True North Consultants

The 5th Avenue Improvements Project, from Quincy to Lake Street in downtown Maywood, was financed by nearly $9 million in capital dollars for new roadway, lighting, storm sewers, sidewalks and water mains. Portions of the 5th Avenue corridor have a history of commercial use with various occupants including gas stations and dry cleaners creating the potential for impacted soils within the right-of-ways. Critical to the successful completion of this infrastructure project was the management of approximately 15,000 cubic yards of soils that would be generated during excavation activities.

True North was engaged by the Village of Maywood through its municipal engineering firm to assist the Village’s road contractor in addressing rejected loads of soil from the project’s clean construction demolition debris (CCDD) facility. The rejection of these soils meant that the Village may have potentially been required to dispose of all 15,000 cubic yards of soil as a non-special waste, increasing the cost of the project by nearly $1M dollars and placing the future of the project at risk. True North worked with the road contractor and municipal engineering firm to develop a soil management plan for characterizing, handling and disposing of excavated right-of-way soils during the ongoing construction activities. The sampling plan called for periodic soil sampling along 5th Avenue in advance of excavation activities to characterize soils. Based on soil sample results, portions of the road work would then be managed as CCDD material or disposed as a non-special waste at a licensed disposal facility. Additionally, True North personnel performed on-site soil screening activities to segregate soils during “live” loading to minimize the accumulation of soil stockpiles and to ensure the proper and efficient handling of soils. True North’s soil management activities eliminated substantial costs overruns which would have put the project at risk resulting in only approximately 1,700 cubic yards of soil being disposed of as a non-special waste.

The Village of Skokie had been in negotiations with the Union Pacific Railroad Company for several years regarding the purchase of a one mile long stretch of abandoned rail line formerly known as the Skokie Industrial Lead. The Village was seeking to acquire the property with the intention of incorporating the former rail line into a regional pedestrian/bicycle path that would provide uninterrupted trail access to pedestrian and bicycle traffic from the local and surrounding communities. In 2009, the Village negotiated a deal with Union Pacific to acquire the property with the final property transfer contingent on the performance of environmental due-diligence activities.

True North was engaged by the Village to perform environmental assessment activities on the mile long stretch of abandoned rail line. In order to access Union Pacific property, True North, on the behalf of the Village, was required to prepare an access agreement providing a proposed scope of work, detailed drawings, and investigation methods that were to be employed during site activities. Once the access agreement was finalized, True North mobilized equipment and personnel to perform a Phase II site assessment to evaluate subsurface conditions along the line. The results of this assessment were used to perform a risk-based analysis according to the future use of the site as a paved pedestrian/bicycle path. Based on the results of this assessment, True North provided the Village with a comprehensive report including recommendations concerning the pending purchase of the property. The results of the study provided the Village with the requisite information necessary to proceed with the transaction for the ultimate benefit of the community.

True North Consultants was retained by Schramm Construction to coordinate and manage the excavation, transportation and disposal of approximately 520 tons of petroleum-impacted soils from a former leaking underground storage tank impacting an ongoing construction project. True North expedited remedial activities between the property owner, lender and lender’s consultant on behalf of Schramm to ensure the construction schedule could be met while minimizing the financial impact of the remedial activities.

State and federal laws require property owners, including the State, to be aware of the environmental concerns associated with the properties they control. New highway construction and improvement to existing roadways requires the disturbance of right-of-ways (ROWs) or proposed property acquisitions within municipalities. Various natural and man-made hazards may exist that can create unknown hazards to workers and general public, create environmental liability and can create delays - all increasing costs. These potential environmental risks and liabilities can be mitigated by performing a Preliminary Environmental Site Assessment (PESA). In the case of most municipalities, most PESAs are performed on existing highways with multiple-parcel strips of ROWs that are undergoing resurfacing, utility relocations or road widening.

True North was recently retained by the Village of Maywood through its municipal engineering firm to perform a PESA as part of the St. Charles Road Improvements Project. The PESA was performed on an approximately 1.05 mile stretch of St. Charles Road ROW and included portions of 9th and 19th Avenue ROWs. The St. Charles Road Improvements Project includes the removal and replacement of curb and gutter, sidewalk, and driveways; removal and replacement of deteriorated manholes, catch basins, inlets, and valve vaults; excavation of existing pavement and the installation of a concrete pavement; pavement striping: restoring the parkways with topsoil and sod and other miscellaneous improvements necessary to complete the project. Based on the on the current and historical uses of properties adjoining St. Charles Road and proposed ROW activities, the PESA was necessary to identify potential environmental concerns during the planning stages of the improvement project. The findings of the PESA were considered during the final planning stages of the improvement project.

