Demolition has begun on the former National Guard Armory at Fourth Street and Centre Avenue. A second structure on the site has also been demolished after the City of Artesia determined that lead in the outbuilding and asbestos tiles in the armory rendered the structures not worth saving. “We did look at trying to repurpose the buildings and put them back into service, but to mitigate the lead and asbestos became problematic,” Infrastructure Director Byron Landfair said at the April 11 meeting of the Artesia City Council. Landfair estimated renovations could cost the city three times the price of a new build. Landfair confirmed Tuesday that the property will be sold after demolition is complete.
