Demolition work on the city’s old municipal center has begun, with work progressing slowly so the contractor can separate bricks, concrete and metal into piles to sell to a salvage operation.

The first scoop was taken out of the building on Wednesday, following months of work making the building safe to demolish.

First built in 1962, with additions in 1964, 1975 and 1985, much of the building was constructed using asbestos.

“It was common to have asbestos as part of the construction material,” Buildings and Capital Programs Director Gerry Jones said. “All of the hazardous materials had to be abated prior to demolition.”

Now that the abatement process is over, work has begun. The contractor started in the middle of the building on the opposite side from Market Street, near the back of the new city hall building, so it was not visible from the public street for the first few days.

Jones said he expects the contractor to be done with demolition near the latter part of April. Construction of a new parking lot for the municipal center will begin at that point.

Jones said he expects the parking lot to be finished by Aug. 1.

“Once the parking lot is done, most of the driving public will probably come in from this side,” he said, standing at the back of the new city hall building.

There’s probably nobody happier to see the old building go than Jones. He was the one who answered early-morning phone calls about sprung leaks, who called the fire department when people got trapped in the elevator, who stuck his entire hand into cracks in the walls, and who listened to the grievances of city employees who were having papers in their office shuffled by the outdoor breeze — even when the window wasn’t open.

“It’s exciting for me,” he said.

The new city hall opened for business in September, with departments continuing to move in until around the middle of October. It hosted its first City Council meeting on Oct. 1.