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County committee approves Brownfields assessment funding for Hartford park and Saint Gabriel site
Summary
Washington County’s executive committee approved two Brownfields Assessment Fund requests: $12,030 to complete supplemental testing at Centennial Park in Hartford and $32,400 for a Phase 2 assessment at the former Saint Gabriel church and school, with both projects requiring local 20% matches.
The Washington County Executive Committee voted to approve two Brownfields Assessment Fund requests to complete environmental assessment work at Centennial Park in the City of Hartford and at the former Saint Gabriel church and school.
The committee approved a $12,030 award to the City of Hartford to complete supplemental groundwater sampling and update environmental reports for Centennial Park. County staff said the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources required another round of groundwater samples “to confirm any results.” The city will provide a 20% match of $2,406, and county staff said the site has used about $47,000 of the Brownfield assessment fund to date.
The committee also approved a $32,400 award for a Phase 2 environmental site assessment at the Saint Gabriel property to locate potential underground storage tanks, test soil and groundwater, and perform geophysical surveys. County staff said the project includes groundwater monitoring wells, drum disposal and well abandonment, and project management; Saint Gabriel will provide a 20% match of $6,480. Staff noted the property has been vacant for about six years and described it as “truly a blighted site.” The site has already used just above $44,000 of the assessment fund, county staff said.
County staff told the committee that if additional contamination is found in either project the DNR could require further sampling or remediation and that the county would return with new funding requests if needed. The committee discussed that DNR practice often includes a second round of groundwater sampling conducted several months after the first to capture seasonal or hydrologic changes; staff said there is no fixed time period required by the DNR and offered to request a formal timeline from the agency if the committee wanted one.
Supervisor Chaudron asked whether a finding of further contamination would lead to additional work; county staff replied, “if the groundwater samples came back and there was, like, more... the DNR would probably want additional sampling or maybe additional remediation work,” and that the county would return with another request in that case. Supervisor Kelling asked about the source of contamination at Centennial Park; county staff said the main issue was industrial fill from a nearby industrial site and that the Kissel Motor Car Company location is not the same source.
County staff identified Stantec as the county’s environmental consultant and explained that the Phase 2 at Saint Gabriel will include soil and water sampling and a geophysical survey. Staff also noted that emerging contaminants such as PFAS have driven larger funding needs on other projects. The committee approved both funding requests by voice vote without recorded opposition.
The approvals fund assessment work only; staff emphasized that remediation decisions and costs depend on Phase 2 results and any DNR requirements.
Documents and monitoring results will be added to county project files and shared with the committee if further action is required.
