NORWALK — Plans by the U.S. Department of Defense to redevelop the former 50-acre Tank Farm site, 15306 Norwalk Blvd. at Excelsior Drive, have been put on hold until 2011 because of the bad economy, according to Assistant City Manager Thomas Lynch.

However, the U.S. Air Force Real Property Agency is seeking bids to demolish the 12 above-ground storage tanks — which are now empty — this spring, Lynch noted.

Besides removing an eyesore, demolishing the aging, deteriorating tanks will allow the federal agency to test the ground underneath the tanks to see if any jet fuel has leaked out over the years.

Meanwhile, remediation of hazardous water and soil on the site is continuing by the Defense Energy Support Center and Kinder Morgan Energy Partners, according to Tim Whyte, who is handling public information on the work.

The support center used the site to store jet fuel from refineries in western Los Angeles County before pumping it to Air Force bases in eastern California and Nevada.

Kinder Morgan is a private firm which has petroleum pipelines which pass through the facility, Whyte said.

The California Regional Water Quality Control Board is overseeing the effort, which began some 15 years ago and is expected to continue for several more years.

The military in 1994 appointed a group of residents called the Restoration Advisory Board to oversee the cleanup.

That board, headed by local resident Mary Jane McIntosh, meets at 6:30 p.m. the fourth Thursday of the month at the Norwalk Arts and Sports Complex, 13100 Clark Ave.

Meetings are open to the public.

Whyte said there are more than 240 monitoring and remediation wells on the site in depths of about 30 to 150 feet below the ground or near the Tank Farm site. Water from the wells is constantly tested.

Underground plumes which had at one time spread south past Cheshire Street and west to Grayland Avenue have been greatly reduced, he added.

Officials have said there was never a health threat to residents of the area.
Information on the remediation is available at the Norwalk Regional Library, 12350 Imperial Highway.

Norwalk has rezoned a 10-acre strip on the east side of the site, adjoining Holifield Park, for future park land.

A specific use plan calls for commercial use of 10 to 20 acres on the immediate northwest corner and light industrial use on the rest of the site.

The city could not afford the $8 million asking price but will be involved in the eventual selection of a developer, according to an agreement between the city and the Defense Department. However, there is no timetable for that decision.

Besides the zoning requirements and donation of land for expansion of the park, the future developer must provide right of way through the Tank Farm site for a bike trail and pedestrian path to the park, Lynch said.

The developer also must take responsibility for remediation of the site to remove contaminants from water and soil caused by the 12 now-empty storage tanks.

Known as the Norwalk Defense Fuel Support Point, the site has been declared surplus property by the Defense Department.

The fuel supply facility was constructed in 1923. In 1951 the Air Force acquired the then approximately 70-acre parcel.

Over a period of time, portions of the property were used for Dolland Elementary School and Holifield Park.

In 1970, the remaining 50-acre parcel was transferred to the Defense Energy Support Center subject to continued Air Force ownership, and the property has been operated by various subcontractors since that time.

When operations ceased at the property in 2001, the Defense Energy Support Center removed all fuel from the tanks, secured the tanks and cleaned and render inert all pipelines.

Kinder Morgan Energy Partners occupies approximately two acres of the property. It supplied gasoline, aviation and diesel fuel to both military and commercial clients in Southern Nevada, Arizona and Southern California.