| ||||||||||||
Greenwich Roundup |
| Posted: 25 Aug 2011 03:14 PM PDT See attached for latest update on the environmental evaluation and remediation at Greenwich High School. Please note that there will be a Public Open House on September 7, 2011 at 7PM, at Greenwich High School in order to provide an opportunity for an overview of the status to date and for questions to be addressed. -- Kim Eves Director of Communications Greenwich Public Schools 290 Greenwich Avenue Greenwich, CT, 06830 www.greenwichschools.org Phone: 203-625-7415 Fax: 203-869-8003 kim_eves@greenwich.k12.ct.us JOINT RELEASE: Greenwich Board of Education * Town of Greenwich * GHS-MISA Building Committee Greenwich, CT GREENWICH HIGH SCHOOL ENVIRONMENTAL TESTING UPDATE GHS Field #1/Cardinal Stadium is Open for Practice All Other GHS Fields Remain Closed Until Further Notice Middle Schools' Interscholastic Sports Program Will Be Delayed GHS Parking is Restricted to STAFF ONLY, No Student Parking Environmental Evaluation Continues, Interim Remediation Plans in Development Community Update and Open House Scheduled for September 7, 2011 General Note: It is understood that members of the community are anxious for information regarding the use of the fields and the student parking at Greenwich High School as well as the results of the environmental testing. Please be assured that the many agencies, departments and organizations involved are working at an expedited rate in order to assess the situation, and to plan for and conduct interim remediation efforts with a focus on opening fields as soon as possible to accommodate Fall sports and to minimize the disruption that a contingency plan will have on other fields in the community. Rumors about the status of the fields persist. We encourage the community to rely on these written updates from the Town/Schools/Building Committee and written correspondence from your coaches and/or Principals regarding the details of your program. Please check emails and the District/High School Web Site regularly for these updates. In general, the organizations involved are working until the last minute to open a field, as in the case of Cardinal Stadium, and so there is little opportunity for advanced notice. As soon as information has been confirmed and final decisions have been made concerning any aspect of this situation it will be communicated as quickly as possible. The community's cooperation and patience as we navigate this very complex situation is appreciated. Environmental Testing/Remediation: The environmental evaluation at Greenwich High School is ongoing. Over 300 soil samples have been taken to date. Early analysis reflects levels of PCBs from 'non-detected' to various levels in defined areas above the applicable cleanup standards. The Environmental Consultant (DTC) is developing an interim remediation plan in order to address the areas where contaminants were detected above the standards in order to open more of the fields. The applicable Federal and State cleanup standards for PCBs in soil is 1 milligram/kilogram (mg/kg). The attached figure depicts the PCB results obtained to date for shallow soil across the athletic fields. Other contaminants including arsenic and chlordane were detected at concentrations exceeding their respective cleanup standards in localized areas within the fields. GHS West Parking Lot: The removal of the contaminated piles of dirt in the west (back) parking lot and the restoration of that lot for use will take at least 3-4 weeks. The investigation, removal and remediation of the contaminated soil is overseen by Federal, State and Local environmental and health officials, as well as two entities separate from the contractor licensed to remove the contaminated soil and remediate the site. There will be ongoing air-monitoring to ensure the safety of all students, staff and workers during the soil removal process. Health & Safety: The Connecticut and Greenwich Departments of Health have provided information on PCB's in the documents attached and posted to the web site. Exposure to the risks of PCB's result from direct contact, inhalation, and/or ingestion. The District, Town and Building Committee are working closely with State and Federal Environmental and Health agencies/departments in order to minimize possible exposure. Air-monitoring has been ongoing both within and outside of the building and will continue during the soil removal process. Thus far air monitoring has not detected any levels of PCB's above standards. Fields and Parking lots will not be re-opened without the approval of the Local, State and Federal agencies involved. The information that we have received to date tells us that no PCB's have been detected in the ambient air, so exposure would be limited to contact with contaminated soil. While testing is still ongoing, we have been able to determine that most of the PCB's have been detected either in deep soil borings, or in localized shallower areas around the fields. The majority of the fields and parking lots have shown PCB's are at acceptable levels. The Town/District has worked closely with State and Federal environmental and health officials who