United States Environmental Protection Agency Location of the site in Kansas. Site Redevelopment Profile Kansas City Structural Steel Superfund Site 2100 Metropolitan Avenue, Kansas City, Kansas 66106 Property Overview Size 27 acres Current Site Uses • The site is in commercial reuse. Additional lots are available. Use Restrictions • Land use controls restrict soil disturbance. Surrounding Population 6,890 1 MILE 71,427 3 MILES 209,089 5 MILES South Patrol police station on the site. Site H istory and Redevelopment Timeline 1880s-1970s Smelting and steel fabrication operated on site. 1987 Site operations ceased. 1993 EPA and responsible parties removed contaminated soil and backfilled the area with clean material. 1995 El Centro acquired the property. Early 2000s EPA facilitated reuse discussions among stakeholders. 2014 La Plaza Argentine opened on site. EPA awarded Walmart and the Argentine Neighborhood Development Association with the lhAFS Award. May 2019 ------- History and Cleanup For more than a century, smelting and steel fabrication at the Kansas City Structural Steel site contaminated soil and groundwater with heavy metals. After cleanup in the 1990s, collaboration between EPA and local stakeholders transformed the once hazardous waste site into a new grocery center with 61,000 square feet of commercial opportunity for the Argentine neighborhood in Kansas City, Kansas, Industrial operations occurred on site from 1880 until the 1970s, resulting in contamination that required EPA cleanup. Cleanup activities included demolition of vacant structures and consolidation of contamination under a soil cap. Redevelopment El Centro, a local nonprofit that aims to improve the lives of Latinos and strengthen communities, worked with EPA in the 1990s to acquire the property and seek out reuse opportunities. In the years following, El Centro met many obstacles to site redevelopment, including uncertainty about site development restrictions and appropriate uses acceptable to the surrounding residential community. a new 6,000-square-foot South Patrol police station on the site.The new building was designed to encourage community interaction with police officers and includes a large meeting room for community meetings. Plans for further productive reuse of the site are currently supported by EPA and the local community. "The real test for projects like this one is whether residents feel like, when it's done, their neighborhood is a better place to live than it was before. This project meets that test in every way." Ann Murguia Executive Director of the Argentine Neighborhood Development Association and the 3rd District County Commissioner to the Unified Government Board of Commissioners Then, in 2013, the real estate group Lane4 Property Group expressed interest in developing a grocery and retail center at the site. EPA worked to provide El Centro, Lane4 Property Group, the state of Kansas, neighborhood groups and the developer with the tools to move toward reuse of the site. These included modifications to land use restrictions that were part of the cleanup, enrollment in the Kansas Environmental Use Controls program, and transfer of EPA covenants not to sue to the new owner. This allowed construction to proceed while maintaining and enhancing the soil cap at the site. After several efforts over the years searching for redevelopment acceptable to the local community, the Lane4 Property Group broke ground at the site on La Plaza Argentine in March 2014. This development brings affordable food options as well as economic opportunities for the Argentine neighborhood through a new Walmart grocery store and development pads for additional retail. The grand opening of La Plaza Argentine took place in September 2014. EPA also recognized reuse efforts by Walmart and the Argentine Neighborhood Development Association by awarding the parties with Region 7's Leading Environmentalism and Forwarding Sustainability award (LEAFS) in 2014. In 2017, the Kansas Department of Correction opened e Contacts For more information, please contact: Chelsea Sebetich (202)566-1151 sebetich.chelseataepa.aov Tonya Howell (913)551-7589 howell.tonva(5)epa.com For more information see: www.epa.gov/superfund-redevelopment Grand opening of the new Walmart and presentation of the Region 7 LEAFs award for reuse of the Kansas City Structural Steel site on September 10,2014. ------- |