City Covers Up Toxic Waste Under Senior Housing

Despite a County order to clean up land contaminated with toxic chemicals, City staff became cheerleaders for a proposal to leave decades of waste in place and build a five-story senior apartment building over it.

State database lists toxic wastes on site

From the 1940s a gas station, paint and body shop, and tire store were operated on the land at High St. and MacArthur Blvd. State testing between 2001 and 2004 found the groundwater is contaminated with motor oil, diesel, gasoline, and cancer-causing benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene and xylene. Two or more underground metal tanks must be removed, too. In addition, surface soil was contaminated with lead at 36 times the allowed level. Current landowner Alex Hahn, who purchased the property in 2004, had the soil removed but has been slapped with a mechanic's lien by the contractor for failure to pay his bill. Hahn has not addressed the underground tanks and the chemicals in groundwater.

A County phone log for April 18, 2005 says the site was to be developed into a commercial building. However, this was not to be. Early in 2006 after private talks with southern California developer AMG & Associates, councilmember Quan presented its senior housing proposal to residents and merchants of the Laurel district. Ever since, she and her staff have partnered with the landowner and developer, using all the muscle of her office to thwart the legitimate environmental, zoning, health and safety concerns about the proposal that her constituents want resolved.

By Nov. 2006 county supervisor Keith Carson also told a county environmental health officer that the site was to become "senior housing."

On Dec. 11, 2006 Alameda County environmental officials served notice on landowner Hahn that he must begin required action to locate the underground metal tanks and deal with the cancer-causing chemicals in the groundwater. In particular, Hahn must identify wells, conduits, drains, and other paths along which groundwater can pick up and spread the volatile toxic chemicals.

Finally, the County called on Hahn to specify the future use of the property, noting that cleanup requirements allowing unrestricted use "differ significantly" from the requirements for commercial or industrial use.

In Feb. 2007, a hazardous materials officer testified in an email that "the County had received some 'pressure' to expedite the site" for senior housing.

At no time has councilmember Quan revealed to the public that she is helping a southern California developer build apartments for seniors on top of toxic waste. Someone recruited county supervisor Carson to ride roughshod over environmental law, and private landowners and developers typically enlist one politician to ease things along with other politicians.