Ground contamination at the Wendy’s Old Fashioned Hamburgers site on West Sixth Avenue is not expected to be serious enough to warrant removing earth or other extreme measures, nor does standing surface water pose a health hazard from contamination at the former site of a Fina service station and garage.
Potential dangers of contamination have become an issue among some Emporians, who worry that the standing water on the unfenced property might be dangerous to the public.
Officials from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment talked about the situation Tuesday afternoon, from a standpoint of health and safety.
The lot has been empty for almost one year.
Sunset Equities of McPherson, which owns the Wendy’s location at 701 W. Sixth Avenue, initially had intended to remodel the building that once occupied the corner lot.
Ted Morris of McPherson, a partner in Sunset Equities, said this morning that the company plans to build on the site as soon as possible. It has been waiting for a final report on the repeated soil testings, which is due on Jan. 21.
On Jan. 8, 2008, demolition began and the company announced it would build a new home for the restaurant, with technologically advanced equipment inside.
Preliminary dirt work was underway when the company discovered that the ground had been contaminated by the filling station, which had been torn down and replaced with the initial Wendy’s restaurant.
In early March, Tod Eland, a spokesman for Sunset, said that the company would apply for assistance from the Superfund, established by Congress to help pay for cleaning up contaminated areas.
The KDHE spokespersons said this week that the contamination on the property does not reach the severity associated with Superfund sites.
“The terminology they’re using is wrong,” said Gary Blackburn, director of KDHE’s bureau of environmental remediation. “... Superfund sites are some of the most hazardous, contaminated sites in the nation. This is not a Superfund site. ... What we’ve got is some contamination that we’re looking at dealing with.”
Blackburn said that the Wendy’s site had been approved to receive reimbursement, if needed, from the State Underground Storage Tank Release Trust Fund.
The fund is financed by a penny-per-gallon charge on gasoline, and is used to clean up old service-station sites.
“There are just hundreds of these old service station sites across the state, and because of the due diligence laws and environmental laws, a lot of banks won’t loan money on property if it’s got contamination,” Blackburn said.
Blackburn said that the likelihood of hazardous contamination is “relatively limited.”
Petroleum evaporates when exposed to air, so dirt and water on the lot’s surface should be relatively safe, though he cautioned against drinking or bathing in the puddles.
“There is some subsurface contamination,” he said. “We’re drilling some wells to test that and determine what all is there.”
A final report on those tests is due at KDHE on Jan. 21.
“Most likely what we’ll do next is set up periodic monitoring of the wells that have been drilled,” said Randy Carlson, KDHE section chief for the storage tank sector.
The monitoring wells sit on a cement pad, with a metal cover for protection. The wells are drilled down to an adequate depth and, while narrow, are large enough to accommodate a bailer to drop down and pull up water samples.
“We’ll go out and sample them, probably sample them four times the first year, then after that we usually sample them a couple of times a year until we see the contamination levels go down,” Carlson said.
He estimated that process would take about 10 to 12 years.
Natural bacteria in the soil usually breaks down contamination over time.
“The construction project is not waiting on us,” Blackburn said. “Work can be done regardless. We work real hard at staying out of the way of construction projects.”
“The biggest thing that I guess I would say is that while we agree that there might need to be a fence around (the property), it’s totally related to a construction hazard,” Blackburn said. “We don’t know of contamination that’s there that poses a risk to the public, or we would be making them do something immediately.”
Ted Morris said that the gas tanks at the old station had been removed before the first Wendy’s building was constructed about 25 years ago.
When the razing had been completed early last year and dirt work was beginning for the new building — set back farther than the first — contractors discovered an old 600-gallon oil tank.
“Once our excavators found that, they just stopped and said, ‘Hey, we know the laws of the state of Kansas and so we need to call somebody to do that,’” Morris said.
The company did not choose to continue with construction, only to perhaps discover the soil would need additional remediation to comply with laws after the building was finished and in operation.
“I wanted to do it right,” Morris said, “but I wanted to do it once.”
Sunset now has given contractors notice that the report later this month could signal renewed work on the site, and has asked for updated bids on the project.
“We’re ready to go back in, and that’s our plan right now,” Morris said.
Sunset Equities, which began with four restaurants in 2001 and now has 20, has opened two new Wendy’s in 2008, Morris said. If the report is as favorable as state officials expect, construction of Emporia’s new Wendy’s can began soon.
“I’m going to let the people who are experts in this field do their job,” Morris said. “So we want to make sure that we are right up there and everything that we have done so far should give the general public the impression that we are following protocol of health safety standards first and foremost.
“Then once we do that, and ... there’s no question in the government officials’ minds that are hired to do this oversight, then we turn around and build a restaurant and sell Frostys and hamburgers.”
Blackburn said that people who want more information about the site may call Maggie Thompson at KDHE, (785) 296-1500.
mum318 (anonymous) says...
The first Wendy's was built before 1978.
January 8, 2009 at 1:50 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
seriouslyfolks (anonymous) says...
It may not be a "hazard" but it sure is an eyesore. I can't wait till that hole is filled with a nice new Wendy's! I've heard great things about the new Wendy's restrooms too!
January 8, 2009 at 2:32 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
jibberish66 (anonymous) says...
All large drinks will cost $1.49.9.
January 9, 2009 at 12:01 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Steve_Corbin (anonymous) says...
good one jibberish 66!
January 9, 2009 at 8:31 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Steve_Corbin (anonymous) says...
Thank you Bobbi and gazette for answering the majority of our questions on this situation. Maybe the article will nudge things ahead and get rid of that vacant eyesore.
Steve
January 9, 2009 at 8:34 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
madpoet (anonymous) says...
I'm glad it's finally moving forward. I've wondered what the holdup was. Any news about Spangles going into the old KFC building?
January 9, 2009 at 10:24 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )