Mold removal in Galt building will take time, money

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Mold removal in Galt building will take time, money

By Ross Farrow/News-Sentinel Staff Writer

It will be several months -- or longer -- before the Galt Boys and Girls

Club building will get a clean bill of health.

And, it could cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to repair the

11-year-old structure, which is riddled with mold, said City Manager Ted

.

An engineer who specializes in occupational safety advises extensive

additional testing to find out exactly what has caused moisture to enter the

building and cause the mold to grow.

The city of Galt, which owns the structure, ordered the building shut down

during a closed session City Council meeting on Nov. 5.

Participants in the after-school program for children and teens were moved

to the multipurpose room at nearby Fairsite Elementary School and to the

former location of Breakaway Sports on Industrial Drive. And, the City Tots

Preschool program, a city-run operation, was moved from the Boys and Girls

Club building to Littleton Community Center on Civic Drive.

These were more temporary moves; now they're a lot more long term,

said.

At least one type of mold, called " stachybotrys chartarum, " was found in

several locations throughout the 18,140-square-foot building, said.

" I hope people don't try to make it greater than it is, " he added. " We don't

have any previous notice that anyone is ill. "

The city has not received any claims from parents or employees about being

exposed to mold, said.

Parents feel similarly.

" I stand by the program, " said , who has a child in the City

Tots Preschool program. " I know my child's healthy. "

Another parent, Borgerding, also accepted the mold problem without any

alarm.

" I think the mold is significant, but I think that's the nature of the beast

of living in Sacramento County, " Borgerding said. " Any building is prone to

that. It can be in our own house. "

The city has spent an estimated $7,000 to HB & T Environmental, a Sacramento

firm that performed the initial inspection, and to Earthshine Consulting, an

occupational safety and health engineering firm from Rocklin.

Who will pay the remaining costs is up in the air.

isn't confident that the city's insurer will pay because the Boys

and Girls Club didn't perform satisfactory maintenance on the building, as

required by the city's contract with the Boys and Girls Club.

Engineer J. Sacco from Earthshine Consulting determined that water had

intruded into the building at two locations and caused considerable mold.

Visible mold growth caused by water intrusion, according to Sacco's report,

was found in the following areas:

Sheet rock in the learning center mechanical room.

Above the ceiling in the game room.

Mechanical, storage and janitorial rooms in the gymnasium.

The water fountain area in the gymnasium.

Water damage was also found in the ceiling above the snack bar and inside

the swamp cooler in the gym, but visible mold was not found, Sacco said.

He recommends thoroughly cleaning the furniture, equipment and other items

before removing them from the building, followed by a comprehensive building

assessment requiring demolition of some of the building.

Additionally, the building's heating, ventilating and air conditioning

system should be inspected for mold by a certified industrial hygienist and

a contractor who specializes in heating systems, Sacco said.

All furniture and equipment should be inventoried and photographed, and

items such as upholstered or cloth furniture, stuffed toys, stereo speakers,

mattresses, throw rugs and pillows should be discarded, Sacco said.

But work cannot begin to clean up the mold, said, until the roof is

either repaired or replaced.

The question will be who pays for the needed work -- city of Galt taxpayers

or the Boys and Girls Club.

" It is the Boys and Girls Club's sole responsibility to maintain and, at

this point, repair the facility at the Boys and Girls Club's sole expense, "

City Attorney Ruthann Ziegler said in a later dated Thursday to the Boys and

Girls Club. " I would appreciate you contacting me as soon as possible as to

the steps that the Boys and Girls Club plans to take as to this matter. "

Shane McLatchey, the club's executive director, said declined to comment

Friday because he hadn't had a chance to thoroughly review the report.

Board members from the Boys and Girls Club were unavailable for comment

Friday afternoon.

Copies of the engineer's report are available to the public at the city

clerk's office, 380 Civic Drive, Galt.