Planning Board Opens Brownfields Hearing on $4 Million Cleanup Grant for 70 Maple Street

EAST LONGMEADOW -- January 20, 2026, East Longmeadow eyes $4 million federal cleanup grant for contaminated downtown site. The Planning Board hosted a public hearing Tuesday on the town's EPA brownfields grant application for the 4-acre Carlin Combustion site at 70 Maple Street, vacant since 2014 and acquired by the town through tax foreclosure in 2023. Environmental consultant Lee Rossberg of Weston and Samson said the preferred remediation plan combines operating an existing groundwater barrier and soil vapor extraction system at an estimated $3 million with full excavation of PCB-contaminated soil at roughly $1.5 million, with remediation expected to take up to 10 years from start to site closure. The town council has already appropriated $250,000 toward the project. Town Manager Tom told attendees the town is "not bound by anything whatsoever" in terms of how the cleaned site would ultimately be used or sold.