HomeMy WebLinkAbout3/10/2021 Item 2, Grewal
Wilbanks, Megan
From:Armen Grewal <
To:Advisory Bodies
Subject:Questions for Planning Commission Meeting on 03/10/21
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Hello,
I live at Roundhouse Place located on Emily St. I would like LOSSAN Rail Corridor Agency to address the following:
1. I'm glad this site will be renovated into functional land and not just remain as a disposal site for the rail agency.
Are you aware of the rail tie fire that occurred on December 14, 2017 at what is now the remains of the old
roundhouse? The report refers to this as "exterior areas" on Attachment 1. See photos for reference (the fire was a few
feet away from the building). The agency had been storing old rail ties at the site without any coverings. Mind you this is
during December, which is considered wet weather season. After the fire, the burnt rail ties were left as is for a long
period of time. I noticed kids playing in the debris and others breaking glass bottles in and around the area.
While these burnt rail ties remained in place, another fire occurred near Orcutt Rd and Laurel Ln. Are you aware of this
rail car fire that occurred on May 16, 2018? Five rail cars holding rail ties were set ablaze. Per The Tribune, at
sanluisobospo.com, the cars were holding these rail ties for a couple of weeks.
The rail ties are pressure treated and contain chemicals such as creosote. Due to creosote as well as additional
preservative chemicals and the way the wood is treated, these rail ties are considered carcinogens. They have to be
disposed off at a specific location and not left as a trash pile. To have these burnt in our backyard and then left there
without proper covering or removal from the site is very concerning. Since then, we've been referring to the site as
"Trash Central".
I filed two complaints: one to FedEPA and one to CalEPA. Still, the site was not cleaned up for a long time. Please look
into these complaints.
The Planning Commission Agenda Report mentions that the site will be used for "storage and servicing tracks". During
construction and after construction, how will the site be secured so this doesn't happen again? Will the constructed
storage facilities be used to store rail ties?
I've seen kids play in the pile of rail ties before they were burnt and then after. I've seen the same kids play around the
broken glass due to the low maintenance the site receives as it seems to be a disposal site, at least until the construction
starts. Are there any plans to clean up the site before construction? As equipment and material is mobilized, will the site
be secured and protected?
To report the fires and removal of burnt material, we reached out to the city. However, since the city has no jurisdiction
over the property, we were told to contact the rail agency. This was after the city had tried to contact the rail agency
and there was no help. Who should we contact if this occurs again. Who is the local contact for LOSSAN? Is there a
Public Information Officer who represents this area of the network that we can reach out to?
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2. During construction, will there be LOSSAN representatives available on the site? Or will there be consultants
monitoring construction? Additionally, do you intend to include site maintenance and proper disposal of harmful
materials as a requirement to the construction contract? If so, what are the specifications?
Thank you for your time and thank you for holding this meeting.
Armen
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