Greetings:
Thank you for providing an update regarding your efforts to require asbestos hazards at the abandoned Tompkins County Public Library to be cleaned up before the structure is demolished. I find your information to be extremely troubling to say the least.
First, the developer's agreement to "hold off on demolition activities at least through Thanksgiving (emphasis added)" seems to indicate that the firm has every intention of proceeding to knock down the building without first removing the asbestos.
Second, please note that there are now 740 signatories to the: Coalition Letter Which Requests That Ithaca Mayor Myrick Require All Asbestos-Containing Materials to be Removed From the Former Tompkins County Public Library Building Prior to its Demolition
I believe that you clearly understand residents around the abandoned library and activists across New York will respectfully hold you strictly responsible for fulfilling the detailed requests spelled out in the coalition letter or you can expect to receive even greater criticism than you recently endured at the 11/8/18 public meeting.
Third, you referenced a 2014 Microbac Pre-Demolition Asbestos, Lead Paint, and PCB Survey Report for the library building and "an extensive asbestos abatement project in the early 1980’s."
The December 26, 2017 Delta document that is referenced in the coalition letter and below discussed the earlier asbestos abatement effort and concluded, "Numerous Friable Materials, Non-Friable and Non-Friable Organically Bound Asbestos Containing Materials were identified in the Pre-Demolition Survey (emphasis added)."
The document noted, "During the pre-demolition asbestos survey, it was discovered that many locations were not fully removed and some areas were encapsulated in place, other areas above hard ceilings were removed as far as could be reached with the remaining fire proofing is still attached to the building surfaces (emphasis added)."
The document concluded, "As stated above, the areas to be cleaned/decontaminated include the entire building interior, or approximately 20,000 square feet per floor (emphasis added)."
Delta also stated in a May 4, 2018 proposal: "This work shall include the removal and disposal of asbestos containing roofing materials (emphasis added) in the locations delineated on drawing AR-104."
Please note that a roof does not need to be "constructed of friable asbestos..." in order to require abatement pursuant to 12 NYCRR Part 56-1 1.6."
See: Proposed Asbestos Abatement At The Former Tompkins County Library
Fourth, I am extraordinarily dismayed to learn that Microbac might have documented lead and/or polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) within the abandoned library structure. This raises the concern that any debris generated by the proposed demolition could constitute hazardous waste. As I am sure you know, Toxic Characteristic Leaching Potential (TCLP) testing is used to determine whether lead levels constitute hazardous waste. PCBs above 50 Parts Per Million constitute hazardous waste in New York State.
Please provide detailed information regarding the presence of lead, PCBs and other potential hazardous wastes within the library structure. Please spell out how that material will be managed in strict compliance with all applicable regulatory requirements.
This is a major concern. Asbestos is a solid waste that can be managed relatively inexpensively. Hazardous wastes are enormously more costly to dispose of. The presence of all potential hazardous wastes must be assessed and abated before the library is permitted to be demolished.
I believe that the ill-fated Ithaca Gun Factory demolition bankrupted Bianchi Industrial Services after approximately 10,000 cubic yards of building debris contaminated with PCBs was determined to constitute hazardous waste based on limited collection of only one composite sample per 20 cubic yards.
As a member of the Citizens Advisory Committee, I repeatedly warned Mr. Bianchi, the property developers and the City of Ithaca that potential hazardous waste was documented in the abandoned Ithaca Gun factory. I requested that a survey be performed so that the material could be sequestered during demolition, but my concerns were ignored until it was too late to prevent environmental and financial disaster.
More than a decade later, the Ithaca Gun site still has not been cleaned up and was recently designated a "Significant threat to public health or the environment - action required." There are still no plans to remediate all of the toxic pollution hazards at the site as well as around it, including lead up to 190,000 parts per million.
Since the proposed library demolition cannot proceed without a City Demolition permit, I believe you have a duty to make sure that the Ithaca Gun demolition debris fiasco is not repeated at the abandoned library.
Finally, I understand that an asbestos-containing structure on Taughannock Boulevard in Ithaca was demolished in the last few days without first removing all the deadly asbestos-containing materials.
Would you please explain why property maintenance ordinances and strict New York State asbestos abatement requirements regarding containment barriers, negative pressure and so forth were not strictly enforced at that location?
I await your prompt reply to these important requests for information that is essential to safeguard public health and the environment in Ithaca.
Thank you.
Yours truly,
Walter Hang
On 11/16/2018 6:07 PM, Svante Myrick wrote:
> Hi everyone,
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> An update below that you can share with anyone you know to be interested.
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> As you know, last month hundreds of Ithacans signed a petition expressing concern with a developer’s pending plan to demolish the Old Library without first removing the asbestos present in that building. I did then and I do now share this concern. Public safety is my number one priority. And all of us should maintain a healthy fear of asbestos.
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> Since that time, the City’s Director of Code Enforcement, the Director of Planning and Development, and the City Attorney have been scrutinizing the upcoming demolition for risks it poses to public safety, and for safer alternative processes that may be available. We continue to look at all options. Just last week, I convened a public information session at which the developer and appropriate City staff briefed the public on the status of this planned demolition. At that session, I heard a clear desire for the planned demolition to be delayed pending independent evaluation by a third party engineer selected by the City. I am pleased to share a few important updates in that regard.
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> First, the developer has agreed to hold off on demolition activities at least through Thanksgiving in order to give the City an opportunity to consult with a City-selected third-party engineer.
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> Second, we have selected a local structural engineer who is unconnected to this development project to advise the City on the structural safety of the existing building, which may shed light on potential alternative methodologies for asbestos abatement. Specifically, structural engineer Greg Dende has agreed to undertake this investigation on behalf of the City—and at City expense. We selected Mr. Dende for his expertise, his local presence, and his unbiased ability to provide clear-eyed advice on the engineering issues at stake.
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> Lastly, I want to share some useful information regarding the state of the asbestos in the Old Library roof. Specifically, we have obtained the Pre-Demolition Asbestos, Lead Paint, and PCB Survey Report—cataloguing all asbestos present in the Old Library—prepared by Microbac Laboratories, Inc. for the County in December 2014 (back when the County still owned the Old Library). That report reveals that the building was subject to an extensive asbestos abatement project in the early 1980’s, and that the current roof structure itself is not constructed of friable asbestos, which in turn reduces the risks associated with the demolition of the roof.
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> Of course, I'm still concerned about the overall risks posed by the asbestos present in this building, some of which might nonetheless be implicated by the demolition of the roof. This is why I'm seeking—from our selected third-party engineer and in discussions with the developer—information that can enhance public safety in this context. I hope to provide the public with a further update in that regard soon.
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> Again, I extend my thanks to you all for being such an engaged public and for calling attention to this important issue of public health in our City.
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> Best,
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> Svante Myrick
> Mayor, City of Ithaca
> 108 East Green Street
> Ithaca, NY 14850
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> 607-274-6501
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