Resident flags lead in Braddock Park soil tests; county staff says more testing and outreach planned

A member of the public told the Hudson County Board on Aug. 14 that soil testing in Braddock Park detected elevated lead in samples, including at surface depth, and said the County had received the lab report on July 22 without visible signage or public notification at the site.

Mark Bloomberg said the contaminated sampling locations were near a proposed picnic area and close to a site where a permanent preschool is planned. He asked why additional funding now included a driveway that he said would serve the preschool and suggested the municipality placing the preschool should pay for related site changes.

Deputy County Administrator David Drumeler responded that the item on the meeting agenda was a budget amendment to accept additional grant funds that had already been approved by the Board in June and characterized the filing step as a bookkeeping procedure: "This is just simply a record-keeping procedure that we need to do as far as the budget goes," he said. County project staff added that the Boulevard East project is being scoped as a safety project and that public information and outreach (a public information center) were planned for the fall.

What to watch for: Bloomberg urged that the County post signage and move quickly to define the area of contamination. County staff said further sampling and public outreach were steps the County planned to take; the transcript records no remediation plan or timeline beyond planning further testing and outreach.

Provenance: public comment and county staff responses recorded on the Aug. 14 transcript.