Coast Star - October 31, 2002 - Army agees to Evans sewer replacement

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The Coast Star
October 31, 2002

By Andrea Agardy
Page 1, cont. 18

Army agrees to Evans
sewer replacement

By Andrea Agardy

     After being a point of
contention for several years, the
United States Army and Wall
Township have reached an
agreement in which the sanitary
sewers in the historic section of
Camp Evans will be replaced at
the Army's expense.

     Wall Township Mayor Edward
H. Thomson III, Congressman
Chris Smith [R-4], and Infoage
Learning Center Director Fred
Carl met at Camp Evans on
Thursday afternoon to announce
the agreement.

     Under the terms of the
agreement, the Army will bear the
cost - and perform the work -
of replacing the sanitary sewer
line, which the Army removed
after the discovery of mercury
contamination . The replacement
of the sewer line is estimated to
cost $290,000.

     Camp Evans, a 100-acre parcel
of land in Wall Township, was
identified for closure in 1993
under the Base Realignment and
Closure Program [BRAC]. The

property will eventually be
conveyed from the Army to the
Department of the Interior, and
then to Wall Township.

   Several organizations, however,
including Wall Township, have
signed agreements with the Army
and are currently using portions
of the former camp.

    Thirty-seven acres of the
property will be utilized as a
learning center focusing on Camp
Evans' long history in radar and
telecommunications research by
Infoage, a non-profit education
organization. This is the portion
of Camp Evans where the new
sewer lines will be installed .

   Township Administrator Joseph
Verruni said that once the Army
has completed the installation of
the new sewer lines, which is
scheduled to be completed by
April 1, the township will then
assume the responsibility of
installing laterals connecting
several non-historic buildings to
the main line.

See EVANS, PAGE 18

     Although the Army had initially
refused to replace ' the sewer
lines, stating that the effort would
constitute an upgrade of the prop-
erty it was about to turn over to
Wall Township - in violation of
Department of Defense regulations
- the Army was eventually
persuaded to see the township's
position .

     "We have always taken the
position that [replacing] the sew-
ers was' not an -upgrade,"
Township Attorney Roger
McLaughlin said.

     Mr. McLaughlin said sewers
existed on the property when the
township agreed to accept the
land from the Army, adding that
the mercury' contamination was
not discovered until after the
township agreed to accept the
property.

     Mr. McLaughlin said that in
exchange for the replacement of
the sewer lines by the Army, Wall
Township will accept the buildings
on the property in their currrent
condition . He said all the
buildings that were previously
connected to sewer service will be
reconnected by the Army, and
added that the township's public
works department will run sanitary
sewer service to a number of
buildings that were not connected
before the removal of the conta-
minated lines.

     Mr. Verruni echoed Mr.
McLaughlin's remarks, and said
that following a meeting between
township and Department of
Defense officials and
Congressman Smith, the Army
-was convinced that replacing the
sewers would not constitute an
upgrade of the property.

     "Ultimately, the Army did the
right thing for the residents of
Wall Township," Mr. Verruni said,
"so we [the township] can spend
our money on the upkeep of the
buildings rather than on sewers ."

     Mr. McLaughlin and Mr.
Verruni both thanked everyone
involved in the agreement,
Congressman Smith in particular,
for their efforts.

     "Congressman Smith was very,
very helpful," Mr. McLaughlin
said.

    The announcement was also
lauded by Wall residents who
have a long-standing involvement
with Camp Evans.

    Mr. Carl said the Army's about- face on the replacement of the
sewers will benefit Infoage's
fund-raising efforts.

     "It would have been difficult to
ask people to donate money for
buildings where you can't even
use the restroom," Mr. Carl said .
"Asking for donations for a septic
system is not attractive."

     Mr. Carl said that early on in
the process, Infoage was told it
would be getting buildings in
"immediate usable condition,"
and said it was "quite maddening"
when the sewers were removed
and the Army would not agree to
a replacement project.

     "Without septic systems, it
made the Army liars," Mr. Carl
said.

     However, he added, thanks to
the efforts of the Restoration
Advisory Board, Congressman
Smith and the township committee,
"it's a thing of the past ."

     "Needless to say, we're elated,"
said Robert McAllen, chairman of
the Wall Township RAB.
"Without a doubt, the RAB has
tenaciously stuck with the issue
since it was first brought up ."

     Mr. McAllen said RAB mem-
bers - many of whom have been
involved with the board since its
inception in 1994 - "have
worked very, very hard on a num-
ber of projects, including the sew-
ers, which will make the site
much better."

     Mr. McAllen said he sees the
replacement of the sewer lines as
a benefit not only to Wall
Township, but to the Army as
well.

     He said one of the goals of the
RAB, and the goal of Infoage "is
to preserve the legacy of Camp
Evans since it was first turned
over to the Army in 1940 ."

    Mr. McAllen said a number of
secret and top secret projects were
conducted at Camp Evans . He
added that by providing sewer ser-

Congressman Chris Smith

vice to the buildings, the Army
will be helping to preserve its
own "legacy so people know the
Army's efforts . . . to make
America a safe place to be ."

     Mr. McAllen also extended his
gratitude to Maj . Doug Hinnant,
who was one of several Army
officials who attended a meeting
at Camp Evans with township
officials and representatives from
Congressman Smith's office earlier
this summer.

     "If it hadn't been for Doug and
others in [Washington,] D.C., this
probably wouldn't have happened,"
Mr. McAllen said . "At the
end of the day, the Army came
through and did the right thing ."

     Henry Kearney, Fort
Monmouth spokesman, said the
Army's decision to replace the
sewers came following a series of
meetings over the past several
months between Department of
the Army BRAC officials and fed-
eral, state, and local officials.

     After those meetings, Mr.
Kearney said a memorandum of
agreement regarding the sewer
replacement between the Army
and Wall Township was initiated.

     "We want to be as responsive as
possible as we prepare to transfer
the property," Mr. Kearney said.
He added that the Army has
spent $22 million on remediating
environmental issues at Camp
Evans.

     "We've always wanted to work
with the community and be cooperative,
and, as best as possible,
meet the needs of the community"
Mr. Kearney said.

updated August 14, 2004 page created August 14, 2004

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