Citizen Raises Safety Concerns Over Housing Project

Chelsea resident Chris DeWitt raised concerns about the incoming housing development on Old Manchester Rd. at the Jan. 12 city council meeting. The 1155 Old Manchester property was recently purchased by Spire Development with the intention of creating affordable housing within the city.

“I support having low income housing in Chelsea,” DeWitt said. “What I have said before and wish to discuss tonight is the fact that the proposed project at Old Manchester is the wrong location for any type of housing for many reasons.”

1155 was formerly used as the city landfill for 20 years during the mid-20th century. According to the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA), there are additional testing requirements for former landfill sites to be converted into residential buildings, which have not yet been fulfilled by the developer.

“Landfills present unique and significant challenges to residential development, including the potential for methane generation, contaminants in levels exceeding EGLE non-residential criteria (applicable for commercial/industrial uses), and soil vapor intrusion concerns,” MSHDA’s memorandum regarding the property states. “Because of the unique combination of these concerns in a former landfill, current investigation and characterization data is needed at the time of application for MSHDA to better evaluate the suitability of this location for multi-family housing.”

While the site was tested in both 2000 and 2007, and as of yet no discovery of high-levels of methane have been made, MSHDA recommended to not move forward with the project until there is a more recent evaluation of the soil and development area.

“The developer went into it understanding that, knowing that if there was mitigation that needed to be done, they would certainly do it,” Community Development Director Paul Montagno said. “I have had conversations with the developer since they received their no-go letter from MSHDA. Their intent is to move forward with testing to determine whether or not there is, in fact, methane associated with this. There is not always methane associated. If they discover that, obviously it’s not an appropriate spot.”

DeWitt raised his concerns as a citizen agenda item request, and Council did not make a decision regarding the 1155 property at the meeting. Interim City Manager Marc Thompson stated an intention to “review” DeWitt’s concerns internally.