What's next for a hazardous waste site located in an Evansville neighborhood?

EVANSVILLE — The cleanup of a hazardous waste site in an Evansville neighborhood is largely done, but what comes next for the old Miller Plating & Metal Finishing property is still unclear.

Located near the corner of North Sixth Avenue and Allens Lane, it is contaminated with TCE (trichloroethylene) and heavy metals in its soil and groundwater, according to the Indiana Department of Environmental Management. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management said it will monitor groundwater at the site for at least the next 20 months.

TCE has been linked to cancer, kidney and liver damage and other health effects.

Covered with open pits and debris, the site was not fenced off until spring 2017. It remains fenced in and overgrown with weeds.

Rather than remove the soil, a contractor was hired to treat it on site, said Barry Sneed, an IDEM spokesman. Approximately 3,800 cubic yards of soil, to a depth of 17 feet, was mixed with a substance called zero valent iron that helps break down chlorinated pollutants such as TCE.

Sneed said the agency first became aware of the ground contamination in 2009. That is the same time that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency was doing an emergency cleanup of chemicals left above ground on the property.

"It is common for complex cleanup sites that require active remediation to be in the state cleanup program for 10 or more years," Sneed said.

A 2015 Courier & Press investigation found that Miller Plating's owner, former Evansville businessman Dan Stocks, moved to Florida after the company declared bankruptcy and closed in December 2007. Thousands of gallons of volatile chemicals, contaminated wastewater and sludge were left behind.

The EPA spent $1.4 million in taxpayer funds to clean up the chemicals and demolish Miller Plating's three buildings. Stocks escaped liability for the EPA's cleanup bill, taxes and loans because Miller Plating was a limited liability company (LLC), protecting him from personal liability for business debts.

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According to IDEM, the site's owner − MPMF Realty, LLC, an arm of Miller Plating − was identified as responsible for the pollution and funding its cleanup. However, the company is no longer active, according to Indiana Secretary of State records.

Carrie Doehrmann, an Indianapolis attorney, said various insurance policies are working with IDEM to address the pollutants. However, she said she does not represent the property owners.

Once environmental officials are satisfied with the cleanup, the property will only be able to be redeveloped for industrial or commercial use, Sneed said.

However, anyone wanting to locate there will first have to pay its back taxes by bidding on the two parcels that make up the site at tax sale. Nearly $1.3 million in taxes and penalties are owed on the Miller Plating site, according to the Vanderburgh County Treasurer's Office.

The minimum bid for the property includes those taxes plus the next fall tax installment. Miller Plating has been in every tax sale since 2010 without a buyer and Vanderburgh County has declined to take the title to it. It is slated to be included in this year's auction on Sept. 13.

Mark Wilson covers education and environment at the Courier & Press. Contact him at mark.wilson@courierpress.com.   

This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Miller Plating site in Evansville gets EPA cleanup, still no owner