River cleanup finally done (sort of)

Cleanup of construction rubble from two old Chico State buildings razed to make way for the university’s new Wildcat Recreation Center is finally complete. As previously reported, three years ago Thomas Carpenter, a demolition contractor, was hired by Otto Construction to demolish and haul away two Chico State warehouses.

Carpenter took the building remains to property he owns along the Sacramento River, and dumped it into and along the river, where it was later discovered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

In stepped the Butte County District Attorney’s Office, which filed 11 felony and misdemeanor charges against Carpenter. He plea-bargained and agreed to pay for the cleanup, which began two years ago. Just recently, the rest of the rubble was excavated and hauled to Knife River Construction on The Skyway.

Otto Construction, making good on the deal for a LEED certificate for the building, is now paying for the cleanup. And Carpenter is about to face more charges, says District Attorney Mike Ramsey. During the latest rubble cleanup, workers discovered drums of hydraulic fluid and oil buried on the property as well.