Editor's note: At an Oct. 10 meeting, a few neighbors of Edna Maguire Elementary School requested a definitive answer as to whether or not Overaa Construction, the district's contractor for the rebuilding of the school, would be mitigating dust caused by the construction project. Neighbors had requested that Overaa either clean the dust on homes and cars or provide a third-party subcontractor to do so. After consulting with Overaa, the following is a letter from the Mill Valley School District. Tim Ryan, the district's director of maintenance and operations, said that the reasons for denying the request were two-fold:
- Overaaa didn't feel it was creating anything more than average normal construction dust.
- The slippery slope of determining when and how often to wash cars and homes, particularly given that the project will last for at least another 12 months.
Dear Edna Maguire School Community:
It was requested at our Construction Update meeting Wednesday, October 10, 2012 that a definitive response be made to community members who live adjacent to the Edna Maguire School and Lomita Avenue as to whether the Mill Valley School District or its developer, Overaa Construction will wash neighbors cars or homes to remove dust.
This summer there was construction in the Edna Maguire School neighborhood performed by the Marin Municipal Water District, Pacific Gas & Electric, roadwork by the City of Mill Valley, and several construction projects on private homes in the area. But the largest project continues to be the Edna Maguire New campus construction.
During construction this summer there were regular site visits from the Division of the State Architect Inspectors, County of Marin, and the City of Mill Valley. And in direct response to calls from community members about dust controls, we had several unscheduled inspections from Bay Area Air Quality Management District and the City of Mill Valley.
None of these Agencies to date had any findings or issued any citations for violations of dust control measures at the Edna Maguire School construction site.
After discussing the amount of impact and the nearness of adjacent homes with Overaa Construction, we can definitively answer this question. Overra Construction will not be offering to clean homes or cars that are adjacent to the construction projects.
The Mill Valley School District appreciates your understanding during this construction period, but we are unable at this time to spend public funds on private properties.
