Key Dates
City Staff and Consultants Continue Working on Temporary and Long-Term Solutions
City Council Meeting Presentation
City staff and consultants provided an update to the City Council on the emergency closure of City Hall, the findings of facility testing, and the anticipated scope of work to abate the facility. You can view the presentation and Council discussion here.
City Hall Tested to Determine Source and Extent of Asbestos Contamination and City Teams Relocate to Other City Facilities and Remote Work
Initial testing, performed by an asbestos abatement contractor, focused on air quality throughout the building and identifying other asbestos-containing materials.
Between late April and early July, the City’s contractor performed three primary types of tests: air quality, settled dust, and bulk material testing. No asbestos fibers were identified in the collected air samples, but asbestos was detected in settled dust tests, including samples from nine separate locations. Six samples, all of which were associated with the HVAC system, were considered to be “above background levels” (or in excess of 10,000 s/cm2). Additionally, floor tiles containing asbestos were identified under the carpet tiles on the main floor, covering approximately 10,000 sq ft., and three bulk samples taken from HVAC filters contained trace amounts of asbestos, along with two window-glazing putty samples that tested positive.
City teams relocated to other City facilities and/or continued to conduct business remotely while leadership began analyzing short-, medium-, and long-term solutions.
Asbestos Confirmed and City Hall Closed
Broken floor tiles and flooring adhesive were found in the mechanical room on April 14, 2023, which were subsequently confirmed on April 17, 2023, to be asbestos containing materials. The mechanical room houses one of the building’s air handling units (AHU) for the HVAC system, raising a concern about asbestos being distributed in the building via forced air.
City Hall was immediately closed to all employees and visitors.