Troy Mayor Faces three Violations on Asbestos Issues

Troy Mayor Faces 3 Violations on Asbestos Problems

(Troy, Michigan - January 26, 2011) Mayor Harry Tutunjian received three notices Tuesday from the State Department of Labor for the city’s failure to remove asbestos before beginning demolition on the City Hall.

In a brief media conference, Tutunjian vowed to fight versus the allegations. In addition, city officials denied the accusations, saying that they were not demolishing the building but only undertaking exploratory work in preparation for the asbestos abatement.

Reports said that the Federal Department is only acting in response to several issues from the residents of Troy.  Leo Rosales, representative of the State Department of Labor, explained that the city has the right to appeal against the allegations. Regrettably, the asbestos still has to be removed from the building before demolition.

Meanwhile, City Engineer Russ Reeves reiterated that there is no ongoing demolition, but only an asbestos abatement. This is in contrast to the accusation of Thomas Abbott, a state inspector who appeared at the site on January 3, stating demolition work started on December 31 onwards. He added that the remediation may take about ten days to complete before they proceed to the actual demolition of the City Hall.

Tutunjian, on the other hand, expressed his concerns over a $960,000 state grant that is set to fund the demolition of the city hall. He said that the fund will help Troy move ahead with the project. Still, with all those violations, they will not only lose the grant but also a positive development project that awaits the city. Given these concerns, he said that he will file an appeal against the accusations.

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