Hazardous Debris Remains Directly Adjacent To Atlantic City School

Exactly two months ago, we reported a significant amount of hazardous debris that is located directly adjacent to an Atlantic City (elementary) public school.

We took photographs of the Chelsea Heights school and playground areas on April 1 and made a note in our “tickler file” to revisit this two months later.

Well, it’s two months later and the dangerous conditions have not yet been addressed by the Board of Education or the City of Atlantic City administration.

Back on April 1st, we reviewed the dangerous situation with Atlantic City Board of Education Member John Devlin.

Devlin said, "It was never cleaned up and now it looks like a war zone. It's an eyesore, as well as a safety and security hazard."

Here are photos that we took on Wednesday, June 1:

This dangerous eyesore is located on the 500 block of Annapolis Avenue in Atlantic City.

Approximately 3-4 double-wide trailers sat on this property for about 20 years. The trailers were used as classrooms.

The trailers were supposed to be a short-term fix for a few years. It lasted for two decades.

Devlin is perplexed as to why this hazardous condition has been allowed to remain, confirming to us the trailers, which were used for educational purposes were also in place at one other Atlantic City school.

In this case, the debris was promptly removed.

A Marty Small staffer told us that Paul Jerkins, Director of Public Works is aware of the situation and believes it unwise to disturb the debris field until after the school year ends.

Jerkins is a good man, who we have never known to misrepresent a situation.

The problem with this working theory is that the trailers were removed from The Chelsea Heights School more than a year ago.

There was ample time to remove the dangerous debris and properly clean the area.

It also doesn’t answer the question of the total inaction of the Atlantic City Board of Education. It’s an ACBOE responsibility.

We have observed concrete, with metal rods protruding, along with exposed wires, metal rebar, and other debris.

This abandoned, unkempt property is the latest embarrassment for the Atlantic City Board of Education.

The photos above illustrate how close the loose concrete and other debris are to the Chelsea Heights School.

It is our sincere hope that by publicly exposing the
existence of the dangerous condition of this public property, the Atlantic City Board of Education will properly remediate the site without delay.

We are putting this issue back in our “tickler file” and we’ll revisit, again, within the next month or two.