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Police-station site shows no soil contamination
(by Barbara Christian - July 21, 2010)
Police-station site shows no soil contamination
By BARBARA CHRISTIAN
A geotechnical consultant's sampling of soil from the proposed Chagrin Falls police station site off of Solon Road indicates no contamination, village Administrator Benjamin Himes said this week.
He said there was a slight petroleum odor in the first boring, which is consistent with an earlier soil boring but which is not unusual under asphalt. He characterized the amount of petroleum as "barely registering" on the gas-detection meter used for the testing.
"It is not uncommon to find petroleum contamination in the village due to the historic concentration of service stations," Mr. Himes said.
Additionally, ground-water sampling showed no meter reaction and no odors, Mr. Himes said.
The testing is being done in response to concerns raised by Chagrin Falls resident Henry Piper Jr. and the fact that the village dump had been located on the same site. The dump operated into the 1960s.
"Final test results will inform us as to how the soil can be disposed," Mr. Himes said.
Mr. Piper, an architect, expressed concern that all of the soil would have to be removed if any contamination is found. He said that trucking it away is expensive, as is replacing the dirt with clean "engineered fill."
But Mr. Himes said trucking it off site may not be necessary. When bad soil is encountered, it is quarantined, covered in plastic and tested again, he said. If tests show contamination, it is disposed of appropriately, he said.
"And again, there is no preliminary evidence that there is a contamination on the Solon Road site, but, as with any other site in the village, there is a risk every time you sink a shovel in the ground," he said.
"We can't let fear paralyze us, but we will exercise a reasonable level of caution."
In addition to preliminary reports on soil and water in that area, Mr. Himes said, regardless of the final test result, the police-station design with a single floor and full basement is to be built on standard footers, not the more expensive caissons and grade beams discussed earlier.
Mr. Piper has said the unknowns with the Solon Road site are a concern, and the extras were not built into the cost of the project.
Mr. Himes said planning will include contingency costs, which is something the village does with every project.
Mr. Piper was an original member of the police station site-selection committee, which recommended the Solon Road location. He said, if the committee had been given the soil information and other contingencies before voting, the Solon Road location likely would have been rejected.
"The Solon Road site was represented as the least costly site to build on," he said. "I doubt this is true."
Mr. Piper also has given the village his drawings of an alternative plan, which would add police-operations space to the front and rear of Village Hall on West Washington Street. He said he would avoid any conflict of interest by removing his name as a possible architect for the project.
Resident David Hageman has proposed the former Curtiss Clinic building on East Washington Street for the site of the new station.
Full reports and tests are being done there, as well as on Mr. Piper's alternative police-station sites on East Washington Street and at Village Hall. They are due in about four week, according to Mr. Himes.
Voters will go to the polls to decide the police-station issue on Sept. 7. The cost of the new station would be about $4 million. The vote will mark the third time residents have been asked to pay for a new police station.
John O'Brien, Scott Lax and Don Anderson, a member of the site selection committee, have formed the Friends of Chagrin Falls Police campaign committee for passage of the police-station issue.
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