City closes Water Tower Rec Center due to lead paint
By JENNIFER KATZ
On Thursday, March 2, the city announced that it was closing the Water
Tower Recreation Center at 209 E. Hartwell Lane immediately in response
to discovery of damaged and chipped lead paint at the center.
Representatives from the city Department of Health conducted the lead
paint testing on Wednesday, Feb. 22, after Acting Deputy Commissioner
for Maintenance at the Dept. of Recreation Tom Fox received a letter from
a “concerned parent” about chipped paint in the building,
said Department of Recreation Commissioner Victor Richard. The tests results
showed positive levels of lead present, although the exact levels were
not available from the Dept. of Health at press time.
The testing and the closure took many at the center by surprise, according
to Sarah Maneely, president of the water tower advisory council. Center
staff was informed of the decision to close immediately on Thursday, Feb.
23, one day after the Health department’s testing. “It was
a surprise, of course it was,” said Maneely. “We knew the
building had damage because of the roof which needed to be replaced. But
it is being replaced.”
Commissioner Richard stated that it is not uncommon for the department
to respond to a single outcry from the community, although this is the
first time the issue of lead paint has been raised in a city recreational
facility during his six year tenure as commissioner.
The center’s temporary closing displaces dozens of programs that
area families rely on for childcare and group activities. According to
District Four Manager Steve Vestosky, only the afterschool program will
be relocated to the Jenks elementary school building to accommodate families
that rely on the program for childcare from 3 to 6 p.m.
Maneely said that everyone enrolled in a program at the center had been
notified and notices were also posted on the building doors.
The center will remain closed temporarily for two to three weeks while
the city works to remediate the lead-paint issue, according to Commissioner
Richard.
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