Back in early 1989, school officials glowed with pride over their $530-million plan to remove cancer-causing asbestos and renovate several run-down schools across the city. But they’re not bragging anymore: 22 months have passed and hardly any construction is under way.

The school board’s original renovation plans (announced in February 1989) called for new roof and windows at Lake View at a cost of $6.6 million. But removing the asbestos was the first hurdle to clear. (Asbestos was commonly used as insulation until the mid-1970s, when researchers discovered it caused cancer in laboratory animals and the substance was banned.)

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So Nettelhorst officials were relieved, and very surprised, when a work crew showed up in September 1989 to fix the roof. “There was no warning; the crew just showed up,” says Tanzman. “Peggy Lubin, our principal, didn’t even know they were coming. They didn’t even give the principal the basic courtesy of letting her know this was going to happen. We were grateful for their attention, but it’s our school and we expect to be more involved.”

The PBC exercised some of that power at their June meeting, when, to the dismay of the local councils, they abruptly dismissed all the bids. The only reason cited was that the bids were too high–astronomically so, Daley said. Other PBC members contended that money could be saved by cutting back the amount of asbestos removed from each school, though they cited no research to support this idea. To school activists it seemed clear that the commissioners had not adequately studied the matter. They certainly didn’t seem to realize that their decision would lengthen the time students and teachers spent in leaky, drafty, asbestos-lined classrooms, school council members contend.

The schools pressed their case at the PBC’s meeting in July. And still the PBC took no action. Since then the subcommittee has met only twice.

With any luck, new bid requests may be ready by January, though few school council members are counting on it.