To the Editors,
I read of a proposal to redevelop the strip of land between Main Street North/Hwy. #6 and Tuscarora Street in Hagersville that was the former CASO (Canada Southern Railway) subdivision.
Dabirian Homes, a Toronto real estate developer, has applied to build two units comprising of 249 apartments and six townhouses.
Now some of you who are, like me, “long in the tooth,” and remember when not only there were double railway tracks there, those double tracks were part of one of North America’s busiest rail networks.
CASO was completed in 1873, leased in 1881 for 10 years by the Michigan Central Railway (MCRR), then a subsidiary of the New York Central (NYC), and that lease was renewed in 1891 for 999 years. NYC then made massive investment into the CASO’s infrastructure, including double-tracking the entire 250-plus miles of the line. CASO subdivision was an almost virtual straight line from Buffalo to Detroit, so trains going from New York to Chicago could save as much as four hours using this route.
For over 80 years, especially during wars, CASO was a very important and busy rail link.
As rail traffic declined so did the importance of CASO. After CN/CP bought it in 1985, the tracks were pulled up around 1995.
As everyone knows, trains run on rails, which sit on hardwood ties. To preserve the ties from rain and snow, they are soaked in creosote, a by-product of the crude oil refining process. While creosote is flammable, it can only be ignited using an accelerant. However, creosote is known to be highly carcinogenic.
Some residents will remember 20 to 25 years ago, shortly after the CASO tracks were pulled up, a developer bought that same strip of land. They wanted to build a small strip mall with apartments above.
This developer had the soil extensively tested and it was found to contain unsafe levels of several carcinogenic chemicals, including creosote. After learning it could cost over $1 million to remediate the site to make it safe, they abandoned the project.
Now, to ask the $64,000 questions: was that strip ever remediated? Is Dabirian Homes aware of the environmental risks? Has Dabirian Homes undertaken any soil testing to ensure that the site is safe?
I would not like to live or work in a building constructed in or on contaminated soil.
Does Haldimand County want to run the risk of having our own version of Niagara Falls, NY’s “Love Canal?” Hooker Chemical in Niagara Falls, NY buried chemical waste in an unused industrial canal around the late 1940s, selling it to a local school board in 1953. It became a housing subdivision. After residents suffered for years from chronic diseases, cancer, etc., black ooze forcing its way to the surface in yards and playgrounds, eventually the entire “Love Canal” subdivision was abandoned. This area has been under remediation for over 30 years. However, as the effects of the chemical contamination has continued to affect residents around the area, no one will ever be allowed to build anything there ever again.
Does Haldimand County want to allow history to repeat itself?
I just hope the proper environmental and soil testing has been done.
Allison Gowling,
formerly of Haldimand, now in Woodstock, ON.
