Final cleanup underway at former hospital site

Officials hope to cut two to three months off of year timeframe

Preston — The state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection this week approved a key remedial action plan for the final 12-month cleanup of the former Norwich Hospital property before turning the property over to Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment for a planned $200 million to $600 million development there.

The Preston Redevelopment Agency on Wednesday approved three segments of work using the $10 million state grant for the final cleanup phase, which entails removing ground contamination throughout the 393-acre site.

Early work will concentrate on the so-called plateau — the flat area where many former buildings stood — while town officials await state and federal permits for cleanup of areas along the river. Work in the 6 to 8 acres within the Coastal Area Management zone, within 1,000 feet of the tidal area of the Thames River, will need state DEEP, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permits, First Selectman Robert Congdon said.

PRA Chairman Sean Nugent said the clock started ticking on the anticipated 12-month cleanup period in mid-July. Nugent hopes to be finished with the cleanup and have final approval of the work by DEEP in time to transfer the property by late

summer 2019.

The development agreement between the tribe and town calls for construction of any new development to begin within three years of the transfer of property and be completed within six years.

Nugent said Wednesday officials involved in the project hope to cut as much as two to three months off the cleanup timeframe, if no major obstacles are encountered. One big question will be any archaeological artifacts found.

The cleanup entails digging up former roadways that snake through the property and depositing the material in pre-approved collection sites on the property.

The town has hired Archaeological and Historical Services Inc. of Mansfield for $36,000, paid through the state grant, to conduct an archaeological survey and flag potentially sensitive archaeological areas. The group will monitor the work as roadways are excavated, Nugent said.

Town officials hope to keep the cost of the final cleanup within the $10 million state grant. The town also obtained a $2 million contingency loan from the state if the cleanup encounters emergencies that could put it over budget, such as a significant archaeological site that needs excavation.

Nugent told the PRA on Wednesday that the cost estimate for the major work initially came in over budget at $6.1 million, but the PRA called a meeting of all project engineers, environmental planners and environmental officials from the Mohegan tribe for a “value engineering session.” The effort cut $180,000 off the total for that portion of the work, bringing it to $5.92 million, Nugent said.

Early work will concentrate on the so-called plateau — the flat area where many former buildings stood — while town officials await state and federal permits for cleanup of areas along the river.