Deal calls for village, county to split cost of cleanup

The Saukville Finance Committee and Village Board were scheduled to consider an agreement with Ozaukee County on Tuesday night on the remediation of soil contamination at the corner of Green Bay Avenue and Clay Street in the Village caused by leakage from a gas station that stood there in the 1960s.

“Recognizing the shared interest in closing the (Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’) case, a joint project with the county and village is the most efficient and cost-effective path forward, and the cost-sharing arrangements and terms and conditions set forth below are considered fair and acceptable,” according to a memo signed by Village Administrator Dawn Wagner and County Public Works Director Jon Edgren. 

Under the agreement, the county will take the lead on the remediation and hire a consultant to do testing on the site. 

The cost of the project, estimated to be $65,000, will be shared evenly by the village and county under the agreement. 

The contamination was discovered in the 1990s during a village utility project but the DNR has been unable to find an heir or party associated with the gas station and has named the village and county as responsible parties.

The county is named as a responsible party because Green Bay Avenue also is county Highway O, although county officials say a map of the contamination shows it doesn’t appear to be in the county highway right-of-way.

The county earlier this year appealed to the DNR but that appeal was denied.

The county is to seek consensus with the village when any issues arise, “but in the event consensus cannot be reached, the final determination shall be the responsibility of the Ozaukee County Public Works Committee,” the agreement states.

Under the agreement, periodic status meetings for the county and village are to be held.