Oakley Avenue home now mold-free

May 23, 2008

Munster Times - Munster,IN*

BY GREGORY TEJEDA

Times Correspondent | Friday, May 23, 2008

cf226bec1491b86257451007d6a25.txt

LANSING | Want to buy a house in the south suburbs? Village

President Dan Podgorski can personally attest that a house now for

sale in his hometown is mold-free and no longer smells.

Tuesday, village officials heard how local government had to get

involved with regards to the house at 18436 Oakley Ave., which had

been empty since the former owners moved out in the summer of 2007.

The house had been sitting empty and without electricity when a

plumbing problem caused flooding in the basement, which resulted in

massive water damage throughout the house. Because no one was

actually living there, the problem was not discovered until the

resulting mold caused an odor so severe that neighbors noticed --

and complained to the village.

The house was eventually taken over by Chase, which got stuck with

paying for intense cleanups to remove the mold.

Podgorski said that the bank's initial cleanup effort was

substandard, and the village had to put political pressure on the

financial institution to get the second round of mold cleanups --

which were done by AES Co.

" It took the village threat to shut the place down to get Chase

bank's attention, " Podgorski said.

The Environmental Consulting Group also was hired to oversee the AES

efforts, and village officials did not back off of their efforts to

crack down until they too took a tour of the house May 12.

Podgorski and village Building Commissioner Jeff Suppan both were

among those who walked through the house, and Podgorski said it was

possible to enter the structure and spend time in it without having

to wear special masks to prevent toxins from being inhaled.

" There's no signs of mold, there's no more odors, " Podgorski

said. " The house can now be placed up for sale. "

Recommended Posts