Dear Mr. Herrera, Mr. Nerlfi, and Ms. Estep,

I am writing to formally request an immediate halt and cease demolition at 535 Garden Ave N, Renton, WA, until further plans are in place to mitigate the catastrophes of today’s events. Today, a long-armed excavator began tearing down the concrete structure of the Ion Renton, former “Boeing 10-16” building. The excavator was demolishing from the ground floor to the seventh story, roughly 85 to 100 feet in the air. Meanwhile, contractors operated a water cannon approximately 16 to 20 feet high for dust control. Instead of suppressing dust, the water mixed with airborne concrete particulates to create a heavy mist. This concrete mist drifted over 100 feet onto my business, Meister Werks European.

This hazardous fallout began between 9:00 AM and 10:00 AM and continued until mid-afternoon. By noon, heavy concrete dust coated numerous employee and customer vehicles on our property. I immediately began documenting this damage and airborne fallout with photographs and videos. See below. Once the water cannon stopped, my staff began washing the affected customer vehicles. In three hours, we could only clean three cars, as each required two full washes. Wet concrete dust forms an abrasive, muddy sludge that tightly cakes onto surfaces as it dries. Because the dust is highly absorbent, moisture causes it to pack together and adhere mechanically.

More concerning, this airborne slurry poses an immediate and severe public health hazard. My front desk customer service rep and the afternoon barista at Mighty Mugs, experienced acute breathing difficulties. The barista suffers from asthma and began wheezing due to the heavy airborne mist. Concrete dust contains crystalline silica, which travels deep into the lungs when atomized and inhaled. Mixing silica dust with water droplets does not prevent inhalation or mitigate its toxicity. Continued exposure creates severe long-term health risks, including silicosis and permanent lung damage.

Furthermore, untreated concrete slurry runoff is flowing directly into municipal storm drains toward Lake Washington. Allowing concrete runoff into the storm system is illegal and causes severe environmental and structural damage. Concrete slurry reaches a pH of 11 to 13, matching the causticity of bleach or ammonia. In storm drains, this slurry compacts into dense, clay-like sediment that restricts water flow. Over time, this buildup reduces municipal storm system capacity and leads to localized street flooding. In Lake Washington, the cloudy runoff blocks sunlight and halts photosynthesis in oxygen-producing underwater plants. As the dust settles, it smothers fish spawning nests, gravel beds, and bottom-dwelling organisms. I know that the Public Works Department, Surface Water Utility Division have laws about this as well.

The Washington State Department of Ecology strictly enforces Construction Stormwater General Permits for demolition sites. By law, sites generating concrete dust must implement mandatory Best Management Practices (BMPs). Required measures include storm drain filter inserts (“witch’s hats”), immediate slurry vacuuming, and lined containment washouts. Allowing untreated runoff to escape site boundaries warrants severe daily fines and immediate project shutdowns. Additionally, this site is known to have confirmed contamination levels of Arsenic, Polychlorinated biPhenyls, Polycyclic Aromatic, Hydrocarbons (PCB), Halogenated Solvents, and many other Petroleum products. This further complicates the demolition. As stated in the WA State Department of Ecology 2001 RESTRICTIVE COVENANTSummary Report, “You need approval from the Department of Ecology to do any work that might disturb the ground.“ I’m not sure if this has happened or not. But I am concerned about the well being of my staff, surrounding businesses, general public and the envornment.

This uncontained demolition is actively harming local workers, damaging private property, and polluting Lake Washington. I formally appeal to the City of Renton to issue an immediate stop-work order. Demolition must cease until the contractor implements effective dust containment and lawful stormwater controls. I have photographic and video evidence available for your immediate review. Thank you for your urgent attention and prompt intervention in this critical matter.

Attached is a link to my videos and photographs of the events that took place today: https://www.rentoncarrepair.com/misc-stuff/renton-ion-abandoned-building-former-boeing-10-16-building-demolition/

Sincerely,
__________________________________________________

J. David Meister
Owner & City of Renton Resident
Meister Werks, LLC
618 Park Ave N
Renton, WA 98057
Phone: 425.254.0627
On the web at http://meister.us.com

CC:
Kim Wooten, Section Manager
Toxics Cleanup Program, Northwest Region Office
WA State Department of Ecology

Donna Kirkman, Initial Investigations Coordinator
Toxics Cleanup Program
WA State Department of Ecology