07-25-13 Redevelopment Commission Minutes

Home Browse Search

South Bend Redevelopment Commission Regular Meeting — Thursday, July 25, 2013 6. NEW BUSINESS B. Airport Economic Development Area (1) continued... under the buildings. So when the last large building was demolished, the Foundry, a lot of environmental testing has been done to prove that that was the issue. Staff is still working with the State on ground water. The ground water issues we have don't affect the drinking water; drinking water is monitored every few seconds. There are definitely chemicals in the ground water and one of the things that are being determined is if there are any more source areas. Staff does not have a sense of what the final cost will be for this testing, until we do this, the money shouldn't be spent for anything until the testing is complete. Ms. Jones asked if the HUD funds will be repaid during the life expectancy of the CREED program. Ms. Kolata responded that the loan was set up expecting that we would use CREED first, then the AEDA TIF. Mr. Inks responded that the loan was for 10 years, intending that the CREED would repay it all. With the economy declining in 2007, we took a hit with CREED, so the AEDA TIF is picking up a little bit of the payment. Ms. Kolata responded that the loan should be nearly repaid by the time CREED expires, but she's not sure the payments will be completely covered by CREED. Mr. Inks asked if it was correct that the city was able to pursue the insurance policies because there were standard clauses at that time and those clauses are no longer typically standard in insurance policies. Ms. Kolata noted that the opposite was true: there weren't standard clauses before 1987. It's called environmental exclusion. Liability was being covered except for environmental. This was not a simple project. This could not have been accomplished without the legal team of Plews Shadley Racher & Braun LLP as well as the environmental consultants, Hull and Associates, who provided all of the data, and Andy Beckman of Studebaker Museum. Though the awards do not fully cover the city's costs for remediation, Ms. Kolata is confident we could not have gotten any more from any of the insurance companies involved. Ms. Schey asked whether the documents will eventually be revealed showing who has paid how much. Ms. Kolata responded that the documents will remain confidential. What can be seen are appropriations, the total amount that was paid. If we were unwilling to guarantee confidentiality, we could not have gotten the money. C. West Washington- Chapin Development Area There was no business in the West Washington- Chapin Development Area.