Philly City Council advances demo regulations

THREE BILLS tightening up the way demolition projects are carried out in the city passed through committee and are headed for a vote next week before City Council.

The bills help implement Occupational Safety and Health Administration training standards and mandate annual continuing education for demolition workers at construction sites.

The legislation stems from the June collapse of a building under demolition at 22nd and Market streets onto an adjacent Salvation Army thrift store, killing six people.

The accident spurred a special independent review of all Department of Licenses & Inspections inspections at demolition sites.

The bills would establish a minimum licensure requirement and penalty system for safety monitors at demolition sites, require L&I to promulgate new regulations on posting signage and notices, and require OSHA training and continuing education for workers on the ground.

"One of our concerns that we saw as a result of some of these particular issues on this demolition project and others was that people simply aren't trained," said Council President Darrell Clarke. "We want to make sure that people have adequate training to ensure that they know what they're doing. At the end of the day, we knew it was clear that a number of people in this particular tragic event had no clue as to how to take that building down."

Investigators allege the 42-year-old construction worker using an excavator during the demolition was high on marijuana and painkillers while operating the heavy machinery.

Clarke said the question of who - or which entity - would provide the new training was still up in the air, although he would like to see the city take a lead on it.

Costs associated with city-administered training, however, have yet to be determined, and Clarke said Council members are prepared to introduce further legislation to address some of those issues.

Another issue is the question of whether demolition workers ought to be required to carry city-issued photo identification. The argument against the IDs is that it is unfair to undocumented workers who are paid in cash.

L&I Commissioner Carlton Williams, who testified before the committee yesterday, said that prior to the June accident there were 475 structures in the city slated for demolition. There are 625 buildings in the city deemed "eminently dangerous."

Source: Philly.com