UNITED NATIONS, May 28, updated -- Alongside the sealing off of the UN Conference Building, a new ceiling collapse in the General Assembly basement and relentlessly upbeat storytelling by the UN about happy staffers and even reporters in their new swing space, as in many refugee situations it all comes down to force.
The chief of the UN Capital Master Plan Michael Adlerstein has written:
"In the event that you do not pack your materials as requested, we will arrange for your material to be packed and relocated to the Alcoa space during the weekend of 29-31 May 2010. In either event, telephone and computer connections will be relocated ... this weekend, and the locks will be changed at your old office in the Secretariat on Friday night. On Tuesday morning June 1, you will not be allowed to enter your former offices."
Unlike anywhere else in New York or most real estate situation, there is no possibility of appeal or any outside review. "It's like a threat from a slumlord," one reader of the letter told Inner City Press.
Adlerstein's letter reflects that Information Technology staff are, in fact, remaining in the Secretariat high rise. It is unclear when they will be moved to the basement of the North Lawn building.
Downstairs in the basement, workers at UN Television report they will be moved upstairs "to where Verbatim used to be" -- that is, the Department of General Assembly and Conference Management staff who were moved to the bedbug ridden Albano Building swing space will not be coming back.
A series of CMP related questions have been sent this morning to the spokespeople for the Secretary General and for the CMP, including about yet another ceiling collapse in the General Assembly lobby, the reported charging of admission to see a film inside the UN, frozen and missing video monitors and the future of the US Post Office inside the UN. Watch this site.
Update of 1 p.m. -- from the UN, on one of eight questions:
Subject: response to your first question from CMP
From: UN Spokesperson - Do Not Reply
Date: Fri, May 28, 2010 at 12:09 PM
To: Inner City Press
1. There is another ceiling collapse in front of the gift shop, in the public area of the UN.? Has the UN done testing to confirm that there is not asbestos being released in the vicinity of visitors, including children?? When were the tests done, and will the UN make them available?
Response: Approximately 10 sf of plaster have fallen down near the Gift Shop. The plaster in that area had to be replaced a few times before due to a recurring leakage problem. This plaster does not contain asbestos.
To be continued. And see, www.innercitypress.com/cmp4return052810.html
