The Pause

Our strange economic moment strikes again. All other considerations aside, the biggest snag from the asbestos discovery has been time. In particular, a two week wait for the remediation firm to have a slot in their schedule to fit me in. So, I wait.

It’s particularly maddening because this more or less has to happen before anything else can go on. From what I understand, the next steps are finishing the first fix plumbing and electric. The plumbing is literally blocked by the asbestos: it’s on the hot water lines. The electrical work is blocked by the incomplete demolition (blocked by the asbestos), and probably the workplace safety issues posed by discovering asbestos.

From what the firm said, they’ll be able to do the removal in a couple of weeks on the 6th.

There’s nothing I can do about it, and certainly the asbestos should be removed. That doesn’t completely make up for the annoyance of another two weeks of living in the earliest stage of construction.

For those interested in details, it’s going to run about $1,800 for the remediation work, plus $135 for the permit. Completion also requires that I engage an independent consultant to verify the environment is safe, another $350 to $500.