A woman in Ithaca has sealed up the homes she rents with plastic in fear of she says are chemicals coming from across the street.
Susan Kramer’s properties aren’t hard to see. She has several on West Court Street in Ithaca and they are all wrapped in plastic at the entrances and windows. Across the street, the old Tompkins County Public Library is being torn down, and Kramer claims asbestos and other harmful chemicals fill the air when construction goes on.
“It is not just frustrating. It is really terrifying,” Kramer said. “We are afraid short term and long term of the contamination that is occurring here that we are watching occur on a daily basis.”
The demolition of the building has been a hot button issue in Ithaca since the summer. There is asbestos in the building, but the property owners, Travis Hyde Properties say everything about the demolition is up to standard and the air is safe. They provided a fact sheet. It is listed below.
When will the Old Library be taken down?
The combined abatement and demolition of the former Tompkins County Public Library commenced on December 3th with site mobilization and actual demolition started on December 17th. Originally planned to start before Thanksgiving, the Mayor of Ithaca asked to delay the demolition to have an independent structural engineering firm evaluate the structure of the roof to either confirm or contradict the findings of the original structural engineering report. Travis Hyde agreed to allow the second inspection. The findings of an unsafe roof were confirmed by the independent engineer. The demolition will require 30 work days to complete.
WSYR-TV – Syracuse:
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