The subject property is located at 722, 726, 817, 819, 914, 918, 922, 924, 1004, 1008, 1015, 1018, 1027, 1101, 1105, 1109, 1211 & 1215 North Church Street and 118, 126 & 324 West Frank Street, Kalamazoo, Michigan with the following respective parcel ID# 06-15-159-002, 06-15-158-100, 06-15-153-167, 06-15-153-068, 06-15-123-057, 06-15-118-056, 06-15-118-055, 06-15-118-900, 06-15-118-800, 06-15-118-053, 06-15-113-177, 06-15-113-100, 06-15-113-079, 06-15-108-003, 06-15-108-002, 06-15-108-114, 06-15-103-001, 06-15-103-118, 06-15-175-033, 06-15-175-032, and 06-15-152-096. The project site is approximately 2.654 acres in total.
The Northside Association for Community Development (NACD) requested support from the Kalamazoo County Brownfield Redevelopment Authority with the acquisition and redevelopment of the subject property. NACD intends to invest $6.8M to construct 17 homes on the subject property. The subject property consists of twenty-one separate legal parcels occupying a total of approximately 2.654 acres. The majority of these parcels were developed for residential purposes in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The majority of the parcels have been utilized exclusively for residential purposes over time but select parcels have historically been utilized for non-residential activities including a church, grocery store, and dry cleaner. Between 1960 and 2017, all former residential and commercial buildings that were present on the subject property parcels were razed, leaving behind vacant, undeveloped land. The Kalamazoo County Land Bank Authority (KCLBA) acquired the subject property parcels over multiple years as the parcels were foreclosed upon, transferred to the Kalamazoo County Treasurer, and then transferred to the KCLBA.
A Phase I ESA was conducted for the subject property on September 20, 2022 and revealed the following RECs:
1) The former auxiliary building located on the 1027 North Church Street parcel was utilized as a dry cleaner in c. 1932.
2) A City of Kalamazoo inspection in 1969 noted that heating oil was leaking from the heating oil tank utilized at the residence at 819 North Church Street at that time.
3) A concrete pad is in-place on the 1105 North Church Street parcel. The northwestern portion of the concrete pad exhibited several areas of oil staining. Based on visual observations made of automobiles stored on the concrete pad, it appears that household automotive repair work is conducted on the concrete pad. A Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) Survey identified the presence of a void space beneath the concrete pad.
4) The presence of "non-natural material" was observed on the ground surface on the western portion of the 1109 North Church Street parcel. This "non-natural material" appeared to primarily consist of foundry slag.
No known environmental assessments have been completed to assess the potential for environmental impacts from the identified RECs. The possibility exists that hazardous substances/ petroleum products have impacted the subsurface of the subject property from the identified RECs. Envirologic recommends the completion of a Phase II ESA to evaluate the potential for impacts from the identified RECs.
Envirologic oversaw the completion of ground penetrating radar (GPR) geophysical surveys conducted by Facility Management Consultants International (FMCI) on eleven (11) of the parcels for which the KCLBA could not provide any documentation/detail in association with the demolition of former buildings. The intent of the GPR survey was to assess whether buried foundations remained on the parcels for which the KCLBA had no knowledge or oversight of demolition activities. No indications of the continued presence of suspect buried tanks (underground storage tanks, or USTs) were identified as a result of the GPR survey. FMCI identified the presence of "disturbed soils" and "fill material" on multiple parcels subject to the GPR survey. Envirologic clarified with FMCI that w