The Observation Deck

The Library's Main branch was forced to close today, August 7, as a result of the heavy rainfall which flooded from the renovation construction site.

Madison remains open.

Cleanup is in progress. More updates as they become available.

Jeff

Thanks for the heads up, Jeff.

Infinity Construction has clean-up crews with water extractors on site.

Clean-up is proceeding in an orderly and timely manner at the contractor’s expense.

Main Library will open at 9 a.m. tomorrow.

Incidentally, chandeliers are being assembled for installation in the Grand Reading Room, which will be closed for several days.

Kenneth Warren
Director
Lakewood Public Library

Incidentally, chandeliers are being assembled for installation in the Grand Reading Room, which will be closed for several days.

Ken

Glad that Joe took advantage of our being closed to get on the chandelier install!

Infinity had a cleanup crew on site within hours. SOme soaked carpeting, and tiles, but luckily no wiring/electronics affected.

Jeff

The source of water seepage was exposed tie-in areas and grand stair way elevator excavation spaces between the existing and new library.

While there was no damage to library materials, several stacks were moved to preclude any unnecessary absorption of water.

In carpet recovery work following flooding, there is a three step clean-up process that requires intervals of time: 1) extraction; 2) drying; 3) cleaning.

Having been extracted, carpet areas in the Children’s Room and Reference Room are presently drying.

Tomorrow Main Library will open at 9 a.m. However Children’s Room and Reference Room will be closed to allow for final carpet cleaning.

I will post as soon as I learn more from the contractor.

I am sorry for any inconvenience.

Kenneth Warren
Director
Lakewood Public Library

Great, I can already see where this is going.

I'm sure the next letter to Scene will read something like this...

Warren, after successfully denying access to minorities and the poor has used the recent weather as an excuse to take away basic services to the children.

Seriously, sorry to hear about the flooding. Keep up the good work.

Bret, I was thinking along the same lines, but decided that I wasn't going to tease Ken.

I appreciate Ken's swift dissemination of information regarding this situation.

Ken-- and all of us who love the Lakewood Public Library-- great test
and initiation. Gotta test it sometime and what better time than when we have crews ready to respond.
In an earlier comment (pardon me for not identifying a good poster) the color of the carpet was brought up.
Is this, perhaps, a serendipitous time to consider alternative carpet selections?
Stan Austin

As the afternoon unfolded, Fire Marshall Scott Gilman called to advise me that efforts are underway to declare a flood disaster in Cuyahoga County. He requested a damage estimate. Infinity Construction provided me with an estimate of $20,000 for the clean-up costs, which I provided to the Fire Marshall.

Molly Kavanaugh of the PD called to ask about the extent of damage, responsibility for cost and when the library will open again.

The clean-up crew continued to make steady progress.

10 de-humidifiers and 10 fans are on the way.

It’s been quite a day. It could have been much worse. I am working with good and capable people.

According to two construction workers, storm sewers in the existing building could not take on the volume of water in the brief period of time. I believe this condition often occurred in the August storms that tend to rage after the Lakewood Arts Festival.

Stan, I realize the light carpet selection has taken some knocks. At this point, the first order of business is to clean the carpet. Then the CM and flooring professionals will evaluate whether or not the installation was compromised. I believe that Gregory Christian and the Maintenance Services team have the equipment and commitment to keeping the light colored carpet looking sharp. Two fifteen feet entry mats are on-order, which will mitigate some of the tracking.

Kenneth Warren
Director
Lakewood Public Library

That's interesting. We were at the fire station meeting with Terri Richards, the new CERT coordinater. As we left, she wondered if we knew why the library was closed because Fire Marshall Gillman had been asking. We knew you had posted and conveyed the information.

I'm guessing Fire Marshall Gillman contacted you prior to our visit to the station because he's usually on top of things, but at least we had good information rather than conjecture to share.

I wanted to provide a progress report on clean-up, assessment and remediation from the water damage.

Clean-Up

First phase of clean-up is wrapping up, with fans blowing and carpets continuing to dry.

Third Party Assessment

In order to ensure a proper assessment of conditions and an effective remediation strategy, a third party consultant has evaluated damaged areas and recommended a pro-active solution, which Infinity Construction will supply at its expense.

The manufacturer rep will also evaluate the carpet with respect to warranty once the first phase of clean-up has been completed.

Lower Level

The bulk of the damage occurred in the gallery area outside the auditorium, where higher than satisfactory moisture levels will require that finishes – plaster, base, insulation – be replaced.

Infinity Construction has already begun this work.

Once I have obtained a schedule for completion I will post the information. I would estimate 30 days. However, there is testing that continues in this process, and of course, carpet shampoo cleaning at the conclusion of the work.

Children’s Room

There is a small patch on the northern wall where higher than satisfactory moisture levels will require that plaster and insulation be replaced.

In addition, several end panels to stacks were damaged by water and will require repair and or replacement.

The Children’s Room will open on Monday.

Reference Room

There was only minimal damage to the Reference Room, with the carpet getting wet from rain water that penetrated and seeped from the temporary wall. The carpet has been cleaned and fans will continue to circulate air over the weekend.

The Reference Room will open on Monday.

Prevention

On the preventive side of water diversion at the construction site between buildings, Infinity Construction has installed additional pumps, revised construction area grading, and improved preventive action at the temporary walls.

I am working closely with the Construction Manager to ensure that a pro-active approach to clean-up and damage will serve the library over the long haul.

Grand Reading Room

The chandeliers have been hung. The contractor is cleaning-up. I expect the Grand Reading Room will be available for your reading pleasure later this evening.

Again, I apologize for any inconvenience and appreciate your continued patience.

Kenneth Warren
Director
Lakewood Public Library

Kenneth Warren wrote:
The manufacturer rep will also evaluate the carpet with respect to warranty once the first phase of clean-up has been completed.

Kenneth Warren
Director
Lakewood Public Library

May this is your chance to re-think and replace the light colored carpeting on the 1st floor.

Oh yea...and thanks for the update!!

Ms. Krupp:

I appreciate the head’s up. But there was no water damage to the light carpet in the new book area on the first floor.

While the traffic level through this area is especially high during the current phase of construction and distribution of materials, I believe the Maintenance Services team is doing of good job of keeping the appearance presentable.

Once the AV materials are located on the second floor and the grand stairwell and elevators are functional much of the heavy traffic will shift to hard surfaces.

In addition landscaping to be done in the front will likely stop some of the tracking from people who are walking across the mulch.

Matting is also on order.

While I am hopeful and impressed with the performance of my floor crew and the resiliency of the carpet to their cleaning methods, time will tell how well or poorly this carpet wears under the very heavy use that is a fact of life at Lakewood Public Library.

Kenneth Warren
Director
Lakewood Public Library

Ken thank you for the continued updates. Your openness and candor in talking about the situation truly proves what an outstanding public figure you are in this great city.