After more than 10 years of research, testing, and discussion, Chapel Hill is getting closer to redeveloping its 10-acre property on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
The town is working on an agreement with the state to remediate the issue and build on the site.
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This property was operated as a borrow pit in the 1950s. It was filled in the mid-1960s and 1970s with construction and demolition debris, a toxic mixture. The site was filled with construction and demolition materials, enough to fill roughly 18 Olympic swimming pools. In 2024, the town is working out how they can safely build there.
The police department headquarters was built there in 1980. Chapel Hill discovered coal ash at the site back in 2013.
Since that discovery, it's been a topic of concern of town leaders and residents. Many have spoken at past council meetings about what to do with the site. Long-term exposure to the ash can lead to serious health problems, including cancers.
A brownfields agreement with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ) will give the town a starting point for what can be done at the site.
From there, they'll work with the community to decide what to do.
Chapel Hill Town Manager and former Police Chief Chris Blue explained how the agreement doesn't decide what the town will build, but outlines what is and is not allowed.
What could be allowed includes a municipal public building, parking lot, office space or space for transit. Residential development, kennels or dog parks, childcare centers or a school would not be permitted.
Blue said there is a wide range of possibilities for remediating the coal ash.
"We are at a point where after over 10 years of conversation, and information gathering, and some contemplation of the future without a real blueprint in front of us," Blue said. "We're at a point now where we're going to have a blueprint, at least for what the possibilities could be."
"Whatever remediation steps might be considered - and of course those could vary depending on what use is ultimately selected for that property - still has to be approved by NCDEQ," Blue said.
Blue said the public comment on the agreement closes at the end of July. The town is expected to officially enter the agreement in October or November of this year and then decide what to do.
"This is a community that cares deeply about those kinds of issues," Blue said. "Making sure whatever is done on this site is an enhancement, not making any condition less safe for our community and users of the greenway nearby and so on."
The town has already taken some steps for safety on the site, covering the material when possible and fencing off certain areas.