The Broadway Center Laundry site is located at 1217 Broadway Avenue, approximately three blocks south of the Boise State Broncos football stadium. DEQ discovered in July 2000 that the operator of the laundry facility had been pouring dry cleaner separator water and/or contaminated condensate into a storm drain located in the site’s south parking area. The separator water and/or condensate was contaminated with the dry cleaning solvent tetrachloroethene (perc, PCE, perchloroethylene, or tetrachloroethylene). The manager of the dry cleaning facility informed DEQ that the illegal disposal activity had occurred over an extended, but indeterminate number of years. The dry cleaner is no longer in business, and the DBSI Broadway Plaza Limited Partnership (DBSI), as the site owner, has taken responsibility for the site.

DBSI began investigating the site in June 2001, intending to characterize and remediate the releases to the storm drain. In April 2003, DBSI entered into a Voluntary Consent Order to address contamination associated with the Broadway Center Laundry Site. DBSI investigated both the release site and the ground water downgradient of the release site. The ground water investigation revealed that a plume of contaminated ground water had migrated off-site to the north and west of the Broadway Center Laundry location.

DBSI proposed source removal and monitoring to address this plume. On October 10, 2005, DBSI’s contractor began removal of the contaminated soil. The contractor removed the storm drain system. The excavation was roughly 44 feet long, 20 feet wide, and 7 feet deep. Approximately 200 cubic yards of fill material (storm drain components) and soils were removed from the source area. This effort to remove the source met and exceeded the DEQ-established cleanup criteria.

While the source area has been removed, DEQ determined that the off-site plume has not been adequately characterized and that the proposal for off-site remediation through monitoring cannot be accepted at this time. DEQ is continuing to work with DBSI to achieve the terms and goals of the Voluntary Consent Order.