The latest tests have found Legionella bacteria not only at all four buildings in the State Center complex, but also in two District Court buildings in Baltimore – 5800 Wabash Avenue and 700 East Patapsco Avenue, the Maryland Department of General Services (DGS) disclosed today.

After tests conducted on November 25 at the two courthouses came back positive yesterday for the health-harming bacteria, the buildings will be closed Saturday and Sunday for the water systems to be flushed and sanitized, DGS announced in a press release.

But as in the case of the State Center offices, court employees are advised not to drink the building water when they return to work.

They are also advised to wash their hands, use hand sanitizer and to make use of bottled water being provided.

“Current precautions are aligned with Centers for Disease Control recommendations,” DGS says. “They indicate that though no one should drink the water, use of the water for flushing of toilets and washing of hands with soap and warm water poses very low risk.”

The widening Legionella revelations come on the heels of complaints by employees that information about the contamination has been scarce and, at times, conflicting.

Labor unions are calling for state employees to be allowed to telework until the Legionella has been cleared.

“Do not drink the water and demand telework!” a flier distributed yesterday at State Center by the American Federation of Teachers Maryland said.

“You’re seeing all of this mixed messaging and all of this contradictory information from various state departments. That’s making people feel incredibly unsafe coming to work,” Camden Roberts, of  AFSCME Council 3, said after a rally on Tuesday.

About 100 members of the union, which represents 20,000 state workers, were present holding signs that said, “Safe staffing now!” and “$1 billion in deferred maintenance,” the latter referring to the administration of Republican Governor Larry Hogan.

“Employees are receiving updates about maintenance, building closures and precautionary water use parameters via memos that are circulated on a regular basis,” the DGS release said.

Statewide Testing

After days of silence regarding the State Center Legionella issue – and an 11th-hour internal announcement of rolling building closures that some workers said they never received – DGS offered additional information today.

“In mid-October, DGS initiated an effort to establish baseline testing and best practices to monitor water quality in its buildings across the state, beginning with the State Center complex in Baltimore,” the release said.

“Primarily, the tests will help establish better monitoring and control of the building’s water systems,” it continued, noting that the effort just begun in Maryland is similar to a testing initiative recently launched nationwide by the U.S. General Services Administration.

As a result of this “proactive testing” at State Center, the agency “initially received notification that Legionella bacteria was found in the water of two buildings – 201 West Preston Street and 300 West Preston Street.”

In addition to disclosing Legionella findings at those two buildings and the courthouses, the list DGS provided today confirms that 301 West Preston Street and 1100 North Eutaw Street also tested positive for the bacteria.

(Asked previously about 300 West Preston Street, a DGS spokesman Eric Solomon had said it did not show high levels of Legionella. )

Solomon said today that confirmation of Legionella in all four buildings came from test results returned on November 22.

Today’s release noted that 1100 North Eutaw will be closed for cleaning tomorrow, with employees told to report back to work on Monday.

It also notes that “half of the staff have moved out, and the remaining staff will be moved within a couple of months.”

As for the rest of the occupants at the complex, located next to Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard on the city’s Westside, the future is more hazy.

Left in limbo for years during legal and political wrangling over a sweeping redevelopment plan that never happened, state workers were told they would be moved out of the aging structures.

DGS spokesman Eric Silver had only this to say today when asked about a current timeline for relocation:

“There are an estimated 4,300 employees still working at State Center, with approximately 1,000 employees relocated to date. There are plans in place to relocate all of the remaining employees in the next two years.”

Previous Brew Coverage

• Months before Legionella finding at State Center, officials had acknowledged a lack of potable water (11/13/24)

• Legionella bacteria is still present at State Center, new testing shows (11/27/24)

• State Center buildings to close again amid continued Legionella findings and employee complaints (12/3/24)
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To contact a reporter: fern.shen@baltimorebrew.com