Photo by John F. Russell
Laurel Street Preschool reopens today after asbestos was found under moldy carpet. A Routt County health specialist said the Old Town Steamboat Springs school met all requirements for reopening, including an air test.
Preschool reopens after asbestos, moldy carpeting removed
Laurel Street Preschool cleared after health inspection
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Steamboat Springs — Laurel Street Preschool reopens Wednesday after closing for more than two weeks when the removal of moldy carpet revealed the presence of asbestos tiling at the Old Town Steamboat Springs preschool.
Routt County Environmental Health Specialist Jason Striker said the school has met all requirements to reopen the building, which included removal of the carpet, tiling and passing a final air clearance test.
The school’s board of directors issued a letter to parents Tuesday informing them that Laurel Street had been cleared to reopen.
Striker, of the Routt County Department of Environmental Health, said a complaint led him to inspect the school April 27. He said groundwater had seeped into the school’s lower level, where there weren’t any children, since April 19. Because the water damage resulted in black mold, he said the carpet was removed April 29 and the asbestos tile was exposed.
He said the school, which daily serves about 30 children ages 2 1/2 to 5, voluntarily closed to address the issue. The preschool has since operated at the Igloo at Howelsen.
Striker said the tiling didn’t previously present a health risk at the preschool, which has operated since 1964.
“That asbestos was under the carpeting,” he said. “It wasn’t exposed until the carpet was removed.
“When it was exposed, that’s when there was a risk.”
After the tile was confirmed to have asbestos, Mountain Asbestos Abatement, of Parker, removed the tiling from the building’s lower level. Then DS Consulting, of Avon, conducted the air clearance test. Striker then signed off on Monday on Laurel Street’s ability to reopen.
Janet Murray, an environmental geologist with Northwest Colorado Consultants, the Steamboat company that tested the tiling for asbestos, said asbestos is “fairly common” in Old Town, depending on the age of the building.
“Many different building materials I view on a weekly basis contain asbestos in Old Town,” she said.
The board of directors’ letter to parents stated that pre-kindergarten students would have class in the school’s upstairs until new flooring, which is being ordered, is installed.
— To reach Jack Weinstein, call 970-871-4203 or email jweinstein@SteamboatToday.com
Comments
Tamera Manzanares 2 years ago
Laurel Street staff did a great job of keeping school "business as usual" for the kids; especially with less than helpful weather. Thanks to the City of Steamboat for accommodating the kids in the Igloo while the tile was being removed. A comment from Laurel Street staff or a member of the Board of Directors would have been nice in this article.
Shelly Bisbee 2 years ago
On behalf of the Laurel Street Board of Directors we would like to thank the city of Steamboat Springs for their quick response and help in relocating the children to the Igoo. A big thank you to the parents and staff at Laurel Street for all their support and patience during our relocation. The board was in contact with the newspaper and provided them documentation and contact information as requested regarding the school.
zeketaken 2 years ago
I wish I had reason to commend Jack Weinstein on a good article informing the public about the goings-on around Steamboat Springs, but unfortunately I am just disheartened by the negative article he chose to write about a wonderful community school.
Jack, you have written similar articles in the past that have surprised me just as this one did. I fully understand how what happened at Laurel Street was newsworthy, but in your effort to grab the attention of your readers you ended up implying this amazing school was somehow endangering its students. You had ample opportunity to go to the school and speak to the outstanding staff members, get some thoughts from the children who were affected, or even speak with board members. Unfortunately you chose to take the easy road, the short cut, and compromised your journalistic standards without even considering how your article might make this school, staff and students look to the rest of the concerned community.
Luckily I know more of the story and have chosen to help correct some of the misperceptions you helped to create in your shortsighted article by explaining how the staff did everything in their power try and stay ahead of the rising water. I've explained to those misinformed by your article how loyal parents gave their time help as well to ensure their children and others would continue to have a safe place to learn.
Unfortunately there is another side to the story that did not seem to make its way into the light. It just so happens that the school's extraordinary director was out of town as the water began to rise on the lower level of the building. The staff did everything they could, as mentioned earlier, to keep the water at bay, but also informed the school's board what was occurring in the building. Regrettably, the board members informed did not see the urgency in the pleas of the staff for help.
It was because board dragged their feet that the teachers/staff were forced to work tirelessly to resolve the water seepage issue on their own. Some staff members spent evenings and weekends working to mitigate the flooding that was now taking place. They were doing this with the only true things in mind- the safety and welfare of their students. When some of the parents saw, or heard, the stories of the teachers spending their personal time trying their best to keep the rising waters from ruining teaching materials and supplies from getting ruined, they jumped in to offer help.
(Continued....)
zeketaken 2 years ago
....Part Two.....
These parents efforts to try and solve a problem that was not being dealt with in the timely fashion they and the staff felt was needed, may be what created the asbestos tiles exposure. However, I feel it needs to be stated that the board was informed well in advance of the problems with water in the lower level, but for whatever reason did not see it needed to be dealt with quickly. The parents that jumped in to help the teachers, their kids and the children of fellow parents were only doing something kind and generous. I hope their efforts do not get swept under the rug, nor should they take any blame for the tile exposure because something needed to be done- and quickly.
It might appear that I feel the board is at fault here, and while I truly appreciate all of their efforts to help keep this school the amazing place it is for children, I do want to make clear that I truly wish they saw the urgency in this matter. The parents who chose to help when help did not arrive were only doing the right thing by acknowledging the lack of attention the rising waters deserved.
Now that the children are back at the school they love, a huge thank you needs to go to everyone involved with the city who allowed our children to share the igloo while our school dealt with its issues. Another huge thank you should go to the parents who dove in head first to help out. Without their help I can only imagine the amount of damage that could have taken place due to the rising waters. But most of all, I want to thank the teachers and the director for their devotion to our kids and their wellbeing.
Jack Weinstein was not able to show anyone in his article how great this school is. Sadly, he only showed a one time issue that incited fear and concern among others. My worry now is that as parents of preschoolers who are now starting to consider where to send their child(ren) for the next school year, will see this article and think the worst. They might very well dismiss the truly spectacular school because of Jack Weinstein's one-sided and shortsighted article.
To anyone considering where to send their children next year, I am obviously biased, but I can tell you I have very good reason to be biased. The fact that we had teachers spending their own evenings and weekends trying to help out with this problem is testament to how great of people they are. The is so very little turnover of staff at Laurel Street and this is one of the reasons why we love this school so much. While the building may be old, it has nothing to do with the kind of education the children receive there.
Just like you can't judge a book by its cover, you should not judge this school by the building's age or judge it based on Jack Weinstein's article.
zeketaken 2 years ago
I feel the need to make two more comments with regard to the article at hand and my comments above. I failed to notice my name did not get published along with my comments (just my username) but I certainly feel I can put my name with those comments. I think I have fixed this by adding it to my profile.
Lastly, upon going back to re-read what I had written yesterday, I know now that I did something quite similar to what I was upset with Jack Weinstein for. That being, I did not speak to everyone involved with the issue of mold/asbestos. I made comments that did not take into account that I never spoke with any board member of the school. Unfortunately, I only see that now after making my comments above.
With that said, I do wish the board found a way to communicate with the concerned parents of the school. While this never happened, I should have taken the time myself to speak to a board member. And, certainly before making the comments I chose to make above.
As stated earlier, I truly appreciate everything our board has done to keep Laurel Street the amazing school it is. I would still choose Laurel Street over any other pre-school in town because of the strength of the board, and most importantly, the simply outstanding staff.
I still think Jack should have spent more time to speak to those involved.
Signed, Mike Ruzicka
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