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Important Deadlines
Contact:
Ray Frigon, (860) 424-3797
Extent of Fill Map (JPEG, 11x17)
Extent of Fill Map (PDF)
Permission to complete property inventories for ALL remaining properties that have not yet been cleaned up will be needed by late summer. A final deadline date has not been set.
Project Status
Click link or map image to enlarge
October
- Restoration efforts on properties receiving cleanup nears completion
- 95% of property owners scheduled for cleanup in 2012 have signed Access Agreements allowing Olin to conduct Property Inventories.
- Property Specific Remedial Action Plans for 2012 construction seasons are under development
September
- Open house and meetings with residents held at new community office for project at the former Hamden Middle School, Newhall Street
- Completed excavation of waste fill for the 2011 construction season
August
- Waste fill removed from Blocks M & A
- Construction update bulletin published
July
- Outreach to property owners to obtain access for 2012 cleanup is underway.
- Prep work for Block M begins
- Backfill is brought in for areas where waste fill was removed on Block K
- Restoration work is mostly complete on Blocks H and J
June
- Block H –Cleanup is done on the block and restoration is 98% complete.
- Block J – 100% participation. Cleanup is done, restoration is 80% completed.
- Removal of waste fill to the 4’ zone underway on Block L.
- Block K – 100% participation. Preparation for cleanup (surveying, tree and fence removal) started in late June.
- Block M – 100% participation. Preparation for cleanup will start in early/mid-July
- Block A – Cleanup to start in late July/early August month.
May
- Waste fill was removed from properties on Block J to the 4’ zone
- Restoration of properties (sidewalks, grass, driveways, plantings, etc.) is underway for Block H
April
- Cleanup began on April 6th
- All waste fill was removed from properties on Block H to the 4’ zone.
March
- Olin sets up construction trailers on Morse Street
- Access for cleanup has been granted by all but one property owner on Block H. The non-participating property owner has received a final Order from DEP
- Access for cleanup has been granted for all property owners on Block L
February
- The Hamden Economic Development Corporation (HEDC) announces a partnership with Gateway Community College, the Regional Workforce Alliance, The CT. Department of Labor and Urbanminers to offer job training for unemployed residents from the Newhall/Highwood and Hamden community in the skill areas related to deconstruction and recycling. Trainees will use these skills to remove some structurally damaged homes participating in the cleanup project.
- The Town of Hamden and the Hamden Economic Development Corporation (HEDC) will hold a free Housing Fair for Hamden residents including those in the Newhall/Highwood neighborhood on February 28th from 3-7P.M at the M.L. Keefe Center. The purpose of the Housing Fair will be to provide information on services, resources and product information related to housing opportunities, energy efficiency programs, mortgages and programs for structural or other repairs, and updated information on the Newhall remediation program.
January
- Hamden Economic Development Corporation continued to evaluate the structural conditions of homes to conduct a cost benefit evaluation repairing vs. removal of these homes. By the end of January 60 homes have been inspected, 58 of these had appraisals completed and cost estimates for repair were ready for about one third, 22 homes.
- Outreach work continues with property owners in Blocks J and H. By the end of January, five of the nine property owners who had been issued orders by the DEP Commissioner in December had agreed to proceed with cleanup.
December 2010
- DEP issues orders to 9 property owners in Blocks J & H with waste fill who have refused Olin access to perform the cleanup.
November 2010
- Construction work for the season ended in mid-November.
- The construction field office located on Morse Street behind the former Community Center Building on Newhall Street was shut down and removed from the site. Cleanup is expected resume in April 2011.
October 2010
- Excavation of waste fill on Blocks R and N were completed by mid-October
- Site restoration on Block S and R was almost completed. Remaining work to be done consisted of minor follow-up items, e.g. fence staining, planting of shrubs, etc.
- Six additional properties participated in the cleanup project either to remove minor amounts of fill that were not previously discovered during the 2004-05 testing or to grant access to construction crew of equipment to enable easier cleanup of adjacent properties.
