Lebanon
Contamination, dilapidated rail buildings and lack of access plague progress in developing the site off of Main Street, councilors said.
Questions also loom about the safety of an existing propane off-loading facility in the yard, they said, adding that political pressure and legislative efforts likely will be required to craft a future for the property.
“Even with constant political pressure, I think it’s going to take a very long time to resolve, and I’m sorry to say that,” Assistant Mayor Tim McNamara said during Wednesday night’s City Council meeting.
Three properties in the rail yard stretching from the Route 4 bridge to the existing roundhouse have been deemed ancillary by the state’s railroad staff, potentially opening the door for Lebanon to attempt a negotiated sale.
But such an endeavor likely would be followed by costly remediation at the site, where, in some places, there could be as much as 30 feet of petroleum contamination, according to a memo city staff presented to councilors.
Finding funding for a cleanup also could be difficult, as there are several types of contamination in the yard. Access into the property also can be difficult, the memo states.
The easiest way into the yard is across the railroad tracks beside Railroad Avenue, McNamara said. However, he said, the state only will allow people to cross there with an escort.
The “dry bridge” off of South Main Street also could be used, city officials said. But reconstruction of that structure, which is estimated at $10 million, isn’t slated until 2020.
If the city were to take ownership of the yard, it also likely would be required to tear down existing historical structures that are considered beyond repair, McNamara said.
Those include the roundhouse, bunkhouse and sand house that once were used to support rail operations there.
“I don’t want the city to inherit an environmental liability there,” he said.
Other councilors pushed back, though, saying that by failing to negotiate for the parcels, the city could be ceding the ability to decide the fate of the Westboro Yard.
Councilor Karen Liot Hill said remediation at the site is possible, and pointed to the city’s recent purchase of a 2-acre portion of the rail yard’s northern portion for use as a park.
“It’s complex. There are challenges, but we were able to deal with them,” she said. “I think it’s possible that something could happen and I’d really like to push forward on this.”
Talks of potentially purchasing the rail yard properties — or negotiating an easement through them — came out of ongoing discussions surrounding safety in the West Lebanon property, particularly at the propane facility operated by Rymes Propane & Oil.
The properties deemed ancillary by the DOT do not include the Rymes facility, which is subject to an existing lease with the state.
In September, Lebanon Fire Chief Chris Chistopoulos told City Councilors that the shrapnel and fire from a single propane rail car explosion there would constitute a “worst-case scenario,” proving “potentially fatal” for the 492 people living in a 1,560-foot radius.
That warning led to a December meeting between city officials, Rymes employees and the New Hampshire Department of Transportation, which owns the railroad property.
In an attempt to allay fears about the site, Rymes offered to attempt to “mound” two storage tanks capable of holding almost 100,000 gallons of propane, state and city officials later said.
The two tanks currently are unused, but could be necessary for any expansion at the rail yard.
Mounding — or burying the tanks above ground — would reduce the risk of an explosion at the site, Christopoulos said on Wednesday.
But because of their construction, such an effort likely would require approval from the state Fire Marshal’s Office.
Christopoulos said he will be meeting with Rymes on Tuesday, and intends to continue working with the company to mound the tanks.
The City Council also decided to work with Lebanon’s delegation to the Statehouse to push for more regulation of the rail yard, and will enter talks in the coming months to push for cleanup of the site, Mayor Sue Prentiss said.
Tim Camerato can be reached at tcamerato@vnews.com or 603-727-3223.