Mold forces evacuation of Sarasota County's green prize

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Mold forces evacuation of Sarasota County's green prize

December 27, 2007 2:59 PM

Microbial colonizations spoil Sarasota County's first LEED-certified

green building complex.

Charlotte Sun-Herald - Charlotte Harbor,FL*

By GREG GILES

Venice News Editor

http://www.sun-herald.com/breakingnews.cfm?id=4290

Sarasota County's green sustainability program took it on the chin

this past week.

The county's administrative Twin Lakes Green Building Complex has

mold -- enough to require evacuation of the building, according to

County Administrator Jim Ley.

Building A, a one-story facility home to 45 parks and recreation,

library and other staff, will be evacuated beginning next week.

Renovation could begin by the end of January, according to

McCarthy, general manager for county parks and recreation.

Personnel will be moved to various locations, but the parks and

recreation reservation office will remain on campus to minimize

interruption during peak season, McCarthy said.

" Last week we identified who all need to go (and) made arrangements

for a firm to come in and work on the building. It's a short term

move (that) comes at a time where we want to minimize disruption, "

McCarthy said.

Nobody has suffered any ill effects from the mold, so far, he said.

" This is preventative. "

Odorous

On Dec. 19, County Administrator Jim Ley informed county

commissioners via an interoffice memo about the mold problem.

When staff first sensed an odor, Pure Air Control Services was

brought in for testing, according to Ley's memo.

The company found " carpet backing displayed discoloration caused by

microbial colonization (mold) " in numerous locations.

They " confirm(ed) excessive mold in all locations tested. " The

condition of the carpets was considered " unmanageable, " warranting

replacement of the floor.

They'll study the rest of the building to see if airborne mold is a

problem and confirm the mold hasn't made its way into the walls.

Setback?

County Commissioner Staub, one of 10 county commissioners

nationally to serve on the Green Government Initiative advisory

board, a National Association of Counties program that helps

counties throughout the country develop and implement

environmentally sustainable programs and practices, took the news in

stride.

" These things happen and we will do our best to fix the problem, "

Staub said.

" It seems to me that this is a pretty unusual case -- with the past

history of being built on a marsh area by the private sector, then

us renovating it and trying the underground drainage that was

suggested. We tried to fix the issue -- but didn't get the

underground drainage to work. "

While the development is unfortunate, Staub doesn't see it hindering

green building efforts.

" I don't think this will affect our future plans to build and

renovate to the green standards. Green building is the only way to

build and renovate for future sustainability. That hasn't changed, "

she said.

Building A was originally built in 1970 on a marsh by the Kansas

City Royals baseball team and used as a dormitory for players.

The county came into ownership of the building when it took over the

facility and created Twin Lakes Park, converting it into an office

building.

The U.S. Green Building Council awarded the complex (which consists

of the new Building B and the renovated Building A) its prestigious

gold-level LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)

certification in 2005.

The designation recognizes buildings and grounds that

are " environmentally responsible, profitable and healthy places to

live and work. "

Problem resurfaces

The county first discovered mold back in 2003 when it decided to

renovate the building while at the same time building the new

adjacent green office building.

It hired Ardaman Associates to assess the situation.

Ardaman determined the problem existed because the building was

originally constructed on " unsuitable soil. "

The county eventually hired an architectural firm to design a

perimeter drainage system to eliminate moisture intrusion. According

to Ley, it was the only cost effective solution.

The architect/contractor, however, would not guarantee the drainage

system would solve the problem.

With their only alternative being to tear the building down, the

county decided to move forward with the drainage project.

In November Gov. Charlie Crist went on an environmentally friendly

building tour throughout Florida, stopping off in Sarasota County to

recognize efforts here.

The complex on Road in Sarasota houses administrative offices

for Sarasota County Community Services, which includes libraries,

parks and recreation, the History Center and the University of

Florida-Sarasota County Extension.