Diamond parcel cleanup is official

OGDENSBURG — It's official. The city's largest polluted waterfront property is finally clean.

Wednesday the state Department of Environmental Conservation issued the record of decision for the former Diamond International property, deeming the 17-acre site safe for nearly anything except single-family residences.

"This has been a seven- or eight-year process from start to finish, and the cleanup has been four years. Obviously this is absolutely what we need to move forward. We're ecstatic over it," City Manager Arthur J. Sciorra said.

The property, which includes about 1,200 feet of shoreline along the St. Lawrence River, housed several paper and matchstick manufacturing plants, but has been vacant since 1987. Since then, the city has removed about 5,000 tons of contaminated soil and treated more than 2 million gallons of wastewater found in several underground vaults.

A grant from the state's Environmental Restoration Program paid for the $2.5 million cleanup, while the city paid $250,000 in matching funds for engineering work.

The record of decision is the last step in the state's process for cleaning polluted properties. The document will be included on the property title and will allow the city to redevelop or sell the site, Mr. Sciorra said.

Included in the document are the state's stipulations for how the property can be developed to keep it in line with restricted residential standards.

First, the city must create a site management plan that includes mapping of any remaining contaminated areas, labeling a no-excavation zone around the solidified sludge area at the northeast corner of the property, and creating a guide for treating groundwater before it can be used for drinking or industrial use.

The document also says the remaining polluted portions of the property must be covered either by a structure, like a building, pavement or sidewalk, or a minimum of two feet of clean soil.

The developers also must make a strategy for managing waste from future excavations, and plans for site restoration at the conclusion of any redevelopment.

According to city officials, limiting the property to restricted residential use does not hinder the city's plans for what it hopes to do with the property.

"What we're looking to do is plan the overall development of the site with the overall plan for the (waterfront), and that will lead to a marketing strategy," Mr. Sciorra said. "It's one more step and an important milestone for redevelopment of property."

The city is continuing to seek funding for the cleanup of another roughly 15 acres of polluted waterfront property, he said.