The Columbia Board of Aldermen voted 4-1 Tuesday to accept the donation of the former Reichhold Chemical property from developer Bob Buchanan.
Aldermen Wendell Hammond, Anna Evans, Mike Smith and Jason Stringer voted to accept the donation, and Alderman-at-Large Edward Hough voted against it.
The board received an offer to donate the 81-acre, former Superfund property at the Oct. 1 meeting. The Environmental Protection Agency has cleared the property for redevelopment, but concerns existed over possible contamination from a 1977 chemical explosion. At the next meeting on Oct. 15, the board hired consultant Trey Hess, a former employee with the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality, to do a phase 1 environmental study.
Hess appeared to the board Tuesday night with the results of the study.
“Where is everything and where are the problem areas and where are the non-problem areas? As far as the EPA is concerned, there are no problem areas,” Hess said.
He also discussed a meeting that was held with the MDEQ that also included Mayor Justin McKenzie and Board Attorney Lawrence Hahn.
“They want to the land be revitalized and put back into good use.” McKenzie said regarding that meeting with the MDEQ.
Hess said it was not a matter of what can be done on the property but a matter of what does the city wants to do and from there determine what the next step would be.
“The city is not going to do anything without expert consultation. That is why Trey is here. Our meeting validated everything Trey had said,” Hahn said. “Nothing should happen with the property without first making the decision what do you want to do with the property and what area you want to use. You are not going to do anything without following the proper steps and that involves Trey, DEQ, EPA, everybody is going to be made aware of that.
“Everything we heard from MDEQ supported the potential development and potential use of this property. Doing a phase 1 triggers all the protections you need. You don’t do a phase 2 on the entire property because that would cost a lot of money. You do a phase 2 study on the area you are interested in using,” Hahn said.
“By doing this you are eligible for a clean-up grant in the event you want to do something there,” Hess said.
Hess concluded with saying that if clean-up is needed to be done, there are clean-up grants available and for the private sector are special Brownsville financial incentives that could possibly get the private sector to pay for the clean-up at no cost to the city.
Hough asked if the city decides to do anything with the property would a phase 2 study need to be completed. Hess responded yes but only on the potential section. Doing a phase 2 study on a 10-acre tract is a lot cheaper than on the entire property.
“My personal view is the city is putting on its plate more than it can personally handle. After the first of the year we are going to start annexing and if the annexation goes through, we have to pay for it. My concern is where’s the money tree?” Hough asked.
Hammond responded, “I thought we were here to accept the property and whatever comes about later comes about. It doesn’t take a money tree to accept the property.”
McKenzie said from the meeting with the MDEQ the department is more interested in revitalizing the land. He said they wanted to see something positive happen with the tract.
“If we don’t do anything for the next five years and we go in to clean out the culverts to keep the beavers from building dams, bushhog a path to the culverts and put a lock on the gates, that’s stuff we already do,” McKenzie said.
Although the 81 acres will be going off the tax rolls as they transfer from private to public ownership, it will not be a major revenue loss for the city or county because the land was classified as being undeveloped because buildings have been torn down.
The total property taxes on the property for the tax year 2019, which would include the city, county and school portions, were $1,809.64, according to courthouse records.
