It is one of the buildings that serve as the Federal Reserve headquarters. It is old, it is not new. It was built in the 1960s. It was about time to update the building and make it more functional for the staff.
It is extremely difficult and expensive to remove asbestos. These buildings were constructed when asbestos was in everything from floor tiles to insulation.
In order to remove asbestos from ANY building, the asbestos first has to be isolated from moving air so when the removal begins the microscopic fibers are not polluting the air where people are working or living.
These are not small buildings and would require a lot of labor costs as well as equipment for the removal. That is not where the costs end. The removed asbestos has to be sealed for disposal. It can’t be incinerated because of the deadly tiny fibers.
Then when the removal is accomplished the new construction must begin. So a building like the Martin building was a huge project. I am not surprised refurbishing the Fed buildings are expensive TO BE MADE SAFE and functional.
The Martin Building is only one example of the needs for modern day function. That building was constructed long before there was Ethernet cable.
