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Fairfield Woods Library Expects To Clear Mold, Reopen By End Of Week

FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Town officials expect the mold in the basement of Fairfield Woods Branch Library to be completely cleared up and the library ready to reopen by Saturday, Nov. 23.

Fairfield Library Director Karen Ronald, First Selectman Michael Tetreau, Department of Public Works director Joseph Michelangelo and Director of Public Health Sands Cleary spoke briefly Monday about the mold remediation at Fairfield Woods Library.

Fairfield Library Director Karen Ronald, First Selectman Michael Tetreau, Department of Public Works director Joseph Michelangelo and Director of Public Health Sands Cleary spoke briefly Monday about the mold remediation at Fairfield Woods Library.

Photo Credit: Alissa Smith, file photo

The town announced Friday that the branch library is closed for mold remediation work this week through Friday, Nov. 22.

None of the library’s materials will be affected by the remediation work or the mold, Fairfield Woods Library Director Karen Ronald said at a news conference Monday.

“We look at what we’ll discard, but it’s not library materials, it’s not books,” she said. “We’ve marked what we want to keep and those will be cleaned and returned to that area.”

The area where the mold was found was mainly used for storage for papers and overflow from the library. Everything else in that area will most likely be discarded, she said.

The library is waiving late fees while it is closed, Ronald said. “We’ll do everything to accommodate the patrons,” she said. All items can also be returned to either of the other Fairfield branch libraries.

The mold growth began some time after roof work was completed at the the library, First Selectman Michael Tetreau said. After the roof was finished in late September, the air quality tests were at acceptable levels and no mold was found, he said.

“This was a project, initially, to replace the roof on the Fairfield Woods Branch Library,” Tetreau said. During the project, several recommendations were made, including clearing some sheetrock in the basement that was discolored. “Once the replacement was finished, we proceeded to implement some of those recommendations. When we removed some of the sheetrock, there was mold that was found inside the walls … specifically around the boiler.”

There was no immediate concern for the patrons or the staff when the mold was discovered, because the air quality had been at acceptable levels, Director of Public Health Sands Cleary said.

"The roof leak was the substantial part of the cause” of the growth of the mold, said Department of Public Works Director Joseph Michelangelo. 

The town will likely decrease the level of humidity in its buildings from 60 percent to 55 percent or lower to decrease the likelihood of mold growth, officials said.

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