Zeeq Michel uses the same bus almost every day to get to and from his extracurricular job at Spokane Salish School.
Zeeg, 15, said he feared for his protection whenever he was trapped waiting through the pole at the corner of Maple Street and Maxwell Avenue, basically because of the condemned “incomplete” construction.
The bus stop is just a few feet from where one of the West Central neighborhood’s most problematic eyesores used to sit. The Spokane County Public Works department tore down the structure in early January and Zeeg said he’s felt a lot safer ever since.
“There’s a lot of suspicious activity there,” he said. I saw a lot of drug use there, just out in the open, and kind of a restless crowd hanging around. “
The structure was a former office building belonging to the W.R. Grace and Co., which operated its Vermiculite Northwest plant on the property up until the 1970s. The plant processed vermiculite ore contaminated with asbestos from the company’s mine near Libby, Montana, and turned it into attic insulation called Zonolite.
Spokane County bought the land in 2000, and shortly after, the Environmental Protection Agency conducted soil testing that found asbestos fibers throughout the property. The mine where the ore was sourced had an asbestos deposit that contaminated most of the vermiculite. In 2007, the county elected to use asphalt to cap and seal the southwest portion of the property, where the vermiculite processing and handling buildings once stood. The highest concentrations of asbestos were found there at depths of up to 4 feet.
Exposure to asbestos can lead to mesothelioma, cancer, and lung problems, in addition to asbestosis.
Public Works Director Kyle Twohig said there were plans to demolish the construction for a long time, but the procedure was fast-tracked at the request of County Commissioner Chris Jordan.
Jordan, who represents the West Central neighborhood, said he first started hearing from constituents about the old office building shortly after taking office last January. Residents in the neighborhood complained that it was an eyesore and attracted a wide range of criminal activity.
“I was lucky enough to tour the assets and saw used needles on the ground, trash inside the fence and beyond, graffiti,” Jordan said. “I had heard that this was a long-standing factor in the community, so I reached out to Public Works to see what we can do to speed up this process.
Crews began demolition in December after cutting through asbestos discovered inside. They finished their paintings at the beginning of the new year. Jordan said he thanks Twohig and the Department of Public Works for their help in alleviating a longstanding fear for those who live and work near the building.
“With the nuisance factor we faced, we withdrew the case very soon,” Twohig said. “And I’ve heard feedback from the community about this decision. “
The demolition is a precursor to much larger paintings the county planned at the site. Currently, the branch houses most of its heavy machinery, tracing equipment, and an education trailer. Twohig said they plan to build a new public painting facility there in the next few years that will combine the branch’s bridge equipment, signage paint shop, signage paint shop, structure control office, framing materials and an education room.
Twohig said most of the structural paintings will be placed in the least infected spaces on the site, but there is a threat of environmental and health concerns. The layer of asphalt that covers most of the infected soils will not be disturbed and will not need to be repositioned. However, the Ministry will be the one to upload elements to it.
EPA investigators visited the site three times between 2000 and 2011 and conducted soil tests that showed that significant soil structure or ground movement at the site can simply release columns of asbestos into the air and create a health hazard. The federal government also removed infected soil from a fence of the structure in April 2011.
The county’s Department of Public Works will collaborate heavily with the Washington State Department of Ecology to mitigate concerns, Twohig said.
“It’s less polluted, so there’s not as much of a concern,” Twohig said. “Still, we will follow a healthy testing regimen. “
The assignment is still in its early stages, however, Twohig and Jordan said they are ahead of what’s in store for the former processing site. Twohig said the branch is working to make sure all the needs of the allocation are met, adding that it needs to make sure there is sufficient funding.
“I’m excited to see how the operational amenities move forward and I think it’s an opportunity to take a look at our county homes and see, holistically, how they can best meet our desires and those of neighboring communities,” Jordan said.
Zeeg, while at the bus stop he uses Tuesday afternoon, looked where the construction once stood and smiled. He noted that the dirt yard had been fenced off, preventing other people from congregating there.
“I’m less nervous. I’m less worried about my well-being, you know,” he said. Now it’s just dirt. “