John Galt Speaks from the Shadows

Today, the New York Times published this new article, providing more information and expanding upon yesterday's article. Apparently, John Galt has released a statement in response to the fines.

Galt, in a statement, rejected the accusations and vowed to defend itself. The company contended that the government agencies overseeing the site often issued conflicting directives that resulted in massive slowdowns and cost overruns.

"Every detail of the work was scrutinized, criticized and finally approved before it could be done," the statement said. "It is inconceivable that these agencies, including OSHA, whose trained inspectors were present at the site on a daily basis, could not detect, or were oblivious to the alleged 'serious and willful' violations that supposedly existed prior to the fire."

The statement said that if government regulators, including OSHA, failed to discover the alleged violations before the fire, they should be the ones charged with failing to do their duty.

But unlike Bovis, who is one of the largest contractors around the city, Galt has no named spokesperson, and no contact person for the press. From where did this statement originate? Who wrote it? Who will take responsibility?

On a more positive note, the Environmental Protection Agency has approved the new plan for demolishing the rest of the building, and so work can resume. There's still no sign of anything moving out my window--and no sign of the new subcontractor on the work site--but everyone is still happily repeating the expectation of finishing the job by the end of the year.

The Search For John Galt

Still wondering just who is John Galt?

So are federal regulators from the US Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Today OSHA announced that it has cited the general contractor Bovis Lend Lease, and the mysterious subcontractor John Galt for numerous health and safety violations relating to the dismantling of the Deutsche Bank building at 130 Liberty Street. The citations mainly dealt with violations that led to deaths of two firefighters in the August fire.

Among the citations are:

• Failing to inspect and maintain firefighting equipment to ensure that the standpipe system was operational, and that sufficient water supply and water pressure were available for firefighting.
• Obstructed emergency exit access (including sealed emergency stairwells, emergency stairwells blocked by construction and unlighted stairwells).
• Inadequate emergency escape procedures.
• Unmarked exits.
• Lack of fire extinguishers, emergency alarm procedures and fire cutoffs.
• Failing to develop and follow a fire protection program.
• Smoking permitted in work areas.
• Temporary structures inside the building made of combustible materials.
• Scaffolds erected too close to power lines.
• Unprotected sides and edges of work areas, unprotected floor openings, missing or broken guardrails and missing stair rails.
• Exposed live electrical parts, electric panel boards in wet locations and other electrical hazards.

The New York Times article had some interesting information on the fines:

OSHA cited the two contractors for a total of $464,500 in proposed fines. They issued three willful and 22 serious citations to Galt, carrying fines of $271,500 and 2 willful and 17 serious citations to Bovis, with $193,000 in fines.

The agency defines a willful violation as one committed "with plain indifference to or intentional disregard for employee safety and health." A serious citation, according to the agency, is one in which "death or serious physical harm is likely to result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known."

The article mentions one anonymous executive from the equally-anonymous John Galt company who is upset over the fines. He claims that some of the citations are for things that regulators ordered the company to do (like sealing off the stairwells which had asbestos in the walls). But there is a very ominous, yet familiar, line: "A spokesman for the Galt company, which is no longer operating, could not be reached for comment..." No longer operating. I wonder just who was served with these citations, and who will be paying them.

Meanwhile, Bovis and their new subcontractor LVI Environmental Services still claim that 130 Liberty will be completely dismantled by the end of this year. There are still 26 floors remaining.

Is life imitating art, John Galt? Are you exposing our absurdly bureaucratic procedures and government regulations to rebuild humanity—or destroy it? Are our skyscrapers today's substitute for Rand's steel mills and copper mines? I haven't finished the book yet, so I've yet to learn the answer.

I Have To Break Into Song, Because I Can Never Find The Key

I've taken some time out of worrying about the construction and deconstruction, the noise and the louder noise, to pay more attention to the music in my life. Truth be told, it's all but disappeared. My iPod has been broken or constantly dying for years, and even at work I listen more to information-related podcasts than anything that could be considered to have a melody.