have approved opening fields as soil sample results are received and interim remedial measures are implemented to remove defined areas of PCB contaminated soil. Parking/Traffic/Busing: Parking at Greenwich High School is restricted to staff only for the start of school due to the removal of the contaminated piles of dirt in the west (back) parking lot and the restoration of that lot for use. It is estimated that this process will take at least 3-4 weeks. Therefore, student parking will not be permitted until further notice. Plans have been developed to ensure bus capacity and to enhance traffic control measures. If eligible for transportation, please encourage students to take the bus in order to avoid a back up in drop off and pick up lines. If you must drive your children to school, please allow extra time. The start of the school day will NOT be delayed because of traffic. Please note that parking on private property without permission will result in ticketing and/or towing. Parking on Hillside Road along the school property is permitted parking only and is restricted for staff. Fields/Athletics: Greenwich High School Field #1 or Cardinal Stadium has been re-opened for practice. The Environmental Consultants, Local, State and Federal Agencies are working tirelessly in order to assess the situation, plan for and implement interim remediation efforts in order to properly address the areas of the fields that have been identified with PCB levels higher than the cleanup standard. The goal is to address fields 3, 4, 6 & 7 in the immediate short-term in order to ready them for the fall sports program. For the start of the season, practices and tryouts will be held at the Cardinal Stadium, middle schools, Julian Curtiss School, and/or Greenwich Country Day School fields. Athletic Department for details. This information will also be available on the District and high school web sites. Coaches will communicate additional specifics directly to their teams as necessary. Central, Eastern & Western Middle Schools: The fall interscholastic middle school program will be delayed in order to cooperate with and accommodate the high school's interscholastic athletic program. The high school teams will be using the middle school fields for practice after school until such time as the high school fields can be readied for use and re-opened. The goal is to have the fields open at the high school by mid to late September. School Operations - Start of School: At this time, school will open for students as scheduled. MISA Building Committee: The Greenwich High School Music Instructional Space and Auditorium (GHS-MISA) project is moving ahead as scheduled. The North and South parking lots will be completed before the start of school. Communications: * Updates are posted to the District and Greenwich High School Web Sites as new information becomes available: www.greenwichschools.org - click on "Updates on Environmental Testing at GHS". * ParentLink/Email Communications are sent directly to GPS/GHS families as updates are released and new information is available. * The Board of Education will receive an update on the MISA project and a status update on the Environmental Evaluation at its August 25, 2011 meeting, 7:00 PM at the Town Hall Meeting Room. * The next regularly scheduled GHS-MISA Building Committee meeting is September 6, 2011, 7:30 AM, Havemeyer Building. * The District will host a Open House on September 7, 2011, 7:00 PM-9:00 PM at Greenwich High School in order to provide an opportunity for high school families, neighbors, and the broader community to receive an overview of the situation and to ask questions of the various departments and agencies involved. Background: In mid July 2011, during the course of the excavation work for the Greenwich High School Music Instructional Space and Auditorium (MISA) project, unexpected soil conditions were discovered in the West (or back) parking lot, adjacent to the fields, which prompted immediate environmental testing. The site work in the west lot was stopped and the excavation area was contained. The initial tests indicated the presence of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and petroleum hydrocarbons at concentrations above acceptable standards for residential and commercial use, as determined by the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP), in deep soil in the excavation. A second round of samples was taken on July 20th and included soil and indoor and outdoor air testing. The results of the air quality tests indicate all selected factors were within acceptable levels. The results of the second round of soil samples confirmed the previous results, which showed concentrations of PCBs above the residential cleanup standard along with low levels of some metals. On July 29, 2011 the results of a third set of shallow soil samples taken closer to fields 3 and 4, reflected PCBs levels that are above acceptable standards for residential or commercial use. These results prompted the closure of all fields as a precaution until a more comprehensive understanding of the extent of the issue could be determined. The Greenwich Public Schools/Board