CITY OF BISHOP
IMMEDIATE PRESS RELEASE

INSPECTION REPORT REVEALS GOOD & BAD

August 6- The Bishop City Council announced at their last meeting that an inspection had taken place of the City owned building at the corner of the Bishop City Park. Yesterday the report of that inspection arrived.

On Monday, July 28, after multiple requests from members of the public, the City of Bishop solicited David Lackyard, certified Senior Building Inspector from Willdan Engineering. Willdan Engineering is a private engineering firm, not associated with the City of Bishop. Willdan was tasked with thoroughly inspecting the entire building the Chamber/Visitors Center currently inhabits.

According to the inspector, the southern expansion area (a later addition constructed over the stream) is unsafe for occupancy and must be immediately evacuated. Chamber Building Inspection Report The report states, “currently approximately 60% of the cantilevered portion of the foundation has been undermined by the stream’s erosion” and “the watercourse now directly abuts the concrete masonry unit foundational wall, putting the structure at imminent risk of collapse.” This portion of the building will be immediately red tagged. There was some good news in the inspector’s report, namely that the A-Frame (north) portion of the building has not been affected by erosion, and no structural deficiencies were observed.

This morning, Mayor Karen Kong and City Administrator Deston Dishion met with Chamber Director Tawni Thompson and two of her Board Members. At the meeting, this report was shared, and they talked about options. It was mutually agreed upon that Thompson and her staff would vacate the red tagged portion of the building, while the A-Frame portion will continue to operate as the Visitors Center. Willdan and the City Attorney will be drafting a ‘Limited Access Agreement’ between the City and the Chamber to allow use of the A-Frame until further notice. According to Thompson, she intends to vacate immediately. In addition, Thompson stated the Chamber is in the process of obtaining another building for both the Visitor’s Center and the Chamber to reside in permanently.

The City has reached out to Wood Rodgers Inc, a private engineering firm, to provide a licensed Structural Engineer to assess repairs needed and determine whether the A-Frame can be left standing. This assessment will also include an estimate of costs associated with this work. At this time the City is awaiting their proposal.

The topic of next steps will be agendized for discussion at the August 11, 2025, City Council Meeting.