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Marconi Station Manager's Cottage Preservation Progress at InfoAge |
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Restoration of the Marconi Station Manager's Cottage has been completed by InfoAge members.
The exterior of the Manager's cottage looks great. The 1914 built building is masonry throughout.
Click here for a view of the cottage in the August 1914 issue of Wireless Age.
The Marconi Manager's cottage is one of the original 1914 completed historic buildings.
Today is is completely restored and in use for meetings and offices.
From 1997 to 2001 InfoAge and Wall Township requested in writing the use of this building
and to offered to assume its maintenance as allowed by the BRIM guidelines. The BRAC
office refused time after time.
From 1998 to 2000 the building was in great shape. By 2001 mold was beginning to infest the
building as the heat was turned off and the boiler was damaged beyond repair by freezing cold.
The aluminum storm windows and any light fixtures of value were stolen. The front door was damaged
in a breakin.
Finally, in 2001 BRAC gave InfoAge a license to use the building.
Once the interior painting work was completed the BRAC office threatened our director with prosecution
for the violation of pollution laws. His requests for use of the site and repeated complaints of the poor
maintenance had annoyed them to the point it was time to shake him up.
A BRAC attorney asked to meet with Mr. Carl in building 9002 in the 2001. At the meeting Mr. Carl was told that as
a building built prior to 1978 that the cottage had to have lead-based paint. Given the paint chips that a
Fort Monmouth Lead-based paint safety person has seen were gone. Given the surfaces had to have been
scraped prior to repainting.
Therefore, Mr. Carl had generated hazardous waste without a permit while scraping the loose paint on the walls.
As there was no collection of paint chips seen in the trash at the building at the time of the meeting,
Mr. Carl must have transported the hazardous waste he had generated without a permit over public roads without a permit.
Mr. Carl then must have thrown the hazardous waste into his home garbage.
That was introducing hazard waste into the Municipal waste stream.
These were three offences that Mr. Carl would have to defend himself against in a federal court if he were to be charged.
To quote the BRAC attorney "Your finances will never be the same."
To avoid prosecution Mr. Carl appealed for help from the Wall Township attorney. An agreement was struck that if
Mr. Carl would take a one-day lead-based paint safety class the issue would be called a misundestanding and no
action would be taken against him.
After several one-day classes were cancelled at a environmental training institute over a six month period for lack of enrollment
and many requests from the BRAC office as to why Mr. Carl was not meeting his part of the understanding.
Mr. Carl used a week of vacation from his regular job and took the one week Lead-based paint worker training.
Mr. Carl then qualified to take the exam for a NJ State Lead worker certification. He passed the exam and paid
the state certification fee. Later he would take the re-certifcation class, exam and paid the fee to maintain his certification.
He sent a copy of his certification paperwork and his worker identification card to the BRAC office to end the phone calls.
The suspected paint chips were in a properly labeled metal container, locked in a basement storage room during the entire ordeal.
Althought not tested for lead, they were treated as lead-based paint chips.
They were properly disposed of in hazardous material labeled drum provided by Fort Monmouth.
As a volunteer working to save a historic site this was harassment of Mr. Carl by the BRAC office for their entertainment.
Threating Mr. Carl with prosecution and financial harm was uncalled for and did not in anyway serve the public good.
In 2002 the heating sytem over heated, nearly caught fire, due to improper installtion of a low-water cut-off switch and automatic water feed.
InfoAge replaced the boiler in 2006 for $7,000.
Click here for a 1914 view of the cottage dining and living rooms.
This is the condition the BRAC office allowed the building to get to.
Before BRAC the building was in use and well maintained. A family with children lived there until 1997.
We asked and the township asked BRAC in writing for use of the building and to maintain it.
We did not get permission until the damage was done. Then BRAC threatened to revoke the lease multiple times.
After BRAC - Not ready for reuse....
No heat, no sewer line connection and the begining of mold infestation.
Gutters full, vines growing up the walls, windows boarded up and the front door kicked in . This is what we staqrted with.
The kitchen....
The high level of moisture caused paint to peel. Mold was beginning to be a problem.
Multiple washes with a bleach solution and a dehumidifier reduced the mold.
This is nearly the same view as the 1914 photo.
Note the mold stating to grow on the fireplace bricks and ceiling. Near the floor and the floor surface was the worst.
Click here for a 1914 view of the cottage dining and living rooms.
This is the dining room. Note the mold on the baseboard.
In this bedroom the mold covered the wall and ceiling. At the time we thought this was bad.
The front door, door lock and molding was damaged during a breakin.
InfoAge goes to work to preserve this building.
Volunteers go to work on the cottage on "Make a Difference Day" - Click on the photo or here to see them at work.
Bill Asay repaired the damaged front door. As the porch light was stolen we worked with a spot light.
Now that the building was secure we began washing the walls to kill the mold. Then we repained the interior.
Here Karen Carl arrives with more plastic and supplies to repaint the front bedroom.
Joe Carl preparing the walls for a fresh coat of white latex paint.
Under the suit is Joe Carl. Joe spray painted the interior of 9002.
The black pipes in this basement photo and the one below were installed by Mark Casner of C&H Plumbing of Wall Township
as a temporary workaround after BRAC removed the sewer system then refused to replace it. Since the original
septic tank was still inplace and used for the kitchen sink and clothes washing machine Mark made the connection to
put the septic tank back into full operation. Mark supplied all the materials and provided all the labor as a gift to save Camp Evans.
In this photo you can see where Mark cut into the line from the toilet to the sewer line prior to it exiting the west side of the cottage basement .
In this photo you can see the bend the line makes and its temporary connection to the old septic tank exit pipe in the back cottage basement wall.
The finished living room.
Wall Township High School Students making ginger bread Christmas houses in the cottage living room.
Page updated January 5, 2006 page created December 30, 2006