Non-profit housing group to evaluate contamination at McClellan Street properties

SEATTLE – (RealEstateRama) — A nonprofit housing provider will study soil and groundwater contamination from a former dry cleaner and a former gas station in Seattle’s Mount Baker neighborhood, under a proposed legal agreement with the Washington Department of Ecology.

The Mount Baker Housing Association (MBHA) is in the process of acquiring five lots on either side of South McClellan Street, just east of Martin Luther King Jr. Way S., for redevelopment into affordable, transit-oriented housing. Earlier studies have detected contamination from petroleum products and solvents beneath the two former businesses and adjacent properties and public rights of way.

Ecology and MBHA have negotiated an agreement called a prospective purchaser consent decree (PPCD). It outlines the process required for studying the contamination, evaluating cleanup alternatives and developing a cleanup plan. Ecology must consider public comment before finalizing the agreement.

The PPCD and a public participation plan – which outlines how Ecology will keep the community informed through the cleanup process – are available at:

• Ecology’s website
• Seattle Public Library, Beacon Hill Branch, 2821 Beacon Ave. S.
• Seattle Public Library, Main Branch, 1000 4th Ave.
• Ecology’s Northwest Regional Office, 3190 160th Ave. SE, Bellevue. By appointment: 435-649-7090 or sally.perkins (at) ecy.wa (dot) gov

Ecology is accepting comments through Nov. 28. Please send comments to Ching-Pi Wang, site manager, at:

• Ching-pi.wang (at) ecy.wa (dot) gov
• Department of Ecology, 3190 160th Ave. SE, Bellevue WA 98008

The PPCD is part of the cleanup process outlined under the state Model Toxics Control Act.

Contacts:

Larry Altose, Ecology communications, 425-649-7009, @EcySeattle

Ching-Pi Wang, site manager, 425-649-7134