C. Spengler Strategies opines on potential environmental issues associated with the historical land uses at the proposed Soccer City/SDSU West Campus site.
Jordan Downs Redevelopment Begins
The demolition of the first four apartment buildings out of 109 and several other buildings is underway. See the Demolition Kick-Off Event here: Ceremonial Demolition Kicks Off the Redevelopment of Jordan Downs
C. Spengler Strategies Managing the Remediation of 21-Acres in Watts, Los Angeles for the Jordan Downs Redevelopment Project.
February 2, 2016 Google Earth aerial view of Jordan Downs Redevelopment Project Area (in Red) and the Jordan Downs Remediation Project (in Green). Since January 2015, C. Spengler Strategies has been acting as the onsite manager overseeing the efforts of American Integrated Services, Inc. (AIS) and Andersen Environmental, an EFI Global Company as the 21-acre former steel mill site undergoes a $31 million remediation to remove lead, arsenic, and petroleum products. This is the start of a billion-dollar redevelopment of the Jordan Downs Apartments, the oldest public housing in California.
C. Spengler Strategies was contracted to serve as the onsite representative of the developer and construction manager for the demolition (surface features), remediation, and restoration of a 21-acre site in the Watts neighborhood of South Central Los Angeles. The project is start of a $1 billion redevelopment of the Jordan Downs public housing neighborhood. The remediation site was once a steel mill that dated back to the 1930s. The developer, Bridge Housing and their construction manager – Cannon Constructors, hired Mr. Spengler on the basis of their experience working with him on the COMM22 redevelopment project (page 4). Beginning in February 2015, Mr. Spengler assisted the developer and the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (HACLA) (site owner) with editing of the contractual documents including the scopes of work for the environmental consultant (Andersen Environmental, an EFI Global Company) and the remediation contractor (American Integrated Services, Inc. (AIS)).
Since April 2016, Mr. Spengler has been onsite managing all work activities at the site by Andersen and AIS and coordinating their activities with other subcontractors such as the civil engineering and surveying subcontractor and geotechnical subcontractor. Mr. Spengler manages the daily activities, reviews and approves of invoices, change orders, holds weekly management and coordination meetings, tracks schedules, provides ongoing cost estimates and projections, facilitates coordination with regulatory agencies, HACLA, the developers, city and county building departments, and provides assistance with public advocacy groups. One of the key benefits of Mr. Spengler’s involvement has been as a third-party reviewer of the environmental work to see that it meets standards of practice and to provide recommendations to maximize the efficiency of the activities.
The project exported approximately 250,000 tons of contaminated soils and approximately 75,000 cubic yards of the 140,000 cubic yards of imported soil needed to bring the site back to the planned subgrade.
San Diego Metro Magazine Article
Developers Hire Brownfields Expert To Clear Site for Giant Ballpark Village
A man who has been digging in Downtown’s East Village for 16 years has been hired by the developers of the giant Ballpark Village project to perform environmental and construction services on the 3.9-acre site.
Chris Spengler, who formed C. Spengler Strategies to expedite the redevelopment of brownfields, was retained for the work by Ballpark Village LLC, a partnership between JMI Realty and Lennar Corp. His company will collaborate with Leighton & Associates on an environmental assessment and remediation aspects of the mixed-use Ballpark Village project.
The Ballpark Village site is located along the east side of Park Boulevard, north of Imperial Avenue. The developers plan to build 713 residential units and 50,000 square feet of commercial space on the site, along with 1,220 parking stalls in three underground levels and one partial at-grade level.
Spengler is no stranger to the task. He managed the majority of the environmental remediation work for the Petco Park and East Village Redevelopment Project between 1998 and 2004, and continued managing remediation and grading projects in Downtown, including the Downtown Main Library, Mercado del Barrio and the new Sempra Headquarters.
Over the past two decades, he has assessed and remediated over 1.7 million square feet of real estate, turning brownfields into properties supporting their highest and best use, according to the developers.
“Spengler will apply his unique skill set derived from combining remediation and grading activities and his extensive knowledge of the site to guide the remediation efforts for Ballpark Village in the most efficient and cost-effective manner possible,” the developers said in a report.
The Ballpark Village site was previously owned by San Diego Gas & Electric as part of the facilities associated with the historic manufactured gas plant located on the south side of Imperial Avenue, which was constructed in the late 1800s. After the closure of the plant, these properties continued to support SDG&E’s operations through to the late 1990s.
The developers said the Ballpark Village project will be largest undertaking in Downtown since the construction of Petco Park. Preconstruction work is scheduled to start during the first quarter of 2015 with demolition and grading set to start in March. Project completion is estimated for late 2017.
“I’ve been studying and excavating the East Village since 1998,” said Spengler. “Understanding the history is as important as understanding the environmental data. For proper planning, one must understand how and why the contamination came to be, and to not only rely on the data at face value.”
My press release for the work on the Ballpark Village was published in the San Diego Daily Transcript's website on December 15, 2014 and in print on December 16, 2014.