of Education, the Town of Greenwich and the GHS MISA Building Committee are working in collaboration to address the environmental concerns of the fields at Greenwich High School. Licensed Environmental Professionals have been contracted to plan for and conduct more comprehensive testing. The Town, State Departments of Health and Environmental Protection, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have also been consulted ============================= Please send your comments, news tips and press releases to GreenwichRoundup@gmail.com   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 25 Aug 2011 03:03 PM PDT Governor Declares State Of Emergency For Hurricane Gov. Malloy has declared a state of emergency for Connecticut because of Hurricane Irene. For the latest, go to courant.com.   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 25 Aug 2011 11:21 AM PDT Sound Beach Community Band Concert this coming Sunday, August 28 from 7 pm to 8:30 pm because of the impending Hurricane. Unfortunately, the Greenwich Recreation Department will not be able to have a makeup date for this concert.   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 25 Aug 2011 10:00 AM PDT  08/25/11 Greenwich Police Department Has Made An Arrest In The Death Of Christopher Harris, Of Riverside, Who Died At The Age Of 18 On Jan. 8, 2011William Nelson, 18 was arrested overdose death of Riverside teenager Christopher Harris, who was found unresponsive at his Florence Road home in January. Greenwich police had an active arrest warrant for Mr. Nelson, who turned himself in. The GDP charged him with possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and conspiracy to possess narcotics. The police expect two more arrests in this case. On January 8th, Christopher Harris was transported to Stamford Hospital after being found unresponsive around 9 a.m. Christopher Harris Sr. and medics both attempted to revive Harris at the home. He was pronounced dead at the hospital at 10:25 a.m. The State Medical Examiner's office ruled in April that Christopher Harris' death was an accidental overdose by acute opiate intoxication. Four friends, one of whom was Nelson, went to teenaged Harris' home to visit January 7th and during the night they all smoked marijuana. Mr. Harris also consumed some Xanax that was provided by a third friend at the drug party. Later in the evening Mr. Nelson drove to New Rochelle, N.Y., with one of the friends from the drug party to buy the painkiller Opana from a street dealer. Later, Harris and a friend snorted the contents of one of the pills. Mr. Nelson stated to police that he snorted half of his pill and threw the other half away because he didn't like it. A third pill was unused. Mr. Harris went upstairs to bed in his parents home, while the other friends slept off their intoxication in the basement. Mr. Nelson posted bond and is due in court Aug. 31. ============================= Please send your comments, news tips and press releases to RiversideRoundup@gmail.com   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 25 Aug 2011 09:34 AM PDT
  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 25 Aug 2011 06:38 AM PDT  PHOTO: From left, Markus Schuh, Andrea Schmidt, Achim Heukemes and Greenwich Resident John Michelott THE FOR PROFIT GREENWICH 9/11 FLAG A Greenwich man who has told people that he was eager to give after the 9/11 terrorist attacks poured set up a charities to serve the victims, their families and their memories. But a decade later, records show that this Greenwich charity has failed 9/11 victims and their families miserably. The Flag of Honor Fund, a Greenwich charity, raised nearly $140,000 to promote a memorial flag honoring 9/11 victims. The flag, which contains the name of every person killed on Sept. 11, 2001, is on sale today at Wal-Mart and other retail stores. But only a tiny fraction of the money from those sales goes to 9/11 charities, with most going to retail stores, the flag maker and a for-profit business — run by the Greenwich man who created the flag charity. This Greenwich 9/11 charity fell short of it's promises and did more to help it's founder than those affected by the terrorist attacks. At first glance, the Flag of Honor/Flag of Heroes Project looks like any other charity doing philanthropy in the name of 9/11. But people who have bought one of its flags might be surprised to learn that nearly all the proceeds have gone to the charity founder's for-profit flag company, not 9/11 victims. IRS rules generally prohibit the resources of a nonprofit group from being used to promote a for-profit product. John Michelotti of Greenwich, Conn., the charity's founder, has publicly said one of his goals was to give a framed copy of his flag, which bears the names of all the dead emblazoned on the Stars and Stripes to every family that lost someone in the attacks. He also designed a "Flag of Heroes" with only the names of fallen firefighters and law enforcement personnel. Documents filed with the state of Connecticut explain that part of the Greenwich fund's mission is to create "a national people's memorial" by urging corporations "to hang the Flag of Honor