Rock Hill Herald Logo

Chester considers fumigating Finley Center | Rock Hill Herald

×
  • E-edition
  • Home
  • Customer Service
  • Mobile & Apps
  • Newsletters
  • Archives

    • All News
    • Local News
    • Local Traffic Cam
    • North Carolina
    • South Carolina
    • Business
    • Education
    • NIE
    • Crime
    • More News
    • Andrew Dys
    • Nation/World
    • Politics/Government
    • Weird News
    • Databases
    • Down Home Magazine
    • Physicians Directory
    • Fort Mill Times
    • Fort Mill Times Sports
    • Submit a News Tip
    • Submit a Letter to the Editor
    • All Sports
    • Panthers
    • College
    • Winthrop
    • High School
    • High School Football
    • Auto Racing
    • Politics
    • Elections
  • Obituaries
    • All Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Submit a Letter
    • To the Contrary
    • James Werrell
    • Palmetto Opinion
    • All Living
    • Community
    • Weddings
    • Engagements
    • Anniversaries
    • Births
    • Religion
    • Family
    • Home & Garden
    • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • Books
    • Calendar
    • Movies
    • Music
    • Puzzles & Games
    • Rewards
    • Horoscopes

  • Legals
  • Cars
  • Jobs
  • Moonlighting
  • Virtual Career Fair
  • Homes
  • Classifieds

Local

Chester considers fumigating Finley Center

By Charles D. Perry - Charles D. Perry

    ORDER REPRINT →

July 11, 2007 12:05 AM

CHESTER -- Chester leaders have changed their minds about paying for additional environmental tests on the S.L. Finley Center and have instead decided to use that money for repairs and the possible fumigation of the building.

The facility will remain closed like it has since June 11, when leaders received a report from a January study in which environmental inspectors found mold on both floors and in the auditorium of the roughly 50-year-old building.

After a second test last month showed some airborne mold spores had grown by as much as 2,300 percent and could pose a public health risk, the City Council decided to fund a third study.

Councilman Odell Williams said then that the second report didn't satisfy him and more tests by a different company would show the center that anchors East Chester wasn't in such bad shape.

SIGN UP

Sign Up and Save

Get six months of free digital access to The Herald

SUBSCRIBE WITH GOOGLE

#ReadLocal

But this week, other leaders said Williams told them that his constituents felt that additional tests likely would produce similar results to those he questioned. He could not be reached for comment.

Mayor Mitch Foster said Tuesday that he had talked to the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control and learned about a fumigation process used to eradicate mold in Gulf Coast homes after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

He said the city needs to explore such options to restore the building, which housed the recreation department until it was closed. Foster hopes the leaky roof can be mended and the mold destroyed.

The mayor said he is "fairly confident" that a third test would have produced results similar to the other tests, which is why he supported the decision to use the money differently.

"I thought it would have been money unjustly spent," he said.

On June 11, a representative from the company that performed the tests said the gym and offices weren't contaminated, but other areas of the building could pose a liability to the city if someone got sick from being there.

The latest report indicates that those areas now aren't safe and "there should be no activity in the Finley building except by essential personnel." The report also said that employees who do enter the building for an extended time should wear a protective mask if they are allergic to certain types of mold.

Once the city's all-black high school, the center offered young people a place to play indoor basketball without a charge and was occasionally rented out for private parties. Nearly 40 people also paid for memberships that allowed them to use the gym and workout area.

Councilwoman Annie Reid said she hopes part of the building can be treated and reopened while other work is done. With the emotions about the building calmed, Reid hopes solutions will be discovered.

"Now the community has said that they would prefer to use the money toward the cleanup of the building, which is fine," she said. "And I think that we probably just needed to do some more exploration and find some other avenues to correct the problem. I just don't want the building torn down just because they say there's mold in there."

  Comments  

Videos

Police K-9 dog Gabby receives ‘medal of valor’ for not running from gunfire in 2018

Rock Hill woman still in hospital after Feb. 12 shooting. Her co-workers want to help

View More Video

Trending Stories

Fort Mill hospital decision has been made. Here’s who gets to build it now

February 21, 2019 01:32 PM

York County suspect rams cop car, flushes ‘dangerous’ drugs next to kids, police say

February 21, 2019 09:28 AM

A sinkhole has a main road near downtown Rock Hill closed. Here’s where.

February 21, 2019 12:09 PM

Rock Hill armed robber out of jail a month kidnapped man, stole money, police say

February 22, 2019 10:13 AM

Student in Rock Hill charged with bringing weapon to school, police say

February 22, 2019 12:44 PM

Read Next

Lancaster 2018 robbery cases went cold. Then Charlotte cops found suspects in jail

Crime

Lancaster 2018 robbery cases went cold. Then Charlotte cops found suspects in jail

By Andrew Dys

    ORDER REPRINT →

February 22, 2019 04:19 PM

Two men from Charlotte jailed for several armed store robberies are now charged with two previously unsolved Lancaster, South Carolina crimes. The men were identified after their arrest in North Carolina.

KEEP READING

Sign Up and Save

#ReadLocal

Get six months of free digital access to The Herald

SUBSCRIBE WITH GOOGLE

MORE LOCAL

‘Nearly impossible’ goal met. Why more York County animal shelter dogs, cats survive

Local

‘Nearly impossible’ goal met. Why more York County animal shelter dogs, cats survive

February 22, 2019 01:47 PM
York County cops in 2018 gunfight with killer got medals. A K-9 dog got one, too.

Local

York County cops in 2018 gunfight with killer got medals. A K-9 dog got one, too.

February 22, 2019 03:21 PM
‘He helped shape Rock Hill’: Longtime city council member dies at 74

Local

‘He helped shape Rock Hill’: Longtime city council member dies at 74

February 22, 2019 01:16 PM
Student in Rock Hill charged with bringing weapon to school, police say

Crime

Student in Rock Hill charged with bringing weapon to school, police say

February 22, 2019 12:44 PM
Rock Hill armed robber out of jail a month kidnapped man, stole money, police say

Latest News

Rock Hill armed robber out of jail a month kidnapped man, stole money, police say

February 22, 2019 10:13 AM
Some Lancaster County schools closed; power out for 2,000 customers

Local

Some Lancaster County schools closed; power out for 2,000 customers

February 22, 2019 07:32 AM
Take Us With You

Real-time updates and all local stories you want right in the palm of your hand.

Icon for mobile apps

Rock Hill Herald App

View Newsletters

Subscriptions
  • Start a Subscription
  • Customer Service
  • eEdition
  • Vacation Hold
  • Pay Your Bill
  • Rewards
Learn More
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletters
  • News in Education
  • Archives
Advertising
  • Advertising Information
  • Place Obituary, Celebration
  • Place Classified, Legal
  • Local Deals
Copyright
Commenting Policy
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service


Back to Story