Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Developer sues Uncle Sam for bomb range cleanup costs
A Miami developer who wants to build 4,000 homes and apartments atop a World War II-era bombing range near Orlando International Airport is suing the federal government for cleanup costs, saying there is a public danger on the property.
John Brunetti Jr. won unanimous approval in February 2016 from Orlando City Council for future development, if state and federal authorities declare the property to be free of bombs. Some nearby residents have objected to any more development in the area because of impact on traffic and schools.
According to the suit, Brunetti plans to finish cleanup of the area by mid-2018.
Now Brunetti is asking an Orlando federal judge to order the government to pay him at least $30.5 million, which is the best estimate he and his company have obtained from inspectors and contractors. Brunetti alleges he’s already spent $11.5 million for cleanup and wetlands remediation.
The government has known about the dangers in the area for decades and has failed to address it, said Brunetti’s attorney, Hubert Farbes of Denver.
“The level of unexploded ordnance, the risk, is much higher than what is characterized by the government,” Farbes said.
He said Brunetti paid for fencing and guards around the property.
According to Farbes, contractors on the site found a smoking object during investigations, and realized it could be dangerous, so they left the area quickly: “This guy got in his car and drove away, and there was a large explosion,” Farbes said.
Farbes praised the state for allowing Brunetti to move ahead with remediation, but said he is less certain of how the federal government will respond to the lawsuit. Brunetti is suing as an innocent landowner, alleging he had no responsibility or awareness of the problem when the property was originally acquired, under the federal CERCLA law (Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980.)
Attempts to reach the Department of Justice for comment on the lawsuit were not successful. Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer’s spokeswoman declined to comment on the federal lawsuit. In 2009, the Army Corps of Engineers said it spent more than $10 million and removed 14 tons of bomb debris and more than 400 live bombs and rockets at Odyssey Middle School, 9290 Lee Vista Blvd., and in nearby neighborhoods.
Brunetti’s lawsuit describes what’s being found by private companies that Brunetti has hired, such as Alabama-based Buffalo Restoration.
Buffalo has found rockets, rocket warheads, highexplosive 37 mm and 75 mm projectiles, parts of practice bombs and general purpose bombs, explosive bomb tail fuses, pyrotechnic devices, live high-velocity aircraftbase fuses, rifle grenades, small-arms projectiles and various discarded military munitions, the lawsuit says.
Brunetti’s grandfather purchased thousands of acres, including the former Pinecastle Bomb Range, near the airport in 1956, passing it down to his son and grandson. Since then, nearby areas were swallowed up by sprawl from Orlando, including the upscale Lake Nona developments.
The most immediate plans for development would be on a 1,500-acre tract, where Brunetti and the city have envisioned an area called Vista Park.
The development would see as many as 4,300 homes and apartments, plus about 20,000 square feet each of office and commercial space, built on land once occupied by the Pinecastle Jeep Range. During World War II, soldiers practiced firing machine guns, launching rockets, strafing convoys and dropping bombs there, and many explosives are thought to still be buried there. Brunetti told city officials a private cleanup would make the property safe.
During City Council meetings last year, some residents expressed worry about the impact thousands of new residents will have on local roads and schools. Others said the cleanup should be done by the government. Many residents lived through a previous scare in 2007, when bombs were found at Odyssey Middle School — forcing the cleanup conducted by the Army Corps.