As part of base improvement efforts, the Air Force Center for Engineering & Environment (AFCEE) contracted TolTest, Inc. (TolTest) to demolish 75 military family housing unit structures at the Cannon Air Force Base in Clovis, New Mexico. True North was retained by TolTest to assist with a pre-demolition evaluation of roofing materials and interior vermiculite wall insulation. Due to the planned recycling of demolition debris, it was imperative the asbestos content of these materials be determined prior actual demolition activities to comply with federal regulations. True North mobilized to the base and performed sampling of roofing materials and vermiculite insulation at each of the structures and then submitted samples to an environmental laboratory for asbestos-content analysis. True North was then tasked with generating a comprehensive report interpreting the analytical results for these materials. Due to the lack of regulatory guidance associated with vermiculite, True North recognized the importance of this interpretation as wells as the financial ramifications this interpretation will have on the overall demolition project. True North was able to provide a valuable report that documented the results of the limited sampling and provided the necessary guidance for TolTest and AFCEE personnel to determine the appropriate demolition activities required to comply with applicable regulatory standards.

True North was retained by the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County (District) to provide environmental consulting services in relation to the demolition of the former “Cenacle Retreat House” located in Warrenville, Illinois. The 42 acre parcel and associated 80,000 square foot structure was originally developed during the early 1900’s as a resort for the Chicago Telephone Company switchboard operators and was later sold and operated by the Lady of the Cenacle religious order to house various retreats and programs. In 2008, the property was purchased by the District with the intention of demolishing existing structures and returning the property to open green space to be incorporated into the adjacent Blackwell Forest Preserve. True North assisted the District with pre-demolition due-diligence services for the property to identify potential environmental concerns. Upon completion of the pre-demolition survey, True North assisted the District in developing technical specifications for remediation activities, performing bid coordination and procurement, and providing project management and testing services during remedial activities.

Bailey’s Restaurant fed the residents of Park Ridge and the surrounding communities for over 20 years. Faced with the challenges of a weak economy, it needed to sell. After several inquiries from perspective buyers who coveted the property’s location with respect to downtown Park Ridge, the restaurant’s owners agreed to a land lease for a new 5/3 Bank branch.

A former gas station had operated at the property prior to the development of the restaurant and presented a roadblock to redevelopment. True North was retained by the owners of Bailey’s to address the conditions of the lease agreement, which entailed securing a No Further Remediation (NFR) letter for the property. Working with 5/3 Bank’s development consultant and utilizing previously gathered environmental assessment data, True North performed additional environmental assessment activities, coordinated and oversaw the spot removal of soils impacted above soil saturation limits and prepared and submitted the required Site Remediation Program (SRP) reports within approximately 60 days of project initiation. Second to the expedited turnaround time of True North’s services, was its ability coordinate the activities around the operation of the restaurant. A focused NFR letter was secured for the property within approximately 30 days of submitting all the required reports enabling the Bailey’s owners to execute the land lease with 5/3 Bank.

True North was retained to provide engineering and consulting services to Northern Illinois University in relation to the university’s 2008 capital improvement and energy-efficiency upgrade projects. Services included the structural evaluation and retrofit design for elevated walkways as well as engineering surveys of surface water drainage concerns adjacent to campus buildings. As part of a multi-year phased renovation plan, True North has performed numerous pre-renovation/demolition asbestos surveys to identify potential environmental concerns associated with planned renovation areas and has managed the safe and effective removal of asbestos-containing building materials throughout various campus buildings. True North has been retained to continue working on Northern Illinois University’s 2009 capital improvement and energy-efficiency upgrades project.

In order to protect their financial investment and as a requirement of the conventional, Small Business Administration (SBA) and United State Department of Agricultural (USDA) loan programs, lenders require the performance of environmental due-diligence activities to identify the presence of potential environmental liabilities at potential investment assets.

True North works with lenders to identify and mitigate their exposure to environmental liabilities through the performance of Phase I Environmental Site Assessments and Phase II Site Investigations at numerous sites across the country including California, Colorado, Oregon, Washington, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Michigan, Missouri and Georgia. Whether its vacant parcels of land, large industrial facilities or multi-site portfolios spanning several states, True North has demonstrated the responsiveness and expertise necessary to protect the investment of lenders and their clients.