TRANSMITTAL LETTER FOR BOARD MEETING OF APRIL 9, 2015
COMMITTEE ON REAL ESTATE
Mr. David St. Pierre, Executive Director
Title
Authority to issue a 12-month permit extension to Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company on District property located at 3548 South Ashland Avenue to continue to conduct confirmatory sampling and additional environmental remediation. Consideration shall be $2,500.00
Body
Dear Sir:
The District owns a 25' x 100' vacant parcel of real estate at 3548 South Ashland Avenue in Chicago. Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company ("Wrigley") owns an adjacent parcel of land at 3538 South Ashland Avenue where benzene was discovered due to a leaking underground storage tank. Reports and data indicated that the contamination migrated onto the western portion of the District's property. Additionally, Wrigley entered into an Agreement with the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency to remediate its site and the affected surrounding sites, including the Districts.
As a result of the migration of the contamination, on September 3, 2009, the Board of Commissioners ("Board") authorized the issuance of a 9-month permit to Wrigley's environmental contractor, Malcolm Pirnie, Inc., to access the District's site to perform environmental testing and remediation. On July 9, 2010, the Board amended the permit to name Wrigley as the responsible party for the site's remediation. That permit, as extended, expired on December 31, 2012. During the permit period, Wrigley remediated the site pursuant to its approved remediation plan.
On October 2, 2014, the District and Wrigley entered into a new Permit Agreement granting Wrigley access to the property for the period of October 15, 2014 through April 14, 2015, to perform confirmatory sampling to ensure that the contamination on the District's property has been fully remediated. Confirmatory sampling has shown that the benzene contamination is still present and that additional remediation is necessary. A one-year permit extension is therefore necessary.
The technical departments have no objections to the requested permit extension. Because the sampling and remediation affects the western quarter of the site, a fee based on 10% of that section would yield a value less than the District's minimum fee of $2,500.00. A $2,500.00 fee is therefore recommended.
It is requested that the Executive Director recommend to the Board of Commissioners that it authorize the issuance of a 12-month permit extension to Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company on District property located at 3548 South Ashland Avenue to continue to conduct confirmatory sampling and additional environmental remediation. Consideration shall be a fee of $2,500.00.
It is further requested that the Executive Director recommend to the Board of Commissioners that it authorize the Chairman of the Committee on Finance and the Clerk to execute said permit extension
agreement after it is approved by the General Counsel as to form and legality.
Requested, Ronald M. Hill, General Counsel, RMH:STM:JDC:vp
Recommended, David St. Pierre, Executive Director
Respectfully Submitted, Mariyana T. Spyropoulos, Chairman Committee on Real Estate Development
Disposition of this agenda item will be documented in the official Regular Board Meeting Minutes of the Board of Commissioners for April 9, 2015
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