City crews began working on the renovation of the Andala Building this week, which will become Big Mike’s Restaurant.

In May, the city council agreed to act as general contractor on the $800,000 project, using city crews and local contractors.

Thursday afternoon, city employees were busy framing the interior walls for the structure. Director of Planning Andy Wiggins said the framing will be completed within a couple of days, and city employees will then spend about six weeks on the plumbing and electrical parts of the project.

Local subcontractors will do all of the work except installing a lift, Wiggins said.

“We don’t have anybody here that does that,” he said. “The painting, flooring, heating and air conditioning have all been subcontracted locally.”

City crews will begin working at Clark Theatre in July, Wiggins said, adding that the city will oversee the project, but has hired Sasser Construction as the subcontractor.

The projects were first announced in January. Initial bids were higher than the renovation costs anticipated by RLS Design Group of Birmingham, which designed the projects. The council rejected all bids in hopes of negotiating a better price, but last month agreed to subcontract the project.

Wiggins said the anticipated opening date for Big Mike’s is Oct. 1, 2016. The theater renovation is expected to take four to six months.