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Posted By: mike16239 buying old stations - Thu Jan 10 2019 05:56 PM
hello all I was wondering if anyone out there has ever bought any old stations or garages that had pumps at one time or still have tanks in the ground? I ask because in my little town im from there are 2 properties one used to be a quaker state station that had leaking tanks at one time and the other used to be Chevrolet dealer that sold Texaco gas tanks have been pulled from station but dealer still has at least tank in the ground still just wondering if its even possible to buy places like these or if DEP will set in on you like a pack of hungry wolves. any info would be appreciated.
Posted By: nuts66 Re: buying old stations - Thu Jan 10 2019 08:10 PM
Every state is different. My 2 cents- run away from them
Posted By: gasmansgp Re: buying old stations - Thu Jan 10 2019 10:47 PM
Bad stories is all I ever hear from these types of ventures. Stay away. Paul www.severngaspumps.com
Posted By: Loyd Pierce Re: buying old stations - Thu Jan 10 2019 11:53 PM
Wouldn't buy anything with tanks still in ground. Leaking is worse ,then you will be required to remove soil around them also. Probably won't let you do it just pay for it.
In TN. you would have to hire it out to a company that has EPA blessing. If you are looking at parcel that had tanks and has been removed make sure that it has been tested and got the nod, or you as new owner foots the bill..
Posted By: coltex Re: buying old stations - Fri Jan 11 2019 04:50 AM
I am a real estate developer/investor. Here is some free advice so this and 1.00 will buy you a cup of coffee. Call the state environmental dept. because those (2) properties are already documented and listing on their registry (99% sure). Once the official looks the address/s up, ask them what they are requiring the existing owner to do. Ask what they would require a new owner to do. They will usually tell you and they have a good idea of how much that clean up and testing costs. They will know who does that work in that area of the state and They might even know if there is any govt. money left in that state to do something. You will learn and know a lot about it once you finish the phone call. Then, you can see if you want to take it to the next step. That is my opinion. Good luck.
Posted By: Hardy's Garage Re: buying old stations - Fri Jan 11 2019 02:08 PM
I'm a retired civil engineer and can confirm that you have been given some good advice. Many times the owner of the property at the time spills occurred has gone out of business and no long financial viable. It is safe to assume that if there was a leak then you will need to deal with contaminated soils. Removal of the soils from the site would be very expensive (excavation, impacts to existing utilities and structures can be problematic, haul to an approved/licensed landfill, fill with approved soil, etc.). Check with the appropriate environmental agency (Department of Environmental Conservation in NY) and ask if they have any spill reports. Soil testing will be needed to determine the area of impact and if any contamination has left the site run in the other direction. The property owner of the spill originating site will need to clean all contamination on his site as well as adjacent property. It is also highly likely that any new construction will need to include construction of a sub slab ventilation system which will keep any vapors from entering the existing or new structures.

If you are still interested I would start by asking the current owner to perform a phase one investigation to determine if there were reported spills and request soil tests before considering any purchase.

Please remember that the rules and regulations very state by state and at times even by different regional offices within a state.

As stated above this is free advise which is worth exactly what you paid for it.
Posted By: Jack Sim Re: buying old stations - Sun Jan 13 2019 07:08 AM
I was told that in the late 1980 the Federal Government mandated that all old gas pump tanks were to be removed from the ground by 1998.

Two instances happened here in St. Louis back around 1992. First a manufacturing company had two pumps out behind their building, I had inquired about purchasing them but they said not now. I driving by one day and the pumps were surrounded by a number of people all wearing suits. I inquired about the pump, they were being removed, and I was able the purchase them. After loading them I asked who all these people were. The boss pointed to each one of them saying, he is from the Federal EPA, he or she was from the State EPA, one other was from the County EPA. I asked, how much is all going to cost, they said about $10,000 and that 27 years ago.

The other instance was the QT Oil Company purchased some property to build a station near me. The property included a number of buildings and was shaped like a wedge. Right off one corner there was a old taxi garage and they used to have a gas pump for filling the cabs. Well the contractor started digging holes in the ground to install the new tanks only to discover the dirt below was contaminated with gasoline that had leaked from the tanks at the taxi company. Almost the entire lot the station was to be on, was contaminated and one day that I was passing by I could see that they were down about 20 feet. How much this cost I don't know.

Jack Sim
Posted By: Hardy's Garage Re: buying old stations - Sun Jan 13 2019 01:59 PM
Tanks still remain in the ground in large part because their originating owners are long gone. There are firms that can be hired to use ground penetrating radar to locate tanks, if they exist, at a relatively reasonable cost.
Posted By: Jhaas63 Re: buying old stations - Sun Jan 13 2019 02:38 PM
Whenever you hear a generator type sound by these old stations...typically that is part of the current clean up process.
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