Asbestos has been present at the Spanish Trail Motel since at least 2017, and despite multiple fires and city involvement, much of it remains today, public records show.

Fires in the 1990s damaged the Spanish Trail Motel, marking the beginning of a long period of decline. Since then, the property has continued to deteriorate, prompting the city of South Tucson to step in this year in search of a solution.

The motel and adjacent apartments, the Spanish Trail Suites, were purchased by Brian Bowers in 2020. The city of South Tucson filed a lawsuit against Bowers in May, after a fire broke out at the property, asking the courts to force the demolition and removal of the motel.

Bowers dismissed the lawsuit as “just allegations,” telling Tucson Spotlight that the city of South Tucson’s claims still have to be proven in court.

“Almost all buildings have asbestos,” Bowers said. “The county has deemed that it is not a health hazard, and it would be more unsafe to disturb it by moving it around.. I am currently working with the county and two organizations to clear the property, so we do have a plan.”

Pima County Department of Environmental Quality documents obtained by Tucson Spotlight show that, from 2017 to 2018, environmental firm Allwyn Consulting conducted a limited asbestos survey at and found asbestos in 11 of its 12 buildings.

The survey found more than 500 samples of building materials that contained more than 1% asbestos. In asbestos testing, materials with more than 1% asbestos are legally considered hazardous under federal and state regulations.

Asbestos was primarily found in drywall, ceilings, roofing materials, vinyl tiles and roofing caulk. Some samples contained 1 to 2% chrysotile, while others, such as certain floor tiles, contained between 5 and 10% chrysotile. Chrysotile is the most common form of asbestos in the United States and was used during the construction of buildings up until the 1980s.

On July 28, 2020, the Pima County Department of Environmental Quality issued a permit for Bowers to start removing asbestos from the motel. That year, the motel had three fires, two of which were reported as accidental, with no human involvement.

On Dec. 7, 2021, PDEQ issued a second permit and told Bowers that, because of the fires, all asbestos materials in the rubble must be handled carefully during removal.

PDEQ also told Waste Connections, the company hired for demolition, that due to the unusual nature of the project, there was no set deadline for removing the debris. The agency added that the biggest safety risk had been reduced by taking down the damaged buildings where homeless people had been staying.

PDEQ said it must confirm the debris was disposed of properly before officially closing the permit.

The city’s lawsuit says the property still contains “large amounts of asbestos” that people living nearby are exposed to daily.

The city says it has attempted to work with Bowers to resolve the situation with no success, which is why it’s asking a judge to order demolition.

Bowers told Tucson Spotlight that the two permits issued were not for the motel, but a different parcel located at the same address.

This isn’t the first time the city has sued Bowers over the property. City officials filed a lawsuit last year saying he had failed to take action to address crime at his properties.

In response to the first lawsuit, Bowers added cameras, lights and a security gate.

But the property is still an issue, the city said in the most recent lawsuit, calling it a “public nuisance.” It says the city is wasting water and resources dealing with frequent fires and claims Bowers has not taken the appropriate security measures to stop trespassers or crime.

“The property and structures pose a clear and ongoing fire hazard to the entire community,” the lawsuit says. “This continuing threat endangers the health, safety and welfare of the surrounding neighborhood.”

The lawsuit says the threat isn’t just hypothetical, citing a fire at the motel that spread to the apartments. More than 30 units were damaged, displacing residents and requiring construction.

Court documents also show that the motel still has exposed asbestos, despite the two permits filed with PDEQ in 2020 and 2021 and the requirement that it be removed.

Since Bowers bought the property in 2020, Spanish Trail has experienced 29 fires of varying sizes, some occurring less than a week apart. A December 2023 fire reportedly left “a large rubble of asbestos.”

Bowers and the city of South Tucson are expected to update the court next month on a possible hearing date.

Colton Allder is a journalism major at the University of Arizona and Tucson Spotlight intern. Contact him at callder1995@arizona.edu.

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