EPA FINDS KEYSOR IS SUPERFUND SITE ACREAGE NEEDS CLEANUP, SAY FEDERAL EXPERTS.

Byline: JUDY O'ROURKE Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA -- A former plastics plant -- a site eligible for federal Superfund cleanup money because of chemicals remaining in the soil and groundwater -- has been on the market for about six months. Asking price: $35 million.

But there are contradictory reports about pollution on the land just off San Fernando Road, where Keysor-Century Corp. operated for decades. On Thursday, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a report saying the property qualifies for federal cleanup funds.

Dennis Verner, who represents the seller, said Thursday he was told private environmental studies conducted three years ago had shown no problems.

The current owner, the Saugus Industrial Center, owned by Hank Arklin, bought the land from a bankrupt Keysor in December 2003 for $4.5 million and has several tenants with leases.

Ventura-based RAMCO Environmental ran tests on the land before Arklin bought it and removed some sumps left by Keysor that held toxins, according to the EPA report. RAMCO determined there was no pollution in the soil but was unsuccessful in sinking test wells to check groundwater, the report said.

contamination,'' said Dennis Verner of SCV Commercial Services.

But the EPA has since found cancer-causing chemicals used in Keysor's PVC-manufacturing business in the soil and groundwater. Matt Mitguard, project manager for the EPA Superfund, said the problem is a serious one requiring cleanup.

Arklin declined Thursday to comment, referring calls to Alex Palmer of RAMCO. Palmer said he has signed confidentiality agreements with Arklin and Keysor and was unable to comment.

For decades, Keysor Century Corp. manufactured polyvinyl chloride used in making record albums and other plastics. The EPA classifies vinyl chloride, a gas used in making PVCs, as a carcinogen.

In August 2004, Keysor officials pleaded guilty to felony charges of violating environmental laws by releasing chemicals into the air and spewing toxic wastewater into the Santa Clara River over a number of years. Keysor paid $4.3 million in civil and criminal penalties and issued a public apology. The company ceased operations and filed for bankruptcy in 2003.

The EPA began its on-site investigation in June 2005, and its report -- released Thursday -- said cancer-causing chemicals remain at the former Keysor property, southeast of the junction of Bouquet Canyon Road and Soledad Canyon Road. The EPA's report says RAMCO completed a preliminary site investigation in November 2003, a month before the property was sold.

Nearby, the nearly 1,000-acre contaminated Whittaker-Bermite property sold in June for $63.8 million to two buyers who plan to clean and develop the property, in the heart of town. A development plan was approved years ago for the site, but the new owners will likely seek changes.

Meanwhile, the Keysor property remains on the market.

Verner said industrial-zoned properties are fetching $1 million an acre. About three-quarters of the nearly 35-acre Keysor parcel is hilly, and the three or four buildings still standing are considered tear-downs, he said.

The city of Santa Clarita owns about 220 acres that touch Keysor land on one side and Whittaker on the other. Cleanup at Bermite has begun.

Verner said the city would like to have a say in future development at the industrial center site, to ensure that it is in keeping with Bermite's plans. He said the Whittaker sale seems to have spurred some interest in the property.

``Everybody's waiting to see what will happen with Whittaker, and the possibility of moving the railroad tracks,'' he said. ``If they move the railroad tracks, it would give the property I'm selling frontage on San Fernando Road.''

Last month, the city announced that it will study rerouting a curving stretch of railroad tracks at Bouquet Junction to allow trains to run faster and save millions in bridge-building costs when a nearby road is extended through the Bermite site.

judy.orourke(at)dailynews.com

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