Bob CollinsNick Nelson at the City of Saint Paul has passed along a new video he’s produced providing a behind-the-scenes look at the project to build a stadium in Lowertown for the Saint Paul Saints.
It provides a glimpse at the toxics that have to be cleaned up at the old Gillette plant, but doesn’t include what might be under the old plant. The Pioneer Press reports that before the plant was built, the site was home of a coal gasification plant. Officials knew they’d have to remove some of the soil but are reportedly “taken aback” by how much more work — and apparently, money — the task will require.
Meanwhile, over at the current home of the Saint Paul Saints — Midway Stadium — officials have determined there’s a lot of horse manure under the field that will also have to be removed to make way for development.
This week, the huge Ford plant started coming down in Saint Paul. The city will know more what the possibilities for the site are once they check the soil underneath it a little more extensively.
Chances are they’ll find something. They expect to. That’s the way we once were: throwing stuff anywhere without any thought for its impact or the future.
Not many projects get underway around Saint Paul without cleaning up the contaminated soil under it.