Time to change. I've recently taken up the harmonica, having bought myself a basic Hohner Special 20 Marine Band harp in the key of C. Learning that it's actually not easy to instantly become proficient on this instrument, I also picked up a book and started looking around online for ideas of what to learn. Poking around the internet, I stumbled across this Mu Beta Psi blues riff written by an alumnus of my college and Fraternity. (Audio below this paragraph.) I was thrilled to discover this, and am trying to contact WillyBlues to thank him for the riff and get in touch with a fellow alumnus.



Meanwhile, I've also finally given up on my old iPod, and bought a new iPod Touch. It arrived yesterday, and it is a thing of beauty. Today was the first time in over a year that I was able to listen to music on the subway ride to work. And quite unsurprisingly, it was the first day I felt calm in the Times Square subway station in about as long.

"Take a music bath once or twice a week for a few seasons, and you will find that it is to the soul what the water bath is to the body."
--Oliver Wendell Holmes

Tear That Building Down

On a tentatively upbeat note, it seems that the view out my windows might be improving a bit this year. Yesterday, this article ran in the New York Times. (Alternative link on wtc.com here.) It states that the deconstruction of the Deutsche Bank building (130 Liberty St.) is set to resume now that the mysterious sub-contractor John Galt has been replaced by LVI Services Inc., a demolition and remediation firm.

There has been no visible progress on the deconstruction since the fire last August. Although, there are still workers going in and out of the site every day—and lining up outside on Sundays for their paychecks.

I have to admit, I still have my skepticism. In the article are a few quotes like this:

A press release issued by the agency did not give any details about the arrangement with LVI, including the cost of the contract, the date on which LVI would start work or how long the job would take.

...and this:

As part of the new arrangement, the development corporation, Bovis and LVI have altered the deconstruction plan. As workers removed asbestos from each floor, crews demolished the clean floors. Under a new two-stage process, LVI will first remove the asbestos throughout the building and then take down the tower. Work could take another year, construction executives say.

Later on, it talks about the deal with JP Morgan Chase, who has plans to build a new 42-story tower on the site. The Port Authority is supposed to hand over the land to JP Morgan Chase in September 2008, though we all know how good the Port Authority is at finishing it's projects on time. And of course, the Port Authority has it's bases covered:

Anthony Shorris, executive director of the Port Authority, said that the authority still planned to deliver the site in September, although, he added, the agreement with Chase included a six-month extension.

I guess we'll have to wait and see. From the looks of it, nothing will change on the outside until the asbestos is all removed. I hope that doesn't take long. I'm still looking forward to having the great view of downtown I was promised when the building was supposed to be finished last fall.

(PS: I'm reading Atlas Shrugged now, and laughing everytime someone says, "Who is John Galt?" It hasn't gotten old yet.)

"Luke, I Am Your Father"

In a letter to my apartment building manager, Robin Forst of the Lower Manhattan Construction Command Center says:

Yes, there is a noise code in the city, but as you may know, the Port Authority is exempt from state and city regulations.

Episode V - The Port Authority Strikes Back

It's very late. Or very early. Either way, I should not be awake now.

Why am I awake, you ask? Because of the great Port Authority of New York and New Jersey of course! As if flooding our basement weren't enough, they've now decided to keep the entire neighborhood awake all night long. As part of the redevelopment process, the PA is breaking up the old foundations of the original WTC to make way for the new foundations of the new towers. They were supposed to be finished by December 31st, at which time they were to turn over the property to Silverstein Properties who will then be building the towers.

Naturally, the PA was not done on time. The penalty is that they have to $300,000 a day to Silverstein Properties. And even before the 31st deadline, they shifted from a 20 hour a day, six days a week schedule to a 24 hours a day, seven days a week schedule. This means that they're using heavy pounders to break up concrete 24 hours a day. It's been seven days, so they've already shelled out $2.1m--but not to the people they're driving quickly insane through the long nights of pounding. No, they're paying the land developers for the inconvenience of not getting to start their new towers right away.

24 hours a day.

