To the Editor:
I write in support of the acquisition by the Town of Easton of the 444 Sport Hill Road property for the EMS building. Please remember:
- All purchase terms have been vetted; vetting includes vetting by the attorneys for the Town of Easton;
- The purchase agreement allows termination of the agreement without penalty if the town is not satisfied with the environmental testing the town will conduct;
- The environmental testing already conducted by the seller found no evidence of environmental contamination. This is despite the Town Attorney’s view that “In (his) experience, trace or minute amounts of hazardous substances may be found even in virgin forest.” Specifically, prior testing “found no evidence that any spills or releases of hazardous substances have occurred on 444 and found no evidence of any abandoned tanks on 444 and the groundwater test results revealed no evidence of any potential plume in the groundwater.”
- The purchase agreement reliance clause would permit reliance on the testing already conducted, but in an abundance of caution, the town will conduct its own environmental testing to guarantee a fully arms-length transaction from the processes of the seller;
- The purchase price will be paid for not by the citizens of the town but by a $160,000 State Urban Grant Fund; and FINALLY
- The purchase is a necessary process EVEN if the EMS building is NOT renovated with the Covid-19 American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) monies. Please remember the septic system at the current building must be addressed whether or not the building structure changes and the 444 parcel is needed for that purpose.
Based on these facts, continued opposition to this purchase is not only misguided but potentially implicates the health and safety of those who use the building and its systems even if no renovation occurs with ARPA monies.
We need to move forward.
Maureen Williams
Easton
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