It was scheduled to be obliterated by now, but scruffy UW-Madison dormitory Ogg Hall still stands, frozen in a half-demolished state.

The State of Wisconsin ended the contract with the demolition company, Dore and Associates, of Bay City, Mich., because it was behind schedule and posed safety problems, officials said.

The company's chairman, Art Dore, disputes the claims, arguing work was done on time and the state illegally terminated the contract.

Both Ogg towers were scheduled to be torn down by March 31. Instead, the east tower stands and the west tower is only partially razed, the top floors gone and wires exposed as if part of a post-apocalyptic landscape.

Demolition began in the fall and the contract was terminated March 19.

The state and the university were concerned about safety on the site, said UW-Madison architect Dan Okoli. A large piece of stone fell from the top of the building, smashing a workers' car within the fenced in area, he said.

"The debris were really not supposed to be falling," Okoli said. "They're supposed to be contained. If they are falling and escaping, there was always the risk that somebody could be hurt."

A fire broke out on the 13th floor in an elevator shaft in December. And in a different incident, a rock broke a window at nearby campus eatery Gordon Commons. UW-Madison Director of University Housing Paul Evans said it came from the construction site, but Dore said it could have been thrown by a student.

Dore said Madison's snowy winter slowed progress, but demolition would be complete by now if the contract hadn't been severed. The company is taking legal action against the state for illegal termination, Dore said.

"It's beyond me," Dore said. "We've been in the demolition business for 50 years. We know a little bit about it."

Dore and Associates was chosen because it offered the lowest bid, about $2 million, in a state bidding process, said David Helbach, administrator of the Division of State Facilities and secretary of the state Building Commission. The company has been paid about half that, Okoli said.

The company worked for the state in 2004 when it tore down former
UW-Madison bacteriology building E.B. Fred Hall.

Dore said the state forced workers to use scaffolding as they dismantled the building from the top down, which made the site unsafe. When the piece of stone fell, it hit the scaffolding and ricocheted off.

"It would be fine without the scaffold," he said.

But Helbach said there should have been "no surprise" for Dore during the demolition process.

"They were given more than ample opportunities to abide by the contract, both in time, quality and safety," Helbach said. "Time and quality you can fudge on. You cannot fudge on safety."

The state hired another contractor, Miron Construction, to secure the site and complete the demolition of the west tower. The state will conduct a new bidding process to determine the contractor who will demolish the west tower.

The demolition is still on track to be completed before the beginning of the school year, Okoli said.