Makes sense now. Clearing rubble does not mean that the hex is returned to its original state. the engineers are not rebuilding the buildings.
Two thoughts
Most scenarios I look at always start with the hex in their original state, even if there has been weeks of battles in the vicinity. One would think that there would be at least some of the hexes starting in a RUBBLE of Rubble state.
Perhaps there is justification for allowing non-engineer units stacked with engineers to increase the chances of clearing the rubble. (i.e., more hands to move bricks etc -of course in more modern situations engineers would have heavy machinery)