It didn’t. Instead, months of testing found lead contamination in offices, hallways, and the indoor shooting range at police headquarters at 10 Kahn Terrace, according to a June report from environmental consulting firm Garden State Environmental (GSE). More recent testing identified contamination extending into portions of the ventilation system.
New Jersey health officials ultimately recommended relocating personnel during remediation and addressing the outstanding lead issue “ASAP,” according to correspondence obtained by Daily Voice. As of press time, more than two dozen police employees were still working out of 10 Kahn Terrace.
“This is about our health, our family’s health,” one officer told Daily Voice on the condition of anonymity. “Who knows what we’re bringing home. It’s really concerning.”
Borough officials maintain they are taking the concerns seriously while drawing a distinction between the state’s recommendation and an order to leave.
“We want to clarify that the Borough has not received an order from PEOSH directing the immediate evacuation of the facility,” borough spokesman Bryan Frierson said. “PEOSH has recommended, out of an abundance of caution, that personnel be relocated during remediation, while also advising that a licensed lead-remediation contractor may determine whether the work can appropriately be completed in stages. We encourage you to contact PEOSH directly regarding its recommendations and the current status of its review.
“Since PEOSH first notified the Borough of complaints in March, the Borough has cooperated with the State and taken numerous steps to address the issues identified. This has included retaining environmental professionals, conducting additional lead, asbestos, indoor-air-quality and mold testing, closing the indoor firing range, providing requested documentation and training, and addressing the items identified through the PEOSH process. The substantial majority of the individual items contained in PEOSH’s Order to Comply have already been abated.”
A meeting between the borough and PEOSH is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 8, to establish an action plan, Frierson said.
The state investigation followed years of concerns about conditions inside headquarters. Officers say deteriorating conditions after the longtime custodian retired about six years ago, cancer diagnoses among current and former employees, and three department members dying from brain cancer ultimately pushed them to act. The February death of Capt. Keith Wicker was a driving force, the officer said. Wicker was the third department member to die from brain cancer, following Sgt. Etienne Ershadi in 2016 and Lt. Frank Oceak in 2025.
Current and retired employees began comparing medical histories and identified multiple people who had worked at headquarters and developed various cancers, the officer said. No evidence reviewed by Daily Voice establishes that conditions inside headquarters caused those cancers.
By March 9, PEOSH said it had received several complaints and was preparing an inspection. The state made clear that PEOSH does not determine cancer causation and referred those concerns to the New Jersey Department of Health’s Environmental Health Surveillance Program.
Testing on May 19 found the highest lead concentrations in and around the firing range, according to GSE. A sill in the staging area measured 41,100 micrograms per square foot, while firing-range floor samples ranged from 6,310 to 11,400. Elevated lead dust was also found in areas including the hallway outside the range, cells and several offices (see below).
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