seeking. For 89 9 KRPS News, I'm Fred Fletcher-Fierro