The lawsuit over the $13 million renovation project for Park Avenue School that ended up costing Amityville and East Massapequa taxpayers more than $20 million is heading to trial. The lawsuit is seeking between $8 and $10 million from the district's construction manager, Christa Construction, and its architect, Spector, and the bonding company for the roofer, Intercounty, which is out of business.

The case is before Justice Emily Pines in Supreme Court, State of New York, Suffolk County and is expected to be set for trial some time next month, according to John Osborn of John E. Osborn P.C. of Westchester and Manhattan, whose firm is representing the district. "It has taken a long time and we are hopeful that everyone will sit down in the fall and have some serious discussions on this," he said. If a negotiated settlement is not reached, the case could come before the courts for trial as early as November or December of this year. Between now and then, the two sides could also go into mediation in the hope of reaching a settlement. The district initially asked voters to approve $13 million for the renovation of the historical school building on Park Avenue. As work progressed, it became apparent that something was seriously wrong. The roof was leaking and the contractors continued to install sheet rock in the building and do other work even as water continued to pour in. In addition, the brick work on the building was not properly applied. A report completed by the district's environmental consultants in May, 2001, concluded that the building is filled with mold and bacteria, some of them disease causing, as a result of continued leaks from its faulty roof. The Amityville School Board directed that all work on the project be halted until the roof could be sealed and corrective measures taken to ensure not only the health and safety of workers but also the children and staff who will eventually occupy that building. The report by Brad Associates showed the presence of pathogenic species in the building, and said the mold building up on the surfaces within the building was becoming airborne. Candida, staphylococcus, penicillium, streptococcus, yeast and tricicopython were detected in the air, while those and other bacteria and fungus were detected on the surfaces. "The results show that the building is highly contaminated with fungus," the report noted. "The fungus, or molds detected consist of several species, some of them pathogenic or disease causing species." The district eventually fired Christa and Spector, and the roofer walked off the job. A new construction company, Park East, was hired and the district renegotiated with the contractors. The engineering firm of Thornton Tomasetti of Manhattan, which has experience working with buildings in crisis, was hired as the new architects and worked with Spector's designs to get the project going again. They filed all of the necessary paperwork with the state and signed off on all documents. The building was eventually completed and a ribbon-cutting ceremony was held in October 2004. The public initially approved a bond resolution of $13 million for the project. With costs escalating as a result of the faulty workmanship, and legal fees mounting, the district asked voters to approve an additional $8 million, which they said they hoped to recoup from the lawsuit. Another $1.2 million in surplus funds was added to that, bringing the total paid for the renovations to $22.2 million.