Norwich — City officials continue to pursue dual paths regarding the long-vacant Reid & Hughes Building on Main Street, with one office opening three bids Tuesday for the demolition of the building, while another office is finalizing its analysis of whether a proposed renovation plan is viable.

Wiese Construction of Norwich submitted the low bid for the demolition Tuesday at $697,000. A second bid of $765,990 by Nasdi Demo of Woburn, Mass., also fell within the city's $800,000 bond limit for the demolition, while a third bid by Standard Demolition of Trumbull was much higher at $1.6 million.

The City Council voted in October to bond up to $800,000 — the maximum allowed without a referendum — to tear down the long-vacant building at 193-201 Main St. But at the same time, the Women's Institute for Housing and Economic Development proposed to take on a project to renovate the decaying building into 20 apartments and retail space.

The Women's Institute has proposed a $300,000 plan to stabilize the decaying roof and upper structure to allow time to seek financing for its $6 million renovation project.

On Dec. 7, the state Historic Preservation Council voted unanimously to deny the city's demolition application for the historical structure and to refer any such proposed action to the state Attorney General's Office for a possible court injunction.

That prompted city leaders to hold three closed-door negotiation sessions with the Women's Institute, state historic preservation officials and local historic preservation advocates.

City Manager John Salomone said Tuesday after the demolition bids were opened that city leaders are close to completing their review of the Women's Institute's proposal and might be ready to bring the issue to the City Council on Monday for a possible vote to issue a formal request for development proposals. Salomone said that would be a necessary step for a city-owned property.

He said a second party also has expressed interest in the building, adding he does not know if that party has a viable proposal.

“We're working on deciding on whether the Women's Institute's proposal has enough merit to bring it to the council,” Salomone said.

The demolition bids will be forwarded to the city Public Works Department for review of whether they meet the technical bid specifications, the normal process before awarding a bid. Public Works Director Ryan Thompson, who attended the bid opening, said he will follow that process “unless I hear otherwise.”

Dale Plummer, city historian and president of the Norwich Heritage Trust, who also attended the bid opening, said the dual path of demolition and preservation is unnecessary. Plummer said the city clearly has an alternative to demolition. He said the city faces the potential of spending “tens of thousands of dollars” on legal fees to fight a court injunction against demolition.

“We're actually hopeful this will be resolved,” Plummer said. “If it's not resolved, and if it goes ahead for demolition, then it will be a court case.”

c.bessette@theday.com