Then Sound Transit made her an offer. The land is a prime location for part of the Beacon Hill light rail station, officials told her over a year ago.
But before Sound Transit would buy the property, they had to test the soil. The results came back last fall, and brought bad news for Despi. The soil and ground water on her new property were contaminated with dry cleaning chemicals from Kwik Cleaners, the business formerly at that location, according to Sound Transit. Sound Transit rejected the space, and Despi was stuck with polluted property.
The space borders a residential area, but most folks in the community don't know why the property is vacant--it isn't on the public database of hazardous sites yet.
"I doubt most people know about this," says Albert Kaufman, local environmentalist and Beacon Hill resident.
Though Despi didn't dump the toxins--and didn't know the site was contaminated when she purchased it two years ago for $250,000--she is the current owner, and it's her problem. The Washington State Department of Ecology can't force Despi to clean it up, but will list it on a public database until the pollution is gone.
So Despi hired a lawyer, to negotiate cleanup liability with the previous owner. "I've got two cleanup companies on hold," Despi says. "I need to have the previous owner pay for it." The former owner of Kwik Cleaners did not return our call.
