Palouse awaits Brownfield bids

With a Sept. 5 deadline approaching, Palouse has yet to receive a proposal to redevelop the Palouse Brownfields environmental cleanup site on Main Street

What if none come in?

“This is a long process; we'll have to wait and see,” said Palouse Mayor Michael Echanove who has seen many contractors' bids come in during the last hour before a deadline. “I don't get nervous until the afternoon of the due date,” he added.

Formerly the location of a welding shop, gas station and fuel storage facility, a building was razed in 2012 at the quarter-acre site and another dismantled. The spot has since been tested for petroleum and manganese as part of a state Department of Ecology (DOE) program.

Possible development for the lot may include one of four types identified in a 2011 community meeting before the cleanup; urban housing, urban housing with retail on bottom and housing above, light industrial or senior assisted living.