Mold dispute reaches impasse

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Mold dispute reaches impasse

Greenwich Time - Greenwich,CT*

By Hoa Nguyen

Staff Writer

Article Launched: 04/10/2008

http://www.greenwichtime.com/ci_8872168

School officials are at an impasse with a group of Hamilton Avenue

School parents who want their environmental expert to run a new

battery of tests on the mold-infested modular building.

Both sides have been deep in negotiation about how this additional

round of testing will be carried out, but talks broke down earlier

this week.

" I really do think we tried really hard to reach an agreement and

we've reached an impasse that we're not going to get past, " said

Moriarty, a Board of Education member who has been

negotiating with parents.

A group of parents were expected to meet last night to discuss their

options, which for the moment look grim because the negotiation has

been called off, said DiBella, a Hamilton Avenue parent.

DiBella lobbied to have a parent-hired expert run a new round of

tests because they fear the mold contamination may be worse than

what the Board of Education has told parents.

" We think the whole building is loaded with mold, " she said.

Tensions have been running high since late Feburary when the modular

was evacuated because of mold. Although the town and an

environmental expert hired by the Board of Education said tests show

the mold was not hazardous to human health, a group of parents want

to run their own tests on the modular.

After an emotional plea from parents, education officials relented,

but discussions broke down after both sides could not agree on

terms, including who would be responsible for paying for what.

For instance, the Board of Education said that if the parents'

expert decides to knock down a wall in order to test behind it,

parents would have to pay for the wall to be put back and for the

section to be cordoned off to make sure mold spores in the wall will

not spread to other places.

DiBella said parents are willing to pay for the testing but that the

remediation costs may be unreasonable.

" You're talking about the poorest parents in the district, " she

said.

School officials may have to remediate the entire modular building

or possibly demolish it anyway, DiBella said.