Grand Rapids Vapor Intrusion Project COMMUNITY MEETING : TOMORROW @ LINCUP

If you follow any of the local news outlets, chances are you have heard the phrase “Grand Rapids Vapor Intrusion Project” recently.  To summarize, because of some recent environmental testing, it was decided that the residents/businesses located at 401 Hall St. SE, 1168 Madison SE and 1170 Madison SE were to evacuate the premises due to unsafe vapor levels. We would like to notify the community that while some news sources referred to the Southtown Square Apartments (413 Hall St SE) as the source of the vapor leakage, the actual source was a former dry cleaning business that was located in that spot but closed in 1995.

Before LINC UP built the Southtown Apartments, LINC UP Offices and LINC Gallery, they constructed a vapor shield to make sure the buildings would be safe to visit and work in, and so the vapors would not come through the ground and into the buildings.  We want to assure our community that the Southtown Square Apartments (413 Hall St SE), LINC UP Offices and the Soul Food Cafe (1167 Madison SE), the Gallery (341 Hall St SE) and all other offices within those buildings are safe, and unaffected by this recent situation.  Regular testing is performed on these properties, and none have shown signs of vapor leakage.

However, we feel this is a very serious issue that needs to be addressed with the community.  We are asking community members to join us tomorrow, at 341 Hall St SE @ 6pm, at a community meeting to learn more about the situation at hand, what other areas could possibly be affected and ask questions about the safety and well-being of our neighborhood.  See the link below for further details:

EPA, DEQ to hold meeting on SE Grand Rapids vapor levels

Anyone with questions should call EPA On-scene Coordinator Betsy Nightingale at 734-770-8402 or email her at nightingale.elizabeth@epa.gov .