Feds seek buyer for Arden Hills ammo plant site

The federal government is using a carrot-and-candy-bar approach to spark development of homes, retail stores and more on the 430-acre former Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant site.

Recognizing that industrial contamination remains a barrier to developing the site, the General Services Administration (GSA) on Thursday announced a phased purchase structure that holds out the cleanest, most attractive parcel until the developer "makes significant progress" toward cleaning the rest.

The move, officials said, will ensure that the whole redevelopment tract, a California-shaped strip bordered to the south and west by Interstate 35W and Hwys. 10 and 96, will be purchased and cleaned.

Online bidding for the tract is scheduled to start on Aug. 16, but officials said that date could change. An invitation for bids is expected to be issued within a month.

About 35 people, representing developers, law firms, environmental concerns and state and local government agencies, attended Thursday's panel discussion at Fort Snelling. The panel included representatives of the GSA, Environmental Protection Agency, Ramsey County, MnDOT and the city of Arden Hills.

While the U.S. government remains the responsible party in groundwater and soil cleanup, the sale will put the remaining work with the site's developer. That entity will cooperate with the Army and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to complete the task to fit the intended land use.

The proposed terms will give the developer a deed to the area south of a line just above railroad tracks leading into the site. Excluded are areas known to hold contamination. Those areas, along with the area north to County Rd. H, will be held in a lease arrangement for cleanup.

The GSA would hold out the cleanest parcel -- about 47 acres separated from the bulk of the tract by the Rice Creek Trail corridor -- until the developer or its contractors make "significant progress" toward bringing the two other areas to at least minimum standards.

Once a developer closes on the first portion, it can begin building only in previously cleaned areas, and only for the industrial uses the PCA has approved for the area.

Residential or park development would require more cleanup. Plans still are moving forward for Ramsey County to take possession of 109 acres for a wildlife refuge, trailhead and a trail linking the Hwy. 96 Regional Trail to the Rice Creek North Regional Trail. The city has zoned the tract as mixed commercial on its western side and mixed residential along the eastern side.

GSA Project Manager Kevin Legare said the government wants the land sold as one piece, contaminated areas cleaned, and the sale to bring "a reasonable return" to the government.

Roadblocks remain

In response to a question about possible contamination surprises on the property, Legare said the government will hold sales proceeds in an escrow account that could be accessed to finish cleanup if the buyer defaults on payments. Legare also said bidders will be vetted beforehand, to ensure they have resources and experience to see the job through.

Collins said that, while he understands the Army's and the city's desire to get the whole parcel sold and cleaned, linking expansion to site clean-up "runs in direct conflict" to developers' desire to minimize initial investment while capturing a return as quickly as possible through new development.

The GSA will put together an invitation for bids in the next month, Legare said, to give prospective bidders a chance to gather information.

"It's time to test the market," he said.