St. Louis Building developer Matthew E. Burghoff pled guilty to asbestos-related charges on October 1st in federal court. Mr. Burghoff admitted to improper removal of asbestos-containing materials at the downtown St. Louis Ford building.
The building, which falls on the list of National Historic Places, was planned to be developed into a luxury condo building. The deadline for the project was set for fall of this year, but the windows are still boarded up and work has not yet begun on the property. Lawyers for Burghoff have stated that the building has been sold.
In 2007 the St. Louis Air Pollution Control Division was notified by an anonymous tip that Burghoff was removing asbestos from the Ford property illegally. Following the tip, a state and federal investigation was launched and the property was inspected. The inspection revealed that asbestos was in fact being handled improperly, and the investigators discovered piles of asbestos materials lying throughout the building, as well as 60 bags of asbestos waste on site. The dangerous handling of the asbestos-containing materials puts those that live in the immediate area at risk of exposure to airborne asbestos fibers.
As a result of the investigations, it was also determined that Burghoff used the funds borrowed for the project for his own personal use. He faces up to two and a half years in prison for both the improper removal of asbestos and Clean Air Act violations, as well as for the fraud charges.
