George Heidgerken, an owner of the property, has applied for a voluntary program to clean up the contaminants, which include lead and arsenic, said Scott Rose, a unit manager for the state Department of Ecology.
The state’s review triggers a 30-day public comment period about the contamination starting Monday and continuing through July 6.
The state’s action, released last week, was a periodic review of a cleanup on the property that was finished in 2002, according to the state.
“We determined that the cleanup was no longer protective,” Rose said. “For the time being, the site is fenced off and there’s 24-hour security, so Ecology’s not concerned that there’s any access problems or exposure concerns at the moment.”
Rose said the state reviews such sites every five years, and that the contamination occurred from a former painthouse on the property. He added that the cleanup is not required, but voluntary.
“The reality is that Ecology is not restricting any use of the site,” he said. “It’s merely notifying the property owner that additional cleanup is warranted for the site to meet the ... regulation.”
Heidgerken and business partner, Patrick Rhodes, bought the 1906 brick brewhouse last summer for $1.4 million in cash. The deal included 32 acres surrounding the building and two parking lots. He has considered a number of uses for the site, including a coffee house and brewpub.
Heidgerken said he had hired an environmental expert and that he wanted to rid the site of contaminants. He said the project is coming along; a temporary roof will be installed when the weather cooperates.
“We’re discovering things in that project and that building almost every other day,” he said. “None of them seem to be big problems.”
There are bigger issues — such as access to the site, which now can be reached by a one-lane road.
Heidgerken’s company, It’s the Water LLC, is also in litigation with the owner of the remainder of the brewery property and its real estate agent over Heidgerken’s attempted purchase of additional property at the brewery. Heidgerken wants his $360,000 deposit back and to void the purchase and sale agreement on the deal, which never closed. His company claims that it wasn’t given information about the abandoned brewery’s condition, including the lack of sewer and water service, before the purchase and sale agreement was signed.
Heidgerken said the litigation is tying up money that could be spent on his brewhouse project.
The old Olympia Brewery has sat empty since 2003, when then-owner Miller Brewing Co. closed the plant and eliminated its 400 jobs.
Matt Batcheldor: 360-704-6869
mbatcheldor@theolympian.com