At first, it was annoying. Then I traveled a lot for the holidays, and was so exhausted when home that I could sleep through it. But now that it's continued for nearly a month (they started Dec. 18th), I'm nearly at wit's end. Sleep is impossible. Even thinking clearly is nearly impossible.

Local government? Nope, they're powerless. Our Community Board's WTC Committee passed a resolution stating the Port Authority should not be making such noise during the night. Our local City Councilmember is contacting the leaders of the Port Authority as well. But it doesn't matter, not really. The Port Authority is not bound by any city laws, ordinances, or Community Board resoutions. They answer to the state governments of New York and New Jersey. Essentially, there's very little we can do.

Perhaps a few of us can band together? If there's anyone from the building still reading this blog, please drop me a line. It may not come to anything, but at this point I'm willing to try anything.

Auld Lang Syne

"What does this song mean? For my whole life I don't know what this song means. I mean, 'Should old acquaintance be forgot.' Does that mean we should forget old acquaintances, or does it mean if we happen to forget them we should remember them, which is not possible because we already forgot them?"
"Well, maybe it just means that we should remember that we forgot them or something. Anyway, it's about old friends."
--When Harry Met Sally

I spent this New Year's down on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. (I had always wondered what the OBX stickers meant on cars.) It was an eclectic mix of friends old and new. Mostly new friends surrounded us at our beach house; playing games, dipping in the hot tub, and ringing in the New Year around a beach bonfire. But there were some very old friends indeed around that night as well--stars in a sky the darkest I've seen since my last observatory trip. In many ways, it blurred the old and the new for me. This past year has begun a career in the publishing industry, and relegated astronomy nearly to hobby status. It's brought me to new friends around the city, and I've let slip old friends around the country.

I've been thinking a lot lately about old friends, and the nature of old friendships. It can be so wonderful to have a friendship that lasts years and years. There are friendships that last because you make them last, and there are friendships that last just because. These are the kind that amaze me. Two friends can move to opposite ends of the Earth, come together only rarely, and still be close. Changes in life, workplace, and the rest just don't seem to matter. Not to these kinds of friends. It's a kind of security that knows no failure. I'm not exactly sure what it is about those kinds of friendships, but finding that kind of patience, happiness, and contentment is this year's resolution. (Last year's resolution)

Good luck, 2008. All your confetti is on the ground, and now you have to deal with the world as it is. You can.

Christmas in (and out of) New York

One of the things I've missed since moving to New York has been the Christmas lights. Sure, once in a while you get the occasional family that rings their windows in lights--but you just don't get the kind of displays a standalone house can afford. In Manhattan, at least. Once again reminded that the majority of the city is not contained in the little island on which I live, Lynn, a friend, and I journeyed out to Brooklyn in search of the famous Dyker Heights Lights.

Walking into the neighborhood from the subway station in Bay Ridge, our first impression was of a typical urban residential neighborhood. The streets were in a grid pattern, as much of Brooklyn is, and the houses were modest middle-income two-story homes. Delving deeper, however, revealed the true character of Dyker Heights: Huge Mediterranean-style villas, brimming to the edges of the properties. Greek- and Roman-inspired statues, fountains, and temples. And Christmas displays that must surely warm the hearts of everyone over at ConEd.



The owner of this house, dressed in a snowman costume was greeting children with mint candies. His wife was dressed as Elmo. He told us that it took him two months to put together this year's display, and that he has to rent a storage unit solely to store his Christmas decorations the rest of the year.





Other folks opted to simply cover every surface with lights.





Street after street of displays like these fill the neighborhood. These few pictures hardly do it justice, but I found myself trying to pick my jaw off the ground and forgetting about the camera in my hand. This neighborhood has grown such a reputation for itself, that PBS filmed a documentary on the Christmas phenomenon. The residents we ran into were proud of their displays, and rightly so. If you ever need a quick shot of good, old-fashioned, exorbitantly excessive Christmas lights, they've got you covered.

Lynn and I flew out to Michigan for Christmas, hoping for a bit more snow and to see the family. The snow was sparse, but the family was not. Merry Christmas.

