4 JANUARY 17, 2019 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
Asbestos work at Glendale shelter site was legal, agency says
BY MARK HALLUM
MHALLUM@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
The city Department of Buildings
(DOB) has confi rmed that work
on a defunct Glendale factory
was not outside the bounds of the
existing permit on the site, and no
asbestos was disturbed during work
on the building to convert it into an offi
ce building aft er a Tuesday morning
inspection.
Multiple city agencies were investigating
allegations that workers
illegally removed asbestos material
from 78-16 Cooper Ave., which was
long rumored to be a potential homeless
shelter.
That plan may be a step closer toward
becoming a reality. The owners
of the building had previously submitted
an amendment to their application
to include a “transient lodging house”
which has not yet been approved, according
to a DOB spokesman.
Video surfaced on the Glendale
Civic Association Facebook page
on Monday night that depicted two
individuals who claimed to be “from
the community” confronting a worker
who had been supposedly removing
fl oor tile from the site.
The worker who was questioned
seemed unaware there was asbestos
at the site, but said fl oor tiles and other
features of the building being removed
were being hauled off in a “special
container.”
Councilman Robert Holden is
working with the city Department of
Environmental Protection and the
Department of Buildings to fi nd out if
asbestos was in fact disturbed during
the work. The councilman reported on
Jan. 15 that a stop-work order had been
issued at the site, but DOB said there is
not an SWO currently.
“Last night, Glendale residents
noticed workers at the property and
expressed their concerns by contacting
my staff and I, and submitting 311
complaints,” Holden said. “One of my
staff members went to the scene last
night, and I stopped by the site this
morning when NYC Environmental
Protection was responding to the situation.
Aft er placing several calls to
the commissioner’s offi ce, the DEP has
informed me that a stop-work order
was issued until test results confi rm
whether or not asbestos was disturbed
by the workers.”
According to the DOB website, a
complaint was issued on the site said
that work was being done without a
permit and workers were ordered to
stop at about 10:30 p.m. on Jan. 14.
“At the warehouse, 78-16 Cooper Avenue,
tonight there was illegal abating
of asbestos going on,” Mike Liendo
posted to the Facebook group. “Floor
tiles were being ripped off the fl oors.
New studs and sheet rock appear
to have been put up. With the eyes
and ears of residents who are very
concerned, they communicated with
the right people to get us out there to
video these workers working in the
warehouse. Meanwhile they are not
supposed to be working aft er hours
or even be there because the permits
were lift ed.”
In September and October, Holden
discussed the eff ort to turn the Cooper
Avenue site into a new school, which he
said the city Department of Education
was tentatively on board with.
This was pitched as an alternative
to the city Department of Homeless
Services’ proposal to place a homeless
shelter there — something that the
community has fought for years.
The DEP completed a study of the
site and told the Ridgewood Times in
October that some asbestos abatement
had been ordered for the building, and
it could be occupied as long as the remaining
asbestos was not disturbed.
“Samples taken of disturbed pipe
insulation from inside the building, on
the fi rst fl oor, tested positive for asbestos
and a clean-up was ordered,” a DEP
spokesman said in October. “The roof
also has a stop-work order pending
the owner bring in a certifi ed asbestos
investigator (CAI) to do an assessment.”
Photo via Facebook/City Councilman Robert Holden
City Councilman Robert Holden at 78-16 Cooper Ave. in Glendale on Jan. 15.
Councilman joins
Glendale Kiwanis
Photo courtesy of Kerrie Hansen
Members of the Kiwanis Club of Glendale inducted their newest
member, City Councilman Robert Holden, during the service
organization’s Jan. 10 meeting at Zum Stammtisch restaurant
in Glendale. As shown, Holden (center) is fl anked by his new fellow club
members (from left to right) Past President Fred Haller III, Immediate Past
President Kerrie Hansen, Past President Paul Miceli, Community Board 5
Chairperson Vincent Arcuri, Current Club President Tony Sauro and Past
President Debbie Kueber. The Glendale Kiwanis meets for lunch every
Thursday at 1 p.m. at Zum Stammtisch restaurant, Myrtle Avenue and 70th
Street, Glendale.
Middle M
Village
MEDIA ADVISORY
IA
A
A P reparatory
IS
S
Charter Y
r Y S chool
g
monthly y Board
will c onduct i t s
y
d o f T rustees M eeting
ust rd , 2019
on Wednesday January 23
Details are as follows:
WHO: Middle Village Preparatory Charter School
WHAT: Monthly Board of Trustees Meeting
WHEN: Wednesday January 23 rd , 2 019
TIME: 6:00 PM
WHERE: Multi-Purpose Room at Middle Village Prep
Door # 10
68-02 Metropolitan Avenue
Middle Village, NY 11379
All meetings of the Trustees and all committees and subcommittees
are conducted with the New York Open Meetings Law
( N.Y. Public Officers Law §§ 1 00-111).
link
/WWW.QNS.COM
link
