Contractors began removing asbestos from the Highline Terrace on Parker apartments on Monday, but state environmental regulators said it was unclear when the job might be done and residents could return home.
Some of the residents of the 141 apartments evacuated over the weekend said they were told by property managers that it might take anywhere from two weeks to three months before they would be allowed back inside the apartment complex, at 1090 S. South Parker Road in southeast Denver.
Extra precaution is warranted, state health officials said, given the levels of asbestos detected in the air in one of the units.
“It’s a significant amount,” said Christopher Dann, a spokesman for the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.
An estimated 300 people were evacuated, authorities said. Exact figures were not available, according to Karla Maraccini, supervisor of the homeless outreach team for the city’s Department of Human Services.
Those displaced scattered to homes of family, friends, hotels, shelters and other apartments. About 20 people stayed overnight at an emergency shelter set up by the Mile High Chapter of the American Red Cross at nearby George Washington High School. About 60 hotel vouchers were given to displaced residents Monday, Maraccini said.
The Highline Terrace complex appeared abandoned Monday. Plywood boards spray-painted with “Keep Out” covered many doorways and windows, and other entrances bore “Danger/Asbestos” warnings.
“You feel for them,” said Harry Moseley, president of Spectrum Services, the company hired June 5 by contractor Commercial Services Building Inc. to measure the amount of asbestos in the apartments. “Your home is your castle, and to see people displaced like this is heavy on the heart.”
Moseley said the asbestos contamination of the 15-building complex was the largest operation he had ever managed.
Sophia Scott has had to relocate with her daughter and fiancé. They had lived in building A-6 for less than a week when given the notice to evacuate.
“We didn’t know what to do,” said Scott. “Everybody was in a panic. We packed up everything we had and (Omni Management) moved us to another apartment complex.”
Scott is unsure if her family can remain there. “I just moved into a remodeled apartment,” Scott said. “I would have thought they would have checked the asbestos out first.”
Pam Crossland, a resident of building A-6 since February, vacated Saturday with only her work clothes and some books and moved in with her daughter.
Crossland says she cannot afford the deposit on a new apartment . “I don’t know who to be mad at,” she said.
Moseley said that his company is processing samples from the units for asbestos contamination. He described the job as “monumental.”
“Once we get all of the information, all of the interested parties will sit down and decide what to do,” Moseley said.
A contractor renovating the apartments may have disturbed asbestos materials.
It’s unclear whether the contractor had performed a hazardous materials inspection before the work started. Denver city officials could not verify whether an inspection had taken place, or even if the city had jurisdiction over the work.
Staff writer Kim McGuire can be reached at 303-820-1240 or at kmcguire@denverpost.com.
Staff writer JP Eichmiller can be reached at 303-820-1316 or at jeichmiller@denverpost.com.
