Asbestos-Laden Abandoned Apartments Raise Concern

In Arkansas, the Crosset City Council is trying to find a way to resolve the issue of an abandoned apartment complex potentially laden with asbestos located at Fifth Avenue and Pine Street.

Jerry Dixon, the property owner, was scheduled to appear before the council in February. Not only did Dixon fail to appear, but he is now ignoring phone calls from the council, according to Jeff Harrison, the city's public works director, who says he has also sent Dixon numerous letters without getting a reply.

Harrison notes that Dixon has completed some repairs to the property, but not nearly enough to bring it up to code. The property was condemned last year after Harrison discovered faulty electrical equipment that posed a fire hazard. This consisted of extension cords running to the building from the outside lying in the snow and wet of Arkansas winter.

After receiving a warning, Dixon reportedly remodeled the inside of the building, adding new electrical fixtures and outlets and new plumbing. Dixon also installed new windows and doors, but left the siding job half-finished when he presumably ran out of money, time or patience.

The city council has run out of patience with the property, which it deems an eyesore, and wants Dixon to finish the siding or allow the city to condemn and demolish the property. The problem with deconstruction is that the apartment building is 40 years old and likely contains asbestos, which under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act, or AHERA, requires specially trained and licensed remediation firms, sampling for asbestos before deconstruction, and air quality surveys conducted both before and after demolition.

The cost of deconstruction is about $50,000. The costs if asbestos is found can triple or quadruple that figure, an amount the city does not feel it can afford on its current budget.

At the most recent city council meeting, both Harrison and Alderman Wilburn Austin observed that the situation was clearly past the discussion phase, and that - given Dixon's unwillingness to cooperate - the next likely step was indeed condemnation. Crossett Mayor Scott McCormick agreed, but that added that Dixon should be present for such a decision, to give the city legal immunity when proceeding.

Asbestos, a mineral that occurs naturally in some types of rock formations, was mined in the U.S. up until the early 1970s, when the government and manufacturers began to recognize its dangers. Unlike pesticides and some other environmental pollutants, asbestos doesn't degrade, but remains dangerous for centuries, its miniscule fibers causing irritation of mesothelial tissues when inhaled or ingested.

This irritation can lead to asbestosis, cancers of the lung and digestive tract, and mesothelioma, a particularly lethal and essentially incurable cancer of mesothelial tissues. Pleural mesothelioma is the most common form of mesothelioma, and can take decades to manifest. When it does, patients are rarely given more than a year to live.

Dixon, who is reportedly doing the remodeling by himself with one helper, has not made significant progress in several months and refuses to communicate with the city council. The quandary with allowing Dixon more time to complete his project (beyond the time he's already been granted) is that future property owners in Crosset may use the city council's delayed action as a precedent to delay other, city-mandated repairs and renovations for years.

The city council has asked Harrison to make final attempts to contact Dixon and get a commitment on a completion date. If Dixon does not respond by the next city council meeting, the city will make a final decision whether Dixon is present or not.

Source: Ashley County Ledger, Health Care Industry Today

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