December 5, 2012 THE VILLADOM TIMES IV • Page 3 Mahwah Environmental engineer hired for Crossroads plan by Frank J. McMahon The Mahwah Planning Board has approved the hiring of Birdsall Services Group, an engineering and environmental consulting firm, to advise the board on water, sewer, and environmental issues at the site of the proposed Crossroads mall on Route 17. Crossroads Developers LLC plans to build a 600,000 square foot retail town center near the Sheraton Mahwah Hotel. The mall would surround the hotel on the 140-acre International Crossroads property and would include two big box stores with three smaller anchor store buildings, a tenplex theater, 200,000 square feet of retail shops along a pedestrian oriented corridor, and an athletic field. According to planning board member Ward Donigian, who with Board Chairman Todd Sherer and Vice Chairman Jerry Crean served on the board’s subcommittee that chose the engineering firm, BSG will advise the board on the installation of the water and sewer lines and evaluate the impact of the proposed detention basins on the ground water at the site. The engineering consulting firm will also evaluate the potential impact of the contaminated soil that may be capped at the site for its impact on the township’s potable water wells and the Ramapo River. Donigian advised that the township’s water/sewer utility engineering firm, Malcolm Pirnie/Arcadis, could not serve in that capacity because of a conflict of interest since its parent company is the consulting firm for the Ford Motor Company, which is still responsible for cleaning up contamination at the subject property. BSG has offices throughout New York and New Jersey and serves the engineering and environmental consulting needs and overall goals of property owners in the private and public sectors. The firm is the engineer of record for redevelopment of this 18-acre oceanfront site known as Pier Village in Long Branch. That development included the complete demolition of the existing infrastructure and the construction of 120,000 square feet of retail space, 562 residential units, two multi-level parking garages, bulkheads, and the construction of 30,000 square feet of boardwalk along the Atlantic Ocean. In June, two experts for Crossroads Developers testified before the planning board and claimed that the water runoff from the site after it is developed will be reduced and that the site is environmentally safe for development. Michael Junghans, a civil engineer, testified that the drainage plan for the site calls for a 75 percent reduction in rainwater runoff during a storm that might occur every two years, a 59 percent reduction in runoff during a 10-year storm, and a 49 percent reduction in runoff during a 100-year storm, which would be a greater reduction than required by the township. Junghans said the quality of the runoff would be controlled by pre-treating the water before it reaches a number of ponds to be located on the site as depositories and will allow infiltration into the ground that will further improve the quality of the water that will ultimately be contributed to the Ramapo River. He said the proposed plans for handling the runoff are all accepted practices by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. Robert Crespi, an attorney and environmental expert for the developer, told the board he was retained to evaluate the site and to work with the Ford Motor Company, which continues to test the site for contamination. When the soil was last tested in 2005, he said, there were very low levels of a dry cleaning type fluid and benzene, which were just above the permitted limit, and Ford will continue to come back and sample the wells it installed on the site to make sure the water satisfies all groundwater standards. Crespi said he does not anticipate any soil problems at the site, but issues could be discovered during construction, as is the case at many constriction sites. If any contamination is discovered by the contractor, he said all work at the site would stop until remediation had been completed. Donigian voiced concern at that June meeting about the proposed athletic field to be constructed over an area that may contain contaminated soil. He suggested that a risk assessment be conducted to make sure there would be no risk to having an athletic field there.