Years of lead at Arlington Hts. police station

Black dust found on some vents in the Arlington Heights police station contain elevated levels of lead, the village board was told on Monday.

The lead comes from the station's firing range in the basement of the building, said Village Manager Bill Dixon.

"It's an inherent byproduct of having a firing range there for 30 years," Dixon said. "It's not a surprise given the age of that building."

The police station at Arlington Heights Road and Sigwalt Street was built in 1978.

Areas closest to the firing range - including the evidence room - have the highest levels of lead, said Ash Memon, a project manager for ATC Associates, who conducted the testing.

Some of those areas exceed the Illinois Department of Health's lead threshold eight to ten times over, Memon said.

"However, this is not a major concern in a building used only by adults," he said after Monday's meeting. "If children under the age of 6 years old where there, it would be different."

It will cost between $80,000 and $135,000 to clean the heating and air conditioning vents and another $80,000 down the road to upgrade the system, said Director of Public Works Scott Shirley. The board is slated to approve the first-phase costs on July 21.

When officers use the firing range, lead particles probably cling to bottom of their shoes and are spread throughout the police station, Shirley said.

All police officers submit blood samples annually to test for elevated levels of lead, said Police Chief Gerald Mourning. In light of the test results, every civilian employee was also given the chance to participate in lead testing, although not everyone did, he said.

"Only one officer had higher than normal levels," Mourning said. "It turns out, other nonwork issues that may have affected his test. We don't think it's connected to the firing range."

Trustee Helen Jensen said the village should work to lower the lead levels in the police station as soon as possible.

"My concern is that employees go home to young children and bring lead contamination home with them," said Jensen, who is a nurse.

The majority of police stations in the Northwest suburbs have similar firing ranges, Mourning said.

Lead: Similar firing ranges found in many suburban police stations