RACER Trust Completes Active Remedial Work at Property in Wyoming, Mich.

RACER Trust today announced it has received approval of a No Further Action Report from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality for property in Wyoming, Mich., certifying completion of active environmental cleanup activities at the property, the site of a former General Motors Corp. (“old GM”) stamping plant.

RACER Trust sold the property, at 300 and 301 36th Street, SW, in 2011, but retained responsibility to address and remediate environmental impacts associated with old GM’s ownership and operation of the plant. RACER took title to the property — also referred to as Site 36 — as a result of old GM’s bankruptcy. Old GM ceased operations at the property in 2010, and decommissioning and demolition of structures took place in 2011 and 2012.

The property, with the exception of a 7-acre parcel that was sold in 2013, is now owned by the City of Wyoming Brownfield Redevelopment Authority.

“Our environmental team works very closely with regulatory agencies to ensure that our cleanups are safe, timely and, most important, effective in protecting public health and the environment. For this property, MDEQ was very attentive and responsive, which allowed us to work through issues and complete this cleanup,” said Elliott P. Laws, of EPLET, LLC, administrative trustee of RACER Trust. “Our mission is to help communities that were hurt by the GM bankruptcy and loss of jobs, and we carry out our mission by positioning our properties to maximize their development potential. Securing formal agency acknowledgment that we have completed active environmental cleanup is one way we work to achieve our economic development mission. We wish the community success as it continues its work to bring new investment and jobs to the former stamping plant property.”

“We appreciate RACER Trust’s diligence in completing the necessary environmental cleanup work in a timely and efficient manner,” Wyoming Mayor Jack Poll said. “Completion of environmental activities is one more signal to the market that this property is primed for new development. We look forward to welcoming the additional investment that will benefit our community as a result.”

“This designation of no further remediation is an important milestone in the property’s redevelopment,” said Therese Thill, Vice President of Business Development, The Right Place. “With active remediation now complete, Site 36 will be able to more readily attract companies interested in this large scale, shovel-ready property.”
 
About RACER Trust: RACER (Revitalizing Auto Communities Environmental Response) Trust was created to clean up and position for redevelopment properties and other facilities owned by the former General Motors Corp. before its 2009 bankruptcy. RACER is one of the largest holders of industrial property in the United States and, at the time of its establishment, was the largest environmental response and remediation trust in U.S. history. When the Trust was formed, it owned properties at 89 locations in 14 states, principally in the Midwest and Northeast. The Trust was created by a settlement agreement in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court between the U.S. Government, the 14 states where the former GM properties are located, and the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe, which owns land adjoining the Massena property in Upstate New York. For more information, please visit our website: www.racertrust.org.