Toxic Mold removed from The Healing Arts Center

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http://www.dailybreeze.com/content/bln/nmbmold18.html

Building contaminant removed

By Nix

DAILY BREEZE

The inside of Dr. Marie Cavanaugh's Redondo Beach chiropractic office smells

like lavender and lemongrass, while pastel walls and a trickling waterfall

contribute to the atmosphere of tranquility and healing.

The Healing Arts Center, on the second floor of the Plaza Riviera Building

on Catalina Avenue, is a stark contrast to the former state of the

building's lowest level, where toxic mold was found in three units.

The mold prompted alleged health problems for the tenants who worked there,

as well as a slew of litigation and news coverage about the contamination.

Those who remain in the 10-year-old complex say the building is mold free -

but the whole mess has left customers with fears that have dampened

business.

Cavanaugh said clients and potential clients, upon learning where her office

is, react by saying things like: " Oh, you're in the mold building. "

One of Cavanaugh's longtime patients, Lois Heintz, 61, of Hermosa Beach,

said that after she read about the mold in the newspaper, she called

Cavanaugh and told her she didn't know whether or not she would return

because she didn't want to be exposed to mold.

" I don't want to get sick and that's why I called her and said I don't like

what I'm reading in the newspaper, " Heintz said.

Heintz added that she never smelled or saw any mold, and never suffered

health problems. In any case, she did not go back to Cavanaugh for

chiropractic treatment for a couple of months, when she normally went every

week or two for her bad back.

Cavanaugh, Marcella Mitilineos, who owns Carissimo Bakery Cafe on the street

level, and Gafford, owner of 's Hair Color Studio on the

lower level, walked through the units last week where mold was found and

pointed out the work that was done.

The air smells clean, the walls are dry-walled and spackled and the ceiling

tiles are new. Workers were laying floor tiles, preparing the units for new

tenants.

The units formerly were occupied by Icon Executive Services, a limousine

rental company owned by and Tina Baragiola, and Thunder Promotions

and Coast Executive Search Associates, both owned by Shaun Loring.

The Baragiolas and Loring, as well as some of their employees, filed suit

against building owner Otto Wahlgren and the building's former

management company, DB Commercial. The lawsuits claim toxic strains of mold

were found in their units, causing health problems ranging from headaches to

flu-like symptoms, and that the owner and manager hid the dangers from

tenants.

Cross-complaints were filed by Wahlgren, claiming Loring used the mold as a

way to breach his lease and that the environmental cleanup firm Loring hired

actually spread the mold. In court papers, Wahlgren and DB Commercial deny

any wrongdoing.

Wahlgren's attorney, Walsh, said the remediation on the building is

complete and has passed muster with Cal-OSHA.

" It was never unsafe, " Walsh said of the building. " There was some isolated

mold in the building, but in a very relatively small area. "

Although Cal-OSHA did an inspection of the building, it did not release any

findings. Cal-OSHA does not have jurisdiction to issue citations for mold,

either. The investigator from the department said through a spokesman that

she could not comment on whether a citation was warranted one way or the

other.

Cal-OSHA referred requests for further information about the safety of the

building to environmental engineers hired by the building owner and the

tenants who complained.

The engineer for the building, Aeroscopic, did not return telephone calls.

However, an e-mail from Aeroscopic to a Cal-OSHA investigator, written in

September, purports to show that the mold spore count inside the building is

not problematic.

The engineer hired by the former tenants would say only that initial testing

showed mold and bacteria. He said he has not gone back to test since the

first part of 2001. He would not comment further because of the pending

litigation.

The business owners say they have watched as cleanup teams fixed plumbing,

filled in a leaky planter with cement and renovated the air system.

" They did what they were supposed to do, " said Gafford adding that she has

suffered from allergies to mold and dust in the past, but that she stood

inside the contaminated area and it smelled and felt " fabulous. "

The business owners would like Wahlgren to promote the safety of the

building, perhaps by having a grand re-opening, and plan to contact him with

their ideas.

" We just want to get back to business and dispense this black cloud, "

Cavanaugh said.