Cherry creek defends firing of former code officer

Cherry Creek, New York â€" On April 5, 2008, officials in the Chautauqua County village of Cherry Creek voted to terminate the employment of Code Enforcement Officer Frank Watson, after he refused to sign off on a set of demolition papers. This week, the town is defending its actions in a letter sent out to residents. The incident centers on the demolition of Cherry Creek’s old and dilapidated schoolhouse. Frank Watson refused to sign papers that would have allowed demolition of the building to proceed, saying his refusal was on the grounds that proper asbestos abatement procedures weren’t being followed. The trouble began in February, when demolition of the Cherry Creek schoolhouse was initiated. At the time code enforcement had not issued any permits, and there were questions about whether an asbestos inspection had been carried out prior to demolition. At a meeting held on March 12, Department of Labor’s Asbestos Control Division confirmed that notice of asbestos code violations in relation to the Cherry Creek school building had been issued to the village. Department spokesperson Chris Perham confirmed that “The violations ha[d] stipulations attached that state the village must correct whatever the specific issue was.” Edward Krasinski, a Labor Department industrial hygienist, said that the village had hired a non-licensed contractor, and that the contractor was using non-certified workers. Buildings which contain asbestos must undergo specific procedures before demolition can be carried out, as any asbestos which remains in the building can disperse clouds of inhalable fibers during the demolition process. Asbestos must be removed from any building that is scheduled for demolition, before the demolition takes place. In addition, the asbestos must be removed according to regulated procedures and disposed of in a landfill that is legally permitted to accept asbestos waste. Watson claims that after the demolition had already began, Cherry Creek’s mayor asked him to sign off on the demolition, but Watson refused to do so due to his concerns about the way asbestos was being handled. Watson further claimed he was fired for purely political reasons to do with his refusal to illegally sign the permit, calling the incident “small-town politics at its worst.” Cherry Creek Mayor Dean Mount however, claimed that budget constraints were a more significant contribution to Watson’s being firedâ€"that the incident “probably” had something to do with Watson being fired, but only “a very small part of it.” This week, village officials mailed out a letter to residents, in which Mayor Dean Mount and members of the village board say they stand by their decision to terminate Frank Watson’s employment. Of the demolition, Mount says, “We’re working with the state now to get it done right. Hopefully we’ll have it taken care of in the next six to eight weeks.” (Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News)