All Quiet

I haven't written anything in the last several days, mainly because there hasn't been much to write about. Their was much talk and dissention about what to do with the Port Authority's settlement, mainly revolving around the liability release everyone was required to sign to get their money. The PA kind of forced the hands of the residents when it announced that last Saturday would be the last day to get the settlement immediately. After that, anyone who wanted to get their settlement would have to file it with law firm representing the PA--and it would be any one's guess how long the process would take from there.

It seems that most residents, myself included, ended up going to the PA's Claims Office on Saturday, signed the release, and walked away with their settlement. I can't speak for most, but I know some residents are just glad to put this whole thing behind us. And it seems to have worked. While I cannot know for certain, it looked as if the vast majority of residents took the settlement.

One unfortunate consequence of this is that the budding tenants' association also seems to have lost a little steam. If the majority of residents took the settlement, they may feel that the association has little purpose now. (It's stated purpose was to deal with the aftermath of the flood, then expire after three months.) The election of officers has been extended indefinitely, as votes are not coming in from a majority of the residents who initially signed on board.

Meanwhile, things really have calmed down. The building is almost entirely back to normal, with a few minor quirks still being worked out. Lynn and I bought our very first Christmas tree, and have had a grand time decorating it. It is, essentially, life as usual.

Tenants' Association

The 90 West Tenants' Association is now officially underway. (If you're a resident and haven't joined yet, please head over to the 90weststreet blog to find the sign-up form.) The organizers have reported that with over two hundred members, the TA is so far representing about half of the residents of the building. Bylaws for the organization have been drafted and adopted, providing for five officer positions (President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Secretary, and Media Liaison). There will also be a ten-member Negotiating Committee composed of the five officers and five additional Members-At-Large.

The nominations for the five officer positions were posted yesterday, and I was surprised to find that I had been nominated for all five positions. I had also received a seconded nomination for the position of Media Liaison, placing me on the ballot officially. This came as quite a surprise to me, as I had not volunteered or nominated myself for any of the positions.

Unfortunately, I feel that I must decline the nomination. Of all the officer positions, I feel the President and the Media Liaison are most important. The Media Liaison will have to make solid contacts throughout the media, and keep them interested in our story. They will have to present the residents of the building in an accurate way, and find ways to fight the all-to-easy stereotype of "rich people who want more" (which we are not). It is a daunting task, to say the least, and I feel that I simply do not have the experience to tackle it.

I considered it, overnight. I questioned whether I could rise to the challenge and figure out how to do this job. But the simple truth is that this is a critical time for the TA, and it needs to be done correctly from the very beginning. I would love to test my skills as a Media Liaison, but not on an organization that is just starting out.

Another big consideration for me is simply the time involved. Some positions certainly require a larger time commitment than others, and I feel that Media Liaison requires the most amount of time. Building contacts with so many media outlets will take a lot of work and time. And with my job, teaching swing dancing up at Columbia University, and serving as National President of Mu Beta Psi—not to mention planning a wedding—I could not reasonably devote as much time to the TA as that position deserves.

However, I would like to be active in the TA. I feel that I could fit well into one of the Member-At-Large positions, and will be running for one of those. The many officer nominations from my neighbors have encouraged me, and I hope that I can best serve them as one of the MALs.

The TA has a long road ahead, but I feel that we're off to a very positive start.

90 West Claims Center Speaks

This just on their blog:

We are prepared to resolve claims. We are located at the Ritz Carlton, Room 417. Our hours of operation are:

Thursday, December 6 3PM – 8:30 PM

Friday, December 7 3PM – 8:30 PM

Saturday, December 8 8AM – 6:00 PM.

The Claims Hotline (1-866-902-3276) will remain active until further notice.

