|
Madison WI teachers and students sue contractor, and settle, over moldy school - long timeline of events described in local media.
Settlement Reached After Mold Found In Madison School
Teacher, Students Sued Construction Company
http://www.channel3000.com/education/8891628/detail.html
UPDATED: 6:00 pm CDT April 21, 2006
MADISON, Wis. -- Almost three dozen teachers and students settled their four-year-long lawsuit on Friday against a construction company after mold was found in a Madison elementary school in 2001.
Both sides agreed to a $650,000 settlement payout.
Chavez Elementary School opened in 2001, but closed two months later because mold was apparently found in a majority of classrooms, WISC-TV reported.
Thirty-five teachers and students brought the suit against Westra Construction claiming that the company failed to remove excess moisture when the school was built. The moisture allegedly caused mold and respiratory problems for people in the school.
Previous Stories:
August 23, 2002: Chavez Timeline Of Mold Events http://www.channel3000.com/news/1629813/detail.html
Chavez Timeline Of Mold Events
November
Mold is discovered in the kindergarten area on first-floor of Chavez. Teachers and parents meet with school officials on Nov. 21. At the meeting, kindergarten teacher Shari Pressentin says she had found mold in a room next to her classroom on Nov. 20. She says the drywall was bleached and painted over.
Testing and work with consultant begins.
Mold found above suspended ceilings in two more classrooms on second floor Nov. 27. Rainwater announces school will be closed Nov. 28 for one day for further inspectios. This becomes last day of classes at Chavez.
Rainwater announces Nov. 28 school will be closed until after winter break, and kids will be reassigned to seven schools around the city.
More than 400 kids go to their temporary schools for the first time Nov. 29.
February
District announces school will be closed for the rest of the school year Feb. 11. Based on plans for remediation, testing, reconstruction and followup testing and inspections, officials said it would be a challenge to reopen the school before the end of the year.
Parents asked Rainwater to make a decision on the rest of the school year. Rainwater decides that disrupting kids and families by pushing to get them back to Chavez was not the right thing to do.
May
Reconsruction begins May 13.
August
Reconstruction is completed in early August, and school's ventilation system runs 24/7 to air it out.
Teachers may begin setting up their classrooms Aug. 5.
Parents and kids attend open house to see the reconstruted school Aug. 22.
School reopens Aug. 26 for Madison schools' first day of school.
Copyright 2002 by Channel 3000.
August 1, 2002: Mold Update Due From Chavez Elementary http://www.channel3000.com/news/1588154/detail.html
July 18, 2002: Chavez: Mold Free In 2003? http://www.channel3000.com/news/1565363/detail.html
May 13, 2002: Chavez Reconstruction Under Way http://www.channel3000.com/news/1455260/detail.html
April 29, 2002: Report: Mold Isn't Chavez's Only Problem http://www.channel3000.com/news/1423561/detail.html
April 29, 2002: I-Team Investigation: Mold Is No Surprise http://www.channel3000.com/news/1305471/detail.html
March 21, 2002: Report Blames Construction Process For Mold http://www.channel3000.com/news/1305473/detail.html
March 14, 2002: What Really Happened At Chavez School? http://www.channel3000.com/news/1304336/detail.html
February 11, 2002: Moldy School Will Stay Closed This Year http://www.channel3000.com/news/1230300/detail.html
February 7, 2002: Chavez Elementary Teacher Filing Lawsuit http://www.channel3000.com/news/1224936/detail.html
January 29, 2002: Teachers, Parents At Boiling Point Over Chavez http://www.channel3000.com/news/1211199/detail.html
January 4, 2002: Chavez School May Be Rebuilt By Union Labor http://www.channel3000.com/news/1169070/detail.html
December 12, 2001: Chavez Elementary Tests Positive For Mold Again http://www.channel3000.com/news/1125105/detail.html
November 30, 2001: Chavez Parents Say They Feel Shut Out http://www.channel3000.com/news/1097041/detail.html
November 29, 2001: Moldy Madison School Will Remain Closed Thursday http://www.channel3000.com/news/1094201/detail.html
November 27, 2001: Parents Want Answers About Mold At Chavez http://www.channel3000.com/news/1093205/detail.html
Copyright 2006 by Channel 3000. All rights reserved.
------------------------
Settlement in Chavez Mold Case
http://www.nbc15.com/news/headlines/2674691.html (video)
Chavez Mold Case Setttled
Updated: 6:38 PM Apr 21, 2006
A battle that began five years ago over mold at Madison's Cesar Chavez Elementary School is over.
35 teachers and students who filed a lawsuit against Westra Construction Company have settled out of court for
$650,000.
In 2001 Chavez Elementary was closed just three months after it opened when mold was found in a majority of the
classrooms.
The 35 people who brought on the suit claimed they developed severe asthma and other respiratory problems from
being exposed to the mold.
As a result, Westra Construction, the company which built the school, will pay the damage settlement.
"Cases like this do take a long time but I think the time was well spent and everyone was working diligently," says
Jim Olson, one of the attorney's for the plaintiffs. "The plaintiffs, who are primarily teachers but there are a few
students will get some compensation. They are not fully compensated for their loss but that is the nature of
compromised agreements."
The $650,000 settlement was paid by Westra's insurance company and not by taxpayers.
In 2002, a report found the building had not been aired properly during the construction process, creating a wet
building syndrome. Chavez Elementary was refurbished and opened again in August of 2002
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://nbc15.madison.com/news/headlines/2674691.html
Posted on Sat, Apr. 22, 2006
$650,000 settlement in Madison school mold case
Associated Press
MADISON, Wis. - Thirty-five students and teachers from a Madison school that had to be ripped open and
reconstructed to get rid of mold have agreed on a $650,000 settlement from the builder, attorneys say.
The plaintiffs reported suffering from asthma and other respiratory problems that they traced to daily exposure to
mold at the new Chavez Elementary School in 2001.
Teacher Julie Padley said the asthma and other problems she blames on mold exposure in her kindergarten class
haven't gone away.
"There's no longer anything resembling a common cold," she said Friday. "It always becomes a much bigger illness."
The lawsuit claimed that the company that built the school allowed the mold to grow during construction. After the
problems showed up, the school was closed, torn open, cleaned and reconstructed to rid it of mold in many
classrooms.
An investigation found that damp interior walls and other moisture problems had been allowed to go unchecked,
leading to mold along ceiling tiles, baseboards and other parts of the building.
The builder, Westra Construction Co. of Waupun, went out of business in July 2005.
In a separate agreement in 2002, Westra forgave about $484,000 in construction costs to the Madison Metropolitan
School District.
Jim Olson, an attorney with Lawton & Cates, which represented the students and teachers, said the settlement
announced Friday ended the final claim in the case.
Subcontractors who took part in construction of the school were cleared of liability, he said.
The money is to be distributed based on each individual's damages, and any disagreements will be considered in an
arbitration proceeding.
"I'm hopeful that they will all have check in hand within 60 days," Olson said.
A trial of the lawsuit had been scheduled for May 30.
Padley said she and the other plaintiffs would be dividing $400,000 after attorney fees and expenses.
They will not be informed how much others are getting in the settlement.
"As professionals working together, we didn't want to create more hard feelings," she said. "The good thing is, it's
over."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Information from: The Capital Times, http://www.captimes.com
|
