Independent inspector finds no asbestos at southwyck mall

When the Southwyck Shopping Mall in Toledo, Ohio, was surveyed on May 2, asbestos and toxic mold were found in the building. As a result the city had threatened to close the building down, giving owners of the mall just 72 hours to clean it up. However, third-party testing carried out on Friday May 9 failed to confirm the presence of asbestos and toxic mold. During the May 2 inspection, black mold was found on ceilings in the main concourse of the mall. Asbestos was discovered in a store that is currently vacant but City Building Inspection Commissioner Chris Zervos said that maintenance personnel who entered the vacant area could have inadvertently allowed asbestos to escape the contaminated area. Mall representatives released a statement about the problems, saying they were “surprised by the City of Toledo’s allegations that any unsafe conditions exist in the Mall since the City has conducted regular inspections for the past several years…and until today we had never been notified of anything of this nature.” The statement also said that the Southwyck Mall and its representatives have taken the city’s allegations seriously and “even though we believe no safety problem exists we have engaged an independent third party inspector to evaluate the situation.” That third-party inspector, from Watterson Environmental Group of Sylvania, found no visible evidence of airborne asbestos or mold growth in the Southwyck buildings, according to Kenneth C. Baker, a mall management attorney. Baker said that the Watterson report found “no visible evidence of suspect mold growth on the interior, exposed surfaces of the skylights of the mall,” and “no obvious visible evidence that any airborne asbestos debris is being tracked into the mall.” However, the mall isn’t yet free to remain open. Carty Finkbeiner, Mayor of Toledo, said that the building would have to undergo yet another inspection. Last week, the mayor said, “I hope it does not come to the point where we have to shut down the mall. If it does come to that, the city of Toledo department of development will work with current tenants to assist them in their relocation efforts.” Baker also said that the mall owners had not received “the results of any analytical tests by the city or anyone else which would lead us to conclude that any asbestos dust has escaped from the sealed-off.” In addition, says Baker, mall management “fully expects that all of the issues which may have caused the city to issue its closure notice will have been addressed to the city’s satisfaction by the opening of business on Monday.” (Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News)