Since the 90 West Street building was certified by New York City’s Department of Housing, Preservation & Development (HPD) for occupancy on Tuesday, December 3, 2007, we are resolving claims for a total payment of $6,000 per unit. This represents the $750 per day for the days of November 26, 2007 through December 2, 2007 – a total of 8 days. If you have special circumstances that prevented your return on December 3, 2007, please refer to Point 5 below. Please only bring documentation if your claim exceeds $6,000. As we have stated to many of you, this system is designed to streamline the process. For scheduling purposes, please send an e-mail to 90West@Jratpa.com if you are coming in so we can coordinate your visit.

In order to process a settlement, you will be required to do the following:

1) Visit the Center and bring a government issued photo identification and a copy of your lease.

2) Sign a Release, which will be posted on our website for review. Each lessee and, if applicable, sub-lessee per unit must sign the Release. The only exception will be for military deployment.

3) Only lessees with a valid lease or sub-lease between November 26, 2007 and December 2, 2007 will be eligible. This is designed to establish that the tenant filing the claim has standing to receive the payment. Any questions can be referred to the Claims Center.

4) Lessees(s) with a lease start date of December 1, 2007 will be eligible for a two day allowance, for a total of $1,500. If your lease end date is November 30, 2007, you will be eligible for a four day allowance, for a total of $3,000.

5) For those tenants whose total claim exceeds $6,000, you may provide documentation in the form of bills and receipts with an itemized list describing your claim. Your documentation can be dropped off at our Center. Include all contact information and your Apartment number. We will contact you in the near future to resolve your claim.

6) Any tenant who filed a first-party claim with any type of insurance carrier will have to specifically notify the Claims Center regarding that claim. Payment cannot be issued until we have documentation of your first-party claim.

We still don't get to see the details of this mysterious release form. But hopefully they'll post it soon.

Community Board 1 Meeting Tonight

This was just posted at the 90weststreet blog.

THERE WILL BE A COMMUNITY BOARD 1 MEETING TONIGHT TO DISCUSS 90 WEST

Financial District Committee
DATE: Wednesday, December 5, 2007
TIME: 6:00 PM
PLACE: Community Board #1 Office49-51 Chambers Street, Room 709

Agenda
2) Update on 90 West Street by Peter Levenson, Partner, 90 West Street

I received this information from Tom Goodkind, a member of the Community Board, and he would like the residents to be present for this meeting to get information on residents’ experiences, good and bad, so that the Community Board can work in assisting 90 West residents and put recommendations in place for the future.

I won't be able to make this meeting, it's too early. But I would strongly recommend anyone who can attend do so.

And That's That

This was just posted on the building's website:

Dear Residents

We are happy to report that all the environmental tests that have been preformed have come back negative. That means that there is no evidence of any of contaminants in the residential areas of the building. Furthermore we have received the water testing report which also showed no traces of contamination. These tests show that water which is coming out of your tap is just as pure as in every other location in Manhattan. All the test results have been posted on the web site.

Yesterday we met with all relevant city agencies including the Board of Health and the Department of Environmental Protection. They confirmed that we have done everything needed to reoccupy the building and have no further concerns.

We are extremely sorry about what happened. We have done everything possible to minimize the inconvenience, and we are very happy to welcome everyone home for the Holidays.

90 West Street

Meanwhile, the Riddle Associates blog has promised the protocols for handling claims today. Keep an eye on that blog to see how things will proceed from here.

Water Test Results In

Building management just posted this on the building's website:

We just received the results of the testing performed on the drinking water. All results were negative for any presence of Total Coliform or E. Coli.

We also received the test results of the areas on the upper floors that required additional cleaning after our preliminary testing on November 30. These results also came back negative of any Total Coliform or E. Coli.

We are waiting for the results of three additional areas that were re-tested in the mailbox area and two elevators after the preliminary test. As soon as the results of these tests become available they will be posted.

Please see attached report.

These tests were performed by Professional Environmental Services.

It's good to have confirmation, certainly. Though I have to admit, I belong to the group that was not overly concerned about the water. I believe that neither the City's HPD nor the building management would have cleared the building to allow residents back in if there were concerns. The liability that entails would be staggering.


Edit 4:49pm.

