Norris Recreation Center Fit for Occupancy; Mold Cleanup Complete

The cleanup of mold at has been completed, and by midafternoon, confirmed that air sample tests indicate the building is safe for occupancy.

The racquetball courts, however, will remain closed in the coming months as the district’s architect determines how to fix the problem that led to the mold in the first place, District 303 Superintendent Donald Schlomann wrote as part of an email the school district forwarded Friday morning.

The email was distributed with a copy of a letter from the district’s environmental consultant, Carnow, Conibear & Assoc. LTD. , and a report on the mold issue by architect ATS&R. Schlomann wrote that the cleanup is only the first of three phases of work at Norris. The second phase — identifying the source of the mold — also is complete.

“Phase 3 which will design a fix will take much longer, perhaps several months, such that both the Recreation Center and the School District can explore all their options,” Schlomann wrote. “During this time the racquetball courts will be closed. At this time we expect that these options will be explored by the Business Services Committee of the Board of Education at their September meeting.”

“The work area has passed the final visual inspection and final clearance air samples have been collected. We are awaiting laboratory analysis of these samples, which is expected later today, and we anticipate that the District may begin correcting areas of water incursion and resume normal operations,” Carnow Executive Vice President David J. Kedrowski wrote to District 303 officials in a letter dated Friday.

The district confirmed shortly after 3 p.m. that the air sample tests indicated the building is fit for occupancy.

The cleanup began Aug. 3, Kedrowski wrote, and was conducted by ACR of Wheeling, which completed the work this morning. “The (mold) removal included the exterior west walls of each court, the north wall of Court #1 and the ceiling of Court #2.”