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Demolition subcontractors take down structures, remove foundations, and clear sites for new work, and on renovation projects they handle selective and interior demolition that strips a building back to its structure. For a general contractor or builder, demolition sits at the very front of the schedule, which means demo delays push everything behind them. Most of those delays trace back to what has to happen before the first machine arrives: an asbestos survey, hazardous material abatement if the survey finds anything, utility disconnects confirmed in writing, and the demolition permit. In the South Coast air district covering the Los Angeles region, SCAQMD Rule 1403 requires an asbestos survey before any demolition regardless of the building's age, with notification to the district ahead of start, and other California air districts run similar programs. Abatement itself is usually a separately licensed scope, so every demo bid should state plainly whether abatement is included, excluded, or by others. The hand-off on the back end matters just as much: what condition the site is left in, whether foundations and underground structures come out or stay, how voids are backfilled, and what documentation accompanies the debris, since California jurisdictions generally require construction and demolition waste diversion reporting under CALGreen. When comparing bids, check dust and vibration control, protection of adjacent structures, traffic control, haul routes, and whether disposal tickets and recycling documentation are part of the deliverable. In California, structural demolition typically falls under the CSLB C-21 Building Moving/Demolition classification. Before award, we recommend confirming the license classification and status through the CSLB public lookup and verifying liability and workers' comp insurance sized for demolition risk.
In the South Coast district, yes. SCAQMD Rule 1403 requires an asbestos survey by a certified consultant before any demolition, and its exemptions contain no cutoff based on construction date or building age. Notification to the district is also required ahead of demolition start, so the survey and filing belong on the critical path, not on the demo sub's first-day checklist.
Usually not under the same scope. Abatement is a separately licensed and registered activity, and demo bids commonly exclude it or price it through a licensed abatement sub. Before award, confirm whether abatement is included, excluded, or by others, and who carries the cost risk if the survey finds more material than expected, because that gap is a common source of front-end change orders.
The disconnects themselves are performed by the utility companies or licensed trades, but someone has to own scheduling them and collecting written confirmation, and permits are generally not released without it. Assign that responsibility explicitly, either to the demo sub or to the GC's team, and build utility lead times into the schedule, since disconnect appointments are a frequent cause of demo start slips.
Based in San Diego
No. Interior or selective demolition removes finishes, partitions, and systems while the structure stays, and GCs often self-perform it or bundle it with the trade doing the rebuild. Structural demolition removes load-bearing elements or whole buildings, typically requires an engineered demolition plan and sequence, and in California falls under the C-21 Building Moving/Demolition classification. Price and contract them as distinct scopes.
It should state where debris goes, who hauls it, what recycling or diversion rate is being achieved, and that weight tickets and facility documentation will be turned over. California jurisdictions generally require construction and demolition waste diversion reporting under CALGreen, and the GC needs the demo sub's paperwork to close that out. A bid that is silent on disposal documentation is incomplete.
It varies by scope. The main drivers are what the asbestos and hazardous material surveys find, whether foundations and underground structures come out, site access and proximity to adjacent buildings, disposal and haul distance, and how much material can be recycled versus landfilled. Survey findings are the biggest swing, which is why surveys before bidding produce tighter numbers than surveys after award.