- Richard Pearce, Community Liaison for the project continued to meet with property owners in Blocks H and J to encourage their participation in the cleanup project and to discuss preliminary structural assessments.
September 2010
- Excavation of waste fill on Block N began on September 28, 2010 and is expected to continue through the first week of October.
- Site restoration on Block S is almost complete. Remaining concrete sidewalks and asphalt driveways will be restored as soon as drier weather conditions return. (09-30-10)
- Removal of waste fill on Block R has been completed, and site restoration R is progressing. Clean backfill has been placed in all excavations. Site restoration including topsoil, sod, landscaping, and other features will continue as drier weather conditions return. (09-30-10)
- During the cleanup process on Block S, the excavation contractor discovered a minor amount of waste fill extending onto one property not originally identified as having waste fill. The waste fill was removed with the property owners consent.
- Richard Pearce, Community Liaison for the project has been actively contacting property owners in Blocks H and J that have yet to sign access agreements to allow the cleanup to proceed on their property. There are only a few weeks remaining for property owners on Blocks H and J to sign access agreements to avoid being issued an Administrative Order by the DEP. Property owners on Blocks H & J that have not yet signed access agreements are encouraged to contact DEP staff promptly to discuss the cleanup process.
- Mr. Pearce has been meeting with property owners to discuss preliminary structural assessments.
August 2010
- The first trucks carrying waste fill out of the Newhall neighborhood began to roll the week of August 23, starting at the southeast corner of Morse and No. Sheffield Streets. Once work is complete on the south side of Morse Street, cleanup crews will move to Prospect Lane. See map below for the location of blocks (N, R & S) where cleanup will occur in 2010.
- In the first four days of the cleanup project, some 50 truckloads of waste fill was removed from the neighborhood.
- 100% of Phase 1 property owners have signed access agreements allowing cleanup on their properties.
- During cleanup of properties on Morse Street, contractors found waste fill extending into an adjacent property that was not initially included in the cleanup program. Access to clean up this property was immediately obtained, bringing the total number of properties in the Phase 1 cleanup to 25.
- Staging location for equipment and materials was set up behind the former Newhall Community Center. The contractor's construction trailer is located behind this building.
- Plans for the DEP to relocate its Community Office from the Keefe Center to the former Hamden Middle School in September are delayed.
- The Town of Hamden approves new zoning regulations that create a Local Design District in the Newhall neighborhood as well as Newhall Center Special District for town properties that include the former Hamden Middle School and town parks.
July 2010
- State Bond Commission approves $5 million for the assessment, repair or purchase of the most severely damaged homes in the Newhall remediation project area.
- Community Liaison Richard Pearce of Evolution Enterprises LLC is hired by the Hamden Economic Development Corporation to provide outreach, education and facilitation services during cleanup.
- DEP approves Olin's request for borrow sources for fill and topsoil to be used in the cleanup project.
- DEP approves Olin's report on how the cleanup project will achieve compliance with DEP's Remediation Standard Regulations for Pollutant Mobility Criteria and Direct Exposure Criteria
- Olin's contractor, Sevenson Environmental Services, begins groundwork for launching cleanup in mid-August. This includes property boundary surveys, hiring local contractors to do property restoration work and getting permission to set up a construction staging area behind the former Community Center located at the corner of Newhall and Morse Streets.
- Hamden Town Council unanimously voted to approve the access agreement between the Town and Olin to allow Olin's contractor, Sevenson Environmental Services, to park heavy equipment and stockpile materials needed for the cleanup and restoration of the neighborhood at a staging area behind the former Community Center building at the corner of Newhall and Morse Streets.
June 2010
- Olin submits proposed traffic routes to be used by trucks during the remediation project and a traffic control plan to the Hamden Police Department for approval.
- 21 out of 24 property owners in Blocks N, R, and S with waste fill have granted Olin permission to perform the cleanup of their properties.
- DEP issues orders to 3 property owners in Blocks N, R, and S with waste fill who have refused Olin access to perform the cleanup.
