Temple police have to vacate ‘sick’ building

[Guest guest]

Temple police have to vacate `sick' building

by Spencer Crawford

Villa Rican Times Georgian

http://times-georgian.com/bookmark/12287588-Temple-police-have-to-vacate-%E2%80%\

98sick%E2%80%99-building

slideshow The Temple Police Department is being forced to vacate its current

facility after it was determined that the building is making the staff sick.

Police Chief Tim Shaw said the problem with absences due to sickness has been

ongoing, which led him to take action. Through a survey of his staff he found

that the most common symptoms were chronic fatigue and extended periods of

sinusitis, which the Centers for Disease Control lists as common symptoms when

exposed to mold spores.

" I've got chronic and acute illnesses and it's all of the same magnitude, " Shaw

said. " We've got extensive periods of sinusitis and things like that and that's

what kind of raised the red flag for me. "

Shaw called the Carroll County Health Department to check the 38-year-old

building located at 171 East St. and do a moisture content measurement,

which showed extremely high levels of moisture in the building. A follow-up

inspection by Villa Rica Code Enforcement Officer Moran resulted in the

same findings.

To verify these results, an independent lab was called in to test for mold and

the results were alarming. Fourteen air samples were taken and elevated levels

of mold were found in several places.

Beyond the mold issues, Moran's inspection found a variety of other deficiencies

in the building, such as non-ADA compliance due to inadequate

handicap-accessibility, open junction boxes in the attic with exposed wiring and

an inadequate heating/cooling system.

Those reports were brought to the City Council, which voted Monday to move

forward with relocating the Police Department to a new temporary facility until

space can be renovated for the department's use in the Sewell building that was

purchased a few years ago for a new City Hall. The city has $1.5 million

earmarked for the renovation in the current Carroll County SPLOST, but that

money is to be collected over the life of the six-year sales tax.

" We're calling it a short-term solution until we know a little bit more about

when we're going to move on the Sewell building, " Mayor Rick Ford said. " We're

doing requests for qualifications for the architectural services on that project

now. We're hoping, especially with this going on with the police building, that

we'll start on the Sewell building in the third or fourth quarter. "

According to the CDC, exposure to mold spores for extended periods of time could

lead to long-term health issues. But the city is not aware of any plans by

police personnel to file suit against the city due to this exposure, which they

said would be out of their control if it happens.

" Do I expect a lawsuit? No, but you never know what someone might do, " Shaw

said. " Once we identified the problem, the city has taken the appropriate steps

to get our people out. I don't think you can be faulted for doing the right

thing. "

Ford added that as soon as he and the council were made aware of the problem

they became proactive in finding a solution.

" Number one, we want protect our employees and the general public who come into

the facility, " he said.

Temple had agreed to a lease agreement with the owners of a building on Highway

78 for the Police Department's use, but that agreement fell through before the

lease could be signed. According to city officials, the property owners tried to

increase the price at the last minute from the $1,000 that had tentatively been

agreed upon.

" They reneged on the terms we had agreed upon and came back to us asking for

more money, so we turned them down, " Ford said.

City officials are now negotiating with a third party to use two double-wide

trailers for police headquarters that would be located in the parking lot of the

Sewell building until renovations of the building are complete. The Sewell

building already has water and sewer connections that could be hooked to the

trailers. Accommodations would still need to be made for security of the police

equipment and evidence that would be stored in the trailers.

" They're going to have to accommodate everything, " Shaw said. " We're going to

try to keep costs down as much as possible. "

Though Shaw and Ford said they want police personnel moved out of the current

building as soon as possible, the furniture and other equipment must first be

professionally cleaned and immediately moved into the new facility. Approval of

the deal for the trailers is not expected until late next week, so police will

have to continue to operate out of the current facility until at least the end

of the week or early the following week.

" We're going to move as fast as we can with it. We're not going to let this

situation sit, " Ford said. " We anticipate a short-term fix by the end of next

week. "

According to Ford, the working plan for the current facility is to remove the

mold spores from the building before razing it once the staff is moved to the

department's new home. The vacant space would then likely be used for parking

for the nearby recreation complex.

" The City Council hasn't yet voted on that, but that's sort of the plan because

we're in dire straits for parking, especially when we move into the Sewell

building and we start eating up that parking in the rear, " he said.

Municipal Court, which meets the first three Tuesdays of each month, will now be

held at City Hall, which will be open on those days from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

to allow the courtroom to be set up in time for the evening session.

According to Shaw, the main benefit to the new temporary home for the Police

Department is that it should help keep his officers at work and not at home

sick.

" I'm hoping productivity kind of shoots through the roof with everybody coming

to work, " he said.

Read more: Times-Georgian - Temple police have to vacate `sick' building