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The Villages
Thursday, March 28, 2024

Mold problem said to be underlying factor in Wildwood police chief’s abrupt departure

A persistent mold problem at the fire-damaged Wildwood police station led to clashes with the city manager and the departure of three command staff officers, according to two police department employees.

Chief Paul Valentino

The sudden retirement of Police Chief Paul Valentino was announced last week. Valentino, who will leave at the end of the month, did not respond to phone messages left at his office. Deputy Chief Gerald Olbek and Captain Ashley Rogers also resigned.

On Monday morning, the city commission will consider the appointment of Paul Sireci as interim chief. Sireci has served as interim chief in Brooksville and security director at the Tampa International Airport.

The mold problem apparently goes back at least five years. A 2013 report found air quality issues at the Huey Street police station and included photos of what appears to be black mold outside the thick-walled building, originally built as a bomb shelter.

Wildwood Police Department

Wildwood plans to build a $7-million station on the southwest corner of U.S. 301 and County Road 462 West, but construction hasn’t begun.

An Oct. 21 electrical fire exposed more possible mold. The fire, blamed on an electrical wire that fell on a fence, severely damaged the station and sent dispatchers fleeing for their lives. No one was injured. The department now is housed in a temporary trailer outside the station. 

Wildwood City Manager Jason McHugh

Two department employees provided their account of what happened after the fire on condition that their names be withheld to protect their jobs. City Manager Jason McHugh did not respond Friday to an email message that outlined the main points of their allegations. But he released a statement earlier in the week.

After the fire, the city began clearing debris from the building and trying to assess the damage. An independent company was hired to evaluate the damage.

Three weeks after the fire, Olbek wrote a memo to Human Resources Director Melissa Tuck asking that she consider testing employees for exposure to mold and asbestos in the 52-year-old building.

According to the police employees, McHugh asked Valentino to reprimand Olbek for writing the memo, but the chief refused.

To help mitigate the mold problem, two station walls were designated for removal. Before they were removed, Olbek asked Rogers to take samples to help document the mold problem.

According to the two employees, McHugh called in the sheriff’s office, declared the station a crime scene and gave Olbek and Rogers the choice of resigning or facing a criminal investigation.

In his statement, McHugh said Valentino’s retirement is “a separate and unrelated issue” to the mold allegations. He said Valentino’s retirement was the result of an agreement between the chief and the city.

McHugh also said an investigation began after a complaint related to condition of the building was received and the results are not available yet.

“The city takes the workplace conditions of its employees seriously,” he wrote.

A 2013 draft space needs assessment by the Architects Design Group of Winter Park found that mold was one of several Wildwood police station issues at that time.

The report also found the station violated building code standards for law enforcement facilities and the federal American Disabilities Act. Among the violations were lack of handicapped accessibility and that inmates of a single holding cell shared toilet facilities with employees and the public.

The station was built in the mid-1960s as a bomb shelter where the Florida governor or U.S. president could find refuge if they were in the area, the report said.

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