Thursday, September 15, 2005
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Rogers: Soil cleanup not part of deal

Chancellor says university system won't pay if work is needed at downtown site

In this 1991 photo of the area where a proposed academic medical center would be built, the high-rise is the Plaza hotel. During the 1990s, Union Pacific Railroad spent millions on remediation to bring the site into state and federal compliance for vacant land. Photo by Jeff Scheid/REVIEW-JOURNAL FILES. Click image for enlargement.

If the downtown site proposed for an academic medical center needs further cleanup of diesel fuel as expected, don't expect the university system to pay for it.

That's the message from university system Chancellor Jim Rogers, who expects within six months to have a plan for building the academic medical center.

"I'm not putting one penny into that," Rogers said. "I don't see that as our responsibility."

Mayor Oscar Goodman envisions multiple uses on the 61-acre parcel downtown purchased by the city from Union Pacific Railroad. In addition to an academic medical center, the site could be home to a performing arts center, a new city hall, a high-rise office building, high-rise condominiums, street level retail shops, a baseball stadium and an Alzheimer's treatment center.

City Manager Doug Selby said it is likely that some soil remediation will be needed, but he doesn't expect it to be costly. He said that during the 1990s, Union Pacific did millions of dollars worth of remediation to bring the site into state and federal compliance for vacant land.

Union Pacific spokesman Mark Davis said his company is prepared to do some more remediation on the land. "We need to know for sure what is going to be built there, though," he said.

The level of soil remediation done depends on a building's use, Selby said. "A hospital would obviously take a higher level of of cleanup of the soil," he said, adding the soil dug out to put in the foundation of the building probably would be carried off site.

"Digging out the soil has to be done anyway," he said.

Selby said it is likely that negotiations regarding the cost of the cleanup, which he estimated would cost under $1 million, would take place among the Related Cos., the site developer, Union Pacific and the city.

The backer of the Alzheimer's center, Larry Ruvo, is engaged in talks with city officials regarding soil remediation. Daniel Klaich, vice chancellor of legal affairs for the university system, said he is being allowed to take part, as well.

"It looks good," Klaich said. "We just want to make sure there is no liability for university system at all on this issue."

Selby said it is important to note that the new world furniture mart, the Internal Revenue Service building, the Clark County government center, and a water authority building all were built on land formerly owned by Union Pacific.

"There has been no real problem and no great costs involved," he said.