RSS Feed
|
|||||||||||||||||
|
Anonymous Flyer About Asbestos Prompts Discussion AT CB18 Meeting
The yellow flyer, which one recipient turned over to the Courier last week, reads in bold print, "Asbestos from Waldbaums (stet) is contaminating our neighborhood." But, CB 18 district manager Dorothy Turano flatly said the circular "has no validity." Turano noted that the flyer is unsigned nor attributed to anyone and is possibly retaliation by a disgruntled former employee. In early January, before the supermarket at 2149 Ralph Avenue shut its doors for a four-month makeover, a similar unsigned handout was distributed. Before closing on January 21 for extensive renovations, a spokesperson for the Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company (commonly known as A&P), the supermarket's parent company, told the Courier that asbestos was discovered in the roofing, which was a common material used when the store was built and before its dangers were widely known, though it was "not a serious problem" and would be removed, according to state and federal guidelines. The A&P spokesperson also criticized the flyer's misleading content and explained that he tried to determine its author, but was unsuccessful, adding, "The level of asbestos discovered never posed a danger to the public or our employees." Turano said Waldbaum's has a long lease at the current site and would not risk its reputation. Waldbaum's plans to reopen, sometime in May, with an altered name - Waldbaum's Fresh - to highlight the chain's retooled image. According to Saul Needle, CB 18 chairman, asbestos only becomes a problem when it breaks up because "it is friable." Needle also explained that the state's departments of energy and energy conservation "always make sure asbestos is properly removed when it is discovered on commercial or private property." CB 18 board member Jeff Miller said, "No one stands behind this flyer - it is just a fear campaign." Some at the meeting said they were nonetheless concerned and pointed out that whoever put together the flyer went to great expense - printing and mailing - and the discovery of asbestos did worry them. Turano suggested that anyone who has concerns should call 311 and ask for the city's Department of Environmental Protection. The CB 18 district manager also said there may be concerns about the possibility of asbestos in the buildings near Waldbaum's and promised to look further into that issue. "The person who wrote the flyer even said this topic would be on the community board's agenda, which it was not," Turano said. "This is just unnecessary fear produced by an unreliable source."
|
for larger version       |
||||||||||||||||
