TURNERS FALLS — The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection has agreed to take on the cleanup of contaminated soil on First Street that has delayed the development of six affordable homes by Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity.

Montague Assistant Town Administrator Chris Nolan-Zeller and Montague Town Administrator Walter Ramsey said during the July 7 Selectboard meeting that they had had a call with MassDEP officials the week before to discuss the site cleanup. MassDEP has agreed to take on the associated costs for the project, leaving Montague on the hook for $40,000 to hire a licensed site professional from Weston & Sampson to oversee the cleanup rather than the full price, which is estimated to be upward of $250,000.

Montague’s $40,000 will come from its Chapter 40R fund that currently contains $75,000. This funding, provided by the state, came after the town adopted a Smart Growth Overlay District bylaw to incentivize the creation of new housing units during the May 2022 Annual Town Meeting.

“It’s really been an all-hands-on-deck effort to make this project get back on track,” Ramsey said, mentioning that the U.S. Protection Agency and the Franklin Regional Council of Governments (FRCOG) have also been involved, providing extra soil testing and technical support, respectively.

Ramsey said Thursday that the estimated cleanup cost would be upward of $250,000 after factoring in engineering and administrative costs, and MassDEP agreeing to take on the work helps the town and Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity move past this “snag” in the housing project.

Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity became the developers for the First Street project in 2023. The nonprofit estimated it would cost $2 million to develop six detached, two-story, three-bedroom homes that would each cost $334,393.

The organization got funding from the state Neighborhood Stabilization Program, and an environmental study conducted in August 2023 on the 0.65-acre lot by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Volpe Center revealed quantities of arsenic, barium, zinc, benzopyrene and acenaphthylene, delaying construction and requiring further testing and funding for cleanup, per state regulations.

Due to the need for site cleanup, Habitat for Humanity had to return the Neighborhood Stabilization Program grant, as the grant program required that the project be completed within a time frame that would not be feasible after factoring in site cleanup.

Ramsey said that between 110 and 280 cubic feet of soil was identified as containing lead, associated with fill that was used to develop the existing parking lot at the parcel. This would need to be removed before construction can begin, but the impacted soil is relatively limited in scope, Ramsey said.

While a set timeline for the environmental cleanup is still undetermined, Ramsey said, the hope is to start the process sometime this fall.

“We’re just taking this one step at a time,” Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity Executive Director Megan McDonough said Tuesday.

McDonough said the organization will revisit the housing project once the cleanup is complete, which will include public outreach efforts and information sessions for anyone who is interested in living in one of the six units.

Habitat for Humanity has spearheaded housing projects in Montague in the past, including a single-family home that was built on Warner Street in 2012 and two single-family homes that were constructed on L Street in 2009.

McDonough said the people who live in Habitat for Humanity homes are getting a level of stability that comes with homeownership, along with social capital and community connections. For those who are interested in owning a home, Habitat for Humanity takes into account the applicant’s need, their ability to work with the nonprofit as a home is built and their ability to repay the mortgage.

For now, other projects are taking precedence, including a house on Birch Street in Greenfield, which is expected to be completed next year.

“Hopefully, those will be the next ones,” McDonough said about construction of the Turners Falls homes starting after the Greenfield one’s completion.

Erin-Leigh Hoffman can be reached at ehoffman@recorder.com or 413-930-4231.