artwork prominently in all of their business locations." In some IRS filings, the charity said its purpose was to sell the memorial flag. The project's website lists 10 nonprofit groups as beneficiaries of the flag sales, including the Boy Scouts, a food bank in Oregon and a Manhattan church that narrowly escaped being destroyed in the attacks. The truth is that Mr. Michelotti's for-profit business, BIE LLC, has donated no more than $15,000 to 9/11 charities. Now Here Is How The Greedy 9/11 Scheme Worked..... Most of the charities listed as beneficiaries were actually BIE customers that purchased flags to resell during their own fundraising efforts. For example, Mr. Michelotti imported cheap flags from China. The Exchange Group chapter in Salem, Ore., bought about 4,000 flags from his for-profit company to use in a patriotic display for about $7 each, then sold them for $25. About $75,000 was raised for several causes, including the Oregon National Guard Emergency Relief Fund, but none of the money came out of Mr. Michelotti's cut. Ka Ching !!!! Ka Ching !!! Ka Ching !!!! Mr. Michelotti's charity collected $139,332 in donations and other revenue from 2003 to 2009, but it only gave away framed copies of the flag to the families of between 200 and 350 victims of the terror attacks. Framed copies Mr. Michelotti's charity basically bought from Mr. Michelotti's Business. Tax returns filed by the group don't list any donations to 9/11 victims or the groups that serve them. BIG BUCKS ARE BEING MADE OFF THE 9/11 VICTIMS AND THEIR FAMLIES Today show host Hoda Kotb promoted the flag on national television in 2009, she described the project as "a contribution fund to help those that were affected." Several 9/11 organizations have embraced his product. The flag is sold at the National Sept. 11 Memorial and Museum, and online by Voices of Sept. 11, a leading victims' advocacy group. Annin Flag Makers, the nation's largest and oldest flag company, also recently signed on to the project. The company said it shipped 170,000 of the flags this summer to stores nationwide, including Walmart. Under Michelotti's deal with Annin, some money from flag sales will go to charities regularly for the first time — but it won't be much. Ten percent of the wholesale revenue will be split among the Wounded Warriors Project, the National Sept. 11 Memorial and Museum, Voices of 9/11 — and Michelotti's Flag of Honor charity, according to Annin's marketing material. Mr.Michelotti and Annin declined to disclose how much of a licensing fee he will receive or how much retailers are paying for the flag. But if it is close to the $7 wholesale price Michelotti charged previously, roughly 70 cents of a $20 retail purchase would go to charity. The remaining profit would go to the flag maker, the retailer, and Michelotti's for-profit company. The Flag of Honor Fund has shamelessly crossed the firewall between a charity and a for-profit company just to benefit one Greenwich resident. AND GUESS WHO IS JOHN MICHELTTI BIGGEST PROMOTER YES MICHELOTTI IS IN THE GREENWICH TIME INSIDERS CLICK THIS GUY IS ALWAYS IN THE GREENWICH TIME
ARE YOU IN THE GREENWICH TIME CLICK? THE GREENWICH TIME EASILY IGNORES GREENWICH TAXPAYERS, GREENWICH HIGH SCHOOL PARENTS AND HOMEOWNERS WORRIED ABOUT PCBS. YET THE GREENWICH TIME IS ALWAYS AVAILABLE TO QUOTE AND PROMOTE THEIR LITTLE CLICK OF TOWN INSIDERS. ============================= Please send your comments, news tips and press releases to GreenwichRoundup@gmail.com   | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 25 Aug 2011 06:35 AM PDT Get Hyper Local News For Your Greenwich Neighborhood  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 25 Aug 2011 06:34 AM PDT
  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 25 Aug 2011 06:13 AM PDT
  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 25 Aug 2011 04:56 AM PDT
  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 25 Aug 2011 04:53 AM PDT
  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 25 Aug 2011 04:53 AM PDT
  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 25 Aug 2011 03:29 AM PDT
  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 25 Aug 2011 03:27 AM PDT Hurricane Irene barrels Toward US As Caribbean Islands Take Stock Of Damage Greenwich Gets Ready To Batten Down The Hatches: Hurricane Irene is now headed for North Carolina after pummeling Caribbean island nations from the Bahamas to the Dominican Republic, causing some $3.1 billion in damage Irene more likely to hit Conn.Chances the state gets hit with its first hurricane in 26 years are increasing.
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 25 Aug 2011 03:22 AM PDT
  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 24 Aug 2011 11:07 PM PDT
  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 24 Aug 2011 10:25 PM PDT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Posted: 24 Aug 2011 05:15 AM PDT
  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| You are subscribed to email updates from Greenwich Roundup To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
Photos: Hurricane Irene
Video: Incredible NASA images
Twitter: Irene updates
