Northwest Indiana Discussion

i think this is a good sign for the future of the expansion. i acknowledge the mayor for not turning his head and allowing b.p. to do business as usual.

he has the residents best interest in mind, which is something the people of hammond are not accustomed to.

HAMMOND | BP cleared a major hurdle Tuesday when the Hammond Redevelopment Commission approved a temporary construction trailer complex that in June was hit with more than a dozen code violations.

The complex was erected to provide office space, storage and parking for more than 300 BP staff members during the refinery's $3.8 million expansion.

But findings by Hammond city inspectors resulted in a stop-work order, halting any progress on the expansion, the first step of which is a new asphalt plant on 129th Street.

When a city official by chance discovered the 21 structures behind a BP warehouse, the complex was found to have been erected without city approval and then cited for both building and health code violations, including raw sewage leaking for a septic system.

"They obviously have a refinery that sits in three different cities and (they use) outside contractors," said Marty Wielgos, chief of staff to Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. on Wednesday. "They didn't realize they were on the Hammond side when setting up these trailers."

Wielgos said the discovery put everything at a standstill until this week.

"As of Monday, there were some limited permits granted so some work can be started at the site," he said.

City Attorney Kris Kantar, meanwhile, gave the green light to the Hammond Redevelopment Commission. Kantar advised the commission on Tuesday that it no longer needed to defer action on approving the site because the city and BP had reached a settlement.

Both parties subsequently agreed to ask the court to continue a hearing on the matter that had been set for Wednesday.

"BP and the city will ask for a continuance for 14 days, at which point we hope to bring the matter to a conclusion," BP spokesman Tom Keilman said Wednesday.

Keilman declined to discuss details of the settlement, saying it is currently under negotiation and it was premature to discuss the terms.

But Wielgos said BP agreed to pay a fine and the city agreed to give the company limited permission to do some work on the site that will enable the city to conduct inspections in a timely manner.

Wielgos declined to say how much of a fine the company will pay because the agreement has not been signed.

Previous reports put the figure as high as $300,000, but Wielgos indicated the city agreed to accept less.

Though they are separate issues, the discovery of code violations at the trailer site prompted the Board of Zoning Appeals to defer action on the asphalt plant because of concerns over the company's compliance with Hammond's health and safety regulations.

The Redevelopment Commission's decision to approve the trailer site and the expected settlement now clear the way for the BZA to consider the $110 million asphalt project.

It is a GOOD sign for Hammond.