Asbestos cleanup costs may doom an L.A. Fitness construction project

Asbestos cleanup costs may doom a gym construction project

The construction project for an L.A. Fitness gym may fall through due to improper filing of paperwork.

During the initial stages of the project, it was discovered that the 55,000 square foot building that was to be demolished and be replaced by the fitness center had contained a large amount of asbestos. The asbestos has been removed since then; however, the expenses incurred by the cleanup may be the reason why the L.A. Fitness construction project never goes through.

The grant that the project developer’s had been counting on to receive, which would cover the cost of the cleanup, was denied last week by a Metropolitan Council committee. The reason given was that Ned Abdul, the developer, had failed to follow the proper procedure in filing the paperwork for the funding. According to a Met Council attorney, following the specified procedures correctly was extremely important when dealing with a governmental body.

Abdul had started the cleanup before he applied for the grant, which is awarded by the council to projects that fulfill the necessary criteria - cleaning up polluted land to make way for economic redevelopment, job growth and job retention. Met Council documents note that there have been rare cases where such actions have been allowed, the applicant must inform the Council in a letter beforehand that the applicant was starting work on the project.

Annette Meeks, the committee’s vice-chair, abstained from voting because she felt sorry for Abdul, who she thought was “screwed in the process” by an unfair bureaucratic requirements.

There is still hope for the project, however. Although a committee had denied the grant, it is likely that the full Metropolitan Council will discuss the matter when it meets on February 13th.

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