GALT, CA (MPG) - Galt City Council took a big step forward at its Oct. 7 meeting to remove hazardous conditions on a property just off U.S. Highway 99 that has plagued the city for several years.

By unanimous vote, the council approved a $139,733 contract with current city solid waste and refuse contractor Cal-Waste Recovery Systems to clean up the former A.N.T. Pallet site at the northwest corner of Walnut Avenue and Stockton Boulevard.

The contract also includes a $20,267 contingency for unanticipated costs at the site.

The site has not only been an eyesore but also a hazardous location ever since A.N.T. was legally evicted by the city from the property in May for failure to pay rent. The city acquired the 7.65 acres in 2017 as part of a future Walnut Avenue interchange with Highway 99.

With construction several years off, the city hoped for revenue to assist with the project through extending a lease to A.N.T. in April 2018, but the pallet manufacturer stopped paying rent in summer 2024. Its departure not only resulted in uncollected rent but also what is described by the city as a property in “a very poor, unsafe condition, and a fire and safety hazard.”

During a June 17 meeting discussion on what to do about the site, Galt Public Works Director John Griffin said that one stack of pallets measures 120 feet by 180 feet and 10 feet high, taking up half of a two-acre parcel. Three buildings on site contain asbestos and/or lead-based paint, with some empty barrels and some barrels containing an unknown liquid substance, lying around along with pallets in various condition.

At the Oct. 7 meeting, Galt Mayor Shawn Farmer asked Cal-Waste Recovery Systems Chief Administrative Officer Jack Fiori when the company could start the cleanup, once the contract was approved.

“This has been quite the community hot-button topic, so we’re looking at getting this thing over the goal line,” Farmer said.

Fiori said that onsite buildings require lead and asbestos abatement before proceeding with cleanup. The company has applied for a permit to do this abatement, which takes at least 14 days to complete. Fiori said the company could have the permit in hand as soon as Oct. 17.

“The pallet work, we’re ready to start. That would probably start earlier once the notice to proceed has been provided, so we’re ready to go to work on all facets,” Fiori added.

The onsite wood materials, pallets and wood piles will be ground up and hauled to the DTE Cogeneration facility in Stockton. Cal-Waste Recovery Systems estimates that this part of the project will range from about 7,000 cubic yards to 10,000 cubic yards, with time to grind varying from 35 hours at a cost of $36,226 to 50 hours at a cost of $51,750.

The amount hauled to DTE varies from 7,000 cubic yards amounting to 38 loads to 10,000 cubic yards at 55 loads. DTE charges $154 a load, with the final cost for these items “determined by using the actual grinder hours, truckloads hauled to DTE Cogeneration and bone-dry tons (BDT) received by DTE Cogeneration.”

In its proposal, Cal-Waste Recovery Systems estimates at least 90% of waste materials in this project will be diverted from landfill disposal by hauling to DTE.

“One of the main benefits is we’re not going to be disposing of a lot of the wood waste (in landfills) but, and I don’t want to say repurposing it but reusing it so that we meet a lot of our diversion goals,” Public Works Director Griffin said.

According to California’s Green Building Code, projects such as new construction, demolition and significant additions/alterations must divert at least 65% of their construction and demolition debris from landfills.

Although the contract allows 60 days for cleanup, Fiori said that he anticipates the work can be done in 40 days.

After completion, Griffin said, the only items remaining on site will be a metal warehouse building, utility wells and the septic system for use by a future tenant. Mayor Farmer said that the city already has a tenant lined up, making “timing of the essence.”

“Otherwise, it will be a fairly clean site,” Griffin said, adding new fencing for the location will be provided under a separate contract with another vendor.

At its June 17 meeting, City Council allocated $250,000 for the A.N.T. cleanup. The money comes out of the lease revenue fund paid by A.N.T., which at the time had a current balance of $372,972.

“This is not a loss for the city,” Farmer said at the Oct. 7 meeting. “We still made money for that period of time.”

During the June meeting, City Council also removed language in the resolution authorizing staff to write off $126,000 in uncollectible revenue from the property and added language directing staff to pursue recovery of that amount through the collections process.