The water test update was quickly followed by this:

Please see attached lifting of the vacate order by HPD

Here's the relevant excerpt:

You are hereby informed that vacate order #61805 issued for the above-referenced premise [90 West] on November 26, 2007 has been rescinded as a result of a vacant building survey inspection concluded on December 3, 2007. It was reported at that time that the hazardous conditions cited in the vacate order have been sufficiently abated.

Home

Lynn and I moved back into apartment this morning. We took the train in from Connecticut and took our stuff down to the apartment before heading off to work. First impressions were very positive. The lobby had the distinctive ammonia smell of cleaning agents, no surprise there. Our hallway's carpet had been cleaned, and smelled fresh. Entering our apartment, we were happy to find that everything worked. Electricity, heat, even the water was running clear.

We are both very happy to be home, and looking forward to relaxing in our living room tonight, and sleeping in our own bed.

Latest Update

This was posted to the building's website around 7:12pm:

90 West Residents

New York City’s housing office has advised us that residents can now reoccupy 90 West Street.


Please note that the sewage leak happened at a time of sustained rain and high tide and that the water did not rise above the cellar level.


As discussed we have retained our own environmental testing company. The company advised extensive tests to determine if there was any residue on the floor from the flood. We preformed a round of preliminary tests to determine the background level of contaminants. The test showed that most of the building was clean. We used those results (which are posted on our web site) to plan the final phase of cleaning. We decided based on the tests to clean all the public hall carpets before the residents return. The hallways are complete. The cellar has been cleaned and re-cleaned. Work will continue down there for a few months. We will be replacing doors and painting all the surfaces. We will be installing new equipment in place of temporary equipment. We will also be installing additional dehumidification equipment.


With the water now running we have ordered water quality tests. Both the DEP and our Plumbers have advised that the possibility of water contamination is extremely remote. The results of the water tests will be available from the lab tomorrow afternoon. Until we have the final results you should refrain drinking or cooking with the tap water. The results of the water test will be made available as soon as we get them.


The bottom line is that we want you to feel safe when you return to 90 West Street. If you decide that you want to wait for the results of tomorrow’s tests then you should stay in your hotel until Wednesday. The PA has not confirmed they will reimburse you for the additional night however, we will do everything in our power to make sure your additional expenses are reimbursed.


90 West Street.

A few residents have expressed concerns about the water and air quality, hence the last paragraph of the notice. Lynn and I are definitely moving back in tomorrow, leaving Connecticut early in the morning to drop our stuff at our apartment before work. We're both tired of moving around, and anxious to be in our own place again. It will be good to be home.

90 West Re-Opening

2:15pm

Dear Residents,

Welcome Home!

We are pleased to announce that we will reopen tomorrow, Tuesday, December 4th at 7am. We look forward to seeing you then.

90 West St Management

Homeward bound!

Edit 4:40pm:

Cable and internet services provided by Time Warner are functioning properly.

90weststreet Blog Now Open

I spoke too soon. The point has been brought up that there are some benefits to non-residents being able to view the blog. It will remain public for the time being.

So Far, So Good.

Building management sent another update at 12:30pm

Dear Residents,
We are happy to announce that everything is on schedule. The electrician has one final certification to make. We all expect this to be successfully completed before 2pm today. We will confirm by 2pm that 90 West St will reopen Tuesday morning.

90weststreet Blog Now Private

The 23 contributors of the 90weststreet blog, of which I am one, have decided to restrict access to the blog to "invitation only." This means anyone other than the 23 contributors will need an invitation to view the blog. This was done to provide a forum for residents that is reasonably private while discussions are continuing about options.

If you are a resident and wish to access the blog, contact one of the blog contributors to receive an invitation.

As this is my personal blog, I will keep updating with my own experiences, and information that building management, the Port Authority, etc., make public. I will not be posting insights into the budding tenants' association or other residents' opinions, unless the association also begins making public statements and those residents choose to comment here of their own volition. I'd like to make the distinction that this is my personal blog, and should not construed as representative of the other residents, or of the new tenants' association.