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• Lethal injection pondered

• A cut above

• Decline in gas prices pleases local drivers

• Mold cleanup at Lawrence school scheduled to start on Wednesday

• Immigration sweep leads to arrest of 12 locally

• Regional Roundup

• San Joaquin County digs into budget, seeks to sprout master gardener program

November 21st, 2009

• Logbook

• Holiday drive spreads cheer to U.S. troops

• Galt High students want board to approve open-campus policy

• Poisoning victims remain hospitalized

• Expert: Half a mushroom cap can be deadly

• Tokay grad files claim over Lodi's Grape Bowl

• Lodi Middle School holds annual Turkey Trot

• Regional Roundup

• No motive or suspect in shooting

• Sacramento cop arrested for alleged kidnapping

November 20th, 2009

• Acampo woman killed

• Salvation Army Kettle Kickoff

• Advocacy groups sue East Bay Municipal Utility District over Pardee expansion

• Regional Roundup

• Galt plans to help residents with energy-efficient projects

• Stable southeast of Lodi approved

• One year after a heart attack, Lodi's Judy Mims thanks rescuers

• National Guard troops return home in time for the holidays

• Real estate market gets on more solid ground

November 19th, 2009

• Operation: Christmas

• Logbook

• Suspect arrested after hiding in fridge

• Chase ends in crash

• Galt Joint Union High School Distric hires new superintendent

• Sales tax hike yields dividends: 5 new officers join Galt Police

• Lodi Unified School District board votes to cancel summer school for 2010

• Water surges in Mokelumne River yield more salmon

• Lodi City Council will consider redevelopment next June

• Lodi City Council plans to cap number of taco trucks at 22

• Corrections

November 18th, 2009

• Regional Roundup

• Paranormal group conducts second investigation of building

• Congress allocates money for local water projects

• Sarah Palin's book hits the shelves: Locals react

• Lodi man finds wife's ashes during police display of stolen property

• Galt City Council rejects study on rent stabilization

November 17th, 2009

• Paying tribute to a Lodian

• Lodi Budget and Finance Committee to look into ways to save money on employee benefits

• Regional Roundup

• Decision on summer school expected at tonight's Lodi Unified School District meeting

• Clements gets free water rescue boat

• Redevelopment to be discussed by Lodi City Council again

• Court reinstates death penalty for killer of Lodi grad

• Clarification

November 16th, 2009

• Correction

• Public Meetings

• City Council 'triple-dog dared' to ditch cars, use Lodi buses

• Sierra Adventure store to close after four years in Downtown Lodi

• Lodi's First Sip event showcases area wineries' latest vintages

• Three members of Lodi-area family fall ill after eating poisonous mushrooms they reportedly found at Lodi Lake

• Regional Roundup

November 14th, 2009

• Galt school district narrows superintendent search to one

• Regional Roundup

• Despite budget cuts, some Lodi Unified School District salaries continue to rise

• Watchful neighbor in Lodi helped bust suspected burglars

• New Galt city manager juggles job, family

• Despite an increase in homeless students, school districts look to bolster enrollment, raise revenue

• A first look at 2009 vintages at Lodi's First Sip wine-tasting event

The following stories have received the most reader comments during the last 7 days.

• The country's mess is our fault (165)
• Obama is not a moderate (130)
• Sarah Palin's book hits the shelves: Locals react (70)
• Lodi City Council plans to cap number of taco trucks at 22 (48)
• The haves should help the have-nots (30)
• Public health care is a Christian option (29)
• Tokay in, traveling to unbeaten No. 3 Grant for football playoffs (25)
• Government-run health care is a bad idea (17)
• Young woman fatally shot at Acampo home (17)
• Sierra Adventure store to close after four years in Downtown Lodi (16)

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Mold cleanup at Lawrence school scheduled to start on Wednesday

Mold cleanup at Lawrence Elementary should begin Wednesday, amid concerns by some parents about potential health problems.

"Whenever you have a leaky roof you're going to have stains," said principal Cathy Kurey. "Whenever you have wet conditions you may have mold."

School staff and teachers worked through the weekend to make sure materials were boxed up and moved into portable buildings that arrived on campus Saturday.

Carmen Soto, whose daughter is a first-grade student, said she was surprised that mold was found in classrooms.

"They should have checked before the beginning of the school year, when I assume there were no kids here," Soto said.

Another parent, Yolanda Aguilar, said she has seen recent television reports about mold causing bronchitis and asthma in children.

"They're good people for making sure children are staying away from the mold," she said in Spanish, translated by her fifth-grade daughter Karen. Her son, Hugo, is a first-grade student.

Some teachers said they were concerned about mold but that Kurey instructed them not to speak to the press. Kurey said she would rather all comments come from herself or district staff.

A member of the Measure K school bond oversight committee said he heard from a teacher in March that mold was a problem at the school.

"My concern was they didn't follow up with checking for mold at the school," said Tasso Kandris.

At the committee's March 8 meeting, Kandris asked district staff to look into mold. By the committee's next meeting on June 14, the district reported it had reviewed portable and permanent classrooms and found no mold.

Measure K funds won't pay for the portables, mold removal or reconstruction. Work will likely be billed to the district's general fund, but the amount is not yet known.

The new portable classrooms at Lawrence have been placed in a row at the rear parking lot of the Lodi Grape Festival Grounds. Parents may choose to drop off children there in addition to the regular spots.

"The teachers love their new rooms," Kurey said in her office Monday.

Joined by Lodi Unified's Facilities and Planning assistant superintendent Art Hand, the two thrashed out the mold timeline.

Art Hand said some teachers had complained to their principal of rainwater-stained ceiling tiles. Kurey said she heard the first complaints from teachers several weeks into the current school year.

Staff from the district's maintenance and operations division did a "visual inspection" and verified the tiles were stained. Continued complaints prompted the district to call ADR Environmental Inc. to do an air quality test.

"A very small amount of mold spores were found," Hand said.

During a reroofing project completed in July, roofers saw from above that ceiling tiles were stained but mold was not obvious, Hand said.

ADR tested classrooms again after the reroofing was done, and mold was discovered in classroom 2. However, to pinpoint the source, "mold investigators" will have to look through ceiling tiles and walls.

"The union is very concerned whenever anyone is asked to enter a building that's potentially dangerous," said Sue Kenmotsu, president of the Lodi Education Association. "We're glad teachers are being given information about the situation today; we're concerned that teachers were being asked to go into the classrooms before they knew how serious it was."

According to Hand, the "black mold" at Lawrence is the same variety recently discovered and removed from McNair High School's cafeteria and administration offices.

Contact reporter Kendyce Manguchei at kendycem@lodinews.com.

First published: Tuesday, September 26, 2006