March 2010
- DEP staff meets with representatives of Quinnipiack Valley Health District to brief local health officials on upcoming cleanup in residential areas.
- DEP staff continues to make calls and visits to property owners to help explain the cleanup process, answer questions, and encourage participation in the cleanup.
- DEP staff provides a brief project overview and update to members of Hamden’s Legislative Council.
- DEP and the Town of Hamden send joint letter to Southern Connecticut Gas Company requesting coordination assistance on construction project.
- Olin is coordinating with the Hamden Police Department on appropriate truck routes through the Town for transportation and disposal of the waste fill.
- DEP Bureau of Materials Management and Compliance Assistance agrees with Olin’s sampling approach and recommends additional sampling of waste fill to ensure that hazardous waste is not disposed at the Tire Pond. DEP Remediation Division approves Olin’s plan for additional sampling of waste fill for the purposes of the Consent Order.
- The Town of Hamden grants Olin a waiver from applying for planning and zoning permits, but still requires submittal of building permits, inspections and certificates of occupancy for removal and replacement of permanent features on residential properties (i.e., decks).
January – February 2010
- DEP approves or conditionally approves 9 construction work plans submitted by Olin for cleanup of the residential properties and approves Olin’s report on the additional investigation of 22 properties. Read approval letters and view construction work plans.
- Olin sends letter to Town of Hamden identifying proposed truck route for transportation of waste fill from the neighborhood to the Tire Pond disposal site located on State St., Hamden and North Haven. (See Proposed Truck Route)
- Olin sends letter to DEP Bureau of Materials Management and Compliance Assistance regarding waste fill sampling results and whether waste fill at the site can be disposed at the Tire Pond.
- Olin sends letter to Town of Hamden requesting a waiver of Town permits for the cleanup project.
- DEP staff makes calls and visits to property owners to help explain the cleanup process, answer questions, and encourage participation in the cleanup.
- Olin representatives continue meeting with property owners in Blocks N, R and S and Blocks H and J about the cleanup. As of the end of February, 20 of 24 property owners in Blocks N, R, and S have signed the access and restoration agreements to have their properties cleaned up.
DECEMBER 2009:
SEPTEMBER 2009:
- The schedule to start cleanup has been revised. Work will begin in Spring 2010.
- Representatives of Olin Corporation continue to meet with property owners in the blocks where cleanup will begin first to discuss cleanup and restoration plans for individual properties. Property owners must sign an access agreement to allow Olin to conduct the cleanup and restoration.
- A Final Additional Investigation Report for 23 properties that needed further investigation to evaluate the presence or absence of fill materials is submitted to DEP by Olin.
- Read the September 2009 Newsletter
AUGUST 2009:
- Nine final workplans that detail procedures for carrying out cleanup activities are submitted to DEP by Olin. (See "Final - Construction Work Plans - August 2009" in the Residential Documents section)
- A "Draft Temporary Relocation Assistance Policy Manual" is submitted to DEP by Olin. (See Residential Documents section).
- Olin applies to DEP for various permits that will allow cleanup to begin. (See Residential Documents section)
- Olin submitted a request for DEP approval of Direct Exposure Criteria and Pollutant Mobility Criteria for the cleanup. Olin made the request because the remedy was based in part on some of the many proposed revisions to the Remediation Standard Regulations that were underway. The process to revise the Regulations has been delayed. Olin’s request, if approved, would keep progress toward implementing the cleanup DEP approved in the 2007 Remedy Selection Plan. Olin’s request is provided in a letter report titled: Evaluation of Compliance with RSR Criteria for Fill and Request for Alternative PMC and DEC Criteria, and Alternative Method for Demonstrating Compliance with DEC and PMC. (See Residential Documents section)
JULY 2009:
- Preparations to start cleanup in the Newhall neighborhood of Hamden, CT are underway.
- Representatives of Olin Corporation are currently meeting with property owners in the blocks where cleanup will begin to discuss cleanup plans for individual properties and to obtain access to remove waste fill and restore these properties once cleanup is done.