Framingham, Eversource agree to $500K contaminated site settlement
Google
Land owned by Eversource on Irving Street in Framingham.
Framingham and Boston-based utility company Eversource have agreed to a $500,000 settlement after the town claimed the company failed to cleanup a contaminated site it acquired nearly a decade ago.
The settlement, agreed to Tuesday, settles a long-standing legal fight centered on a 22-acre Irving Street site Eversource acquired in 2008. Landscape Depot, a landscaping supply company, now occupies a portion of the site.
NStar, as Eversource was previously known as, took ownership of the site and the town agreed to forgive about $460,000 in interest and penalties and Eversource agreed to undertake an extensive cleaning of the site, which was formerly a gas and tar manufacturing plant until the 1960s.
Town Counsel Christopher Petrini said at Tuesday's Board of Selectmen meeting the company failed to meet a 2010 deadline, and the town subsequently attempted to recoup the money it had forgiven. The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection issued a notice of noncompliance, Petrini said.
Nearly a decade later, the parties have settled on the $500,000 to be paid by the end of the month, Petrini said. Further, the company has agreed to pursue a diligent cleanup, follow environmental laws, and keep town officials informed of any MassDEP filings.
“This, I believe, is a favorable outcome,” Petrini said.
In a statement, Eversource spokeswoman Rhiannon D'Angelo said the company was pleased with the agreement.
"We're pleased with the board's decision and look forward to continuing to work closely with the town going forward," she said.
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments