Burger/Goodwood PFAS Remediation
.png.aspx "BurgerGoodwoodPFASbanner-(5).png")
Project engineers, Prein & Newhof, keep a frequently updated webpage for the project. Cascade Township will continue to send out periodic eblasts with updates and reminders, as well as keep this page up-to-date.
If you are interested in receiving email updates regarding the PFAS Remediation Water Extension Project, click here to subscribe to the PFAS e-news list.
Jump down to: Phase Two - Other Phase Two Info - Phase Two Tree Removal
Water Filtration System Removal - Groundwater Restrictions - Previous Updates - Useful Links
Phase Two Update- Updated 3.20.25
Phase Two
CL Trucking & Excavating began work on Phase II of the Burger/Goodwood PFAS Remediation Water Project on August 19th, 2024 and made great progress before pausing for the winter. With a contractual completion date of November 1, 2025; Phase Two is set to begin mid-April of 2025.
Beginning in mid-April, crews anticipate installation of the new watermain on Maplecrest Dr, Maplecrest Ct, Sandy Lane Dr and Sandy Lane Ct and on Aqua Fria Ct. May will likely bring watermain installation on Forest Valley Dr, Forest Valley Ct, Oak Creek Ct, and White Oak Ct with Burger Dr and Thornapple River Dr South in June and Thornapple River Dr North in July. Storm sewer will be installed on Thornapple River Dr north in August as well as all other uncompleted tie-ins, services, and restoration. Water service taps will be completed for each segment, on a rolling basis, after the main has been pressure tested and chlorinated. Crews will also be addressing restorative efforts in completed areas within the 2024 work locations where grass growth has not been established or restoration concerns remain.
Residents who have not yet obtained a quote for their water service connection are encouraged to contact McDonald Plumbing for a property-specific quote. Please note that once excavation begins, it may take up to a month before the work is completed and irrigation systems are restored.
McDonald Plumbing Contact info:
Grace Thumser – (616) 698-6771
As a reminder, the work McDonald Plumbing will be providing will be paid for by the project, not residents. The only fee homeowners would be responsible for is the difference in price if they choose copper for the private portion of the water service, rather than the plastic version that is covered by the project, and any costs associated with retaining their well for irrigation, if they choose to do so.
If residents are concerned with meter and/or service sizing for their home, we recommend they discuss their concerns with McDonald Plumbing when they receive a quote for the property. Residents can also contact Lawrence Olson with the City of Grand Rapids (lolson@grand-rapids.mi.us) as he can also assist with proper sizing.
Property owners should be aware that many irrigation systems will likely be damaged and have lines/zones removed or severed. As part of the contract, CL Trucking and Excavating will be coordinating with an irrigation company to repair these systems at no cost to the property owner.
If you have any concerns regarding the project, please reach out to the project email account at goodwoodwater@gmail.com.
Other Phase Two Information
Unlike the grants that funded Phase I, the Drinking Water State Revolving Funds (DWSRF) obtained for Phase II do not allow multiple plumbing contractors to complete the connections from the road to the residences. McDonald Plumbing was the low bidder for these private side connections and was awarded the contract for all Phase II services.
The Kent County Road Commission enforces standard construction specifications for soil erosion and sedimentation control on all projects within its jurisdiction. Many residents have asked about the black and orange fabric bags placed in some catch basins within the project area. These bags are required by the road commission to prevent dirt and construction debris from entering the storm system, which could restrict sewer capacity during wet weather.
Contractors are responsible for maintaining and emptying these bags as needed. However, they cannot be removed until the road commission determines that grass growth has been sufficiently reestablished to prevent further construction debris from entering the system.
Please continue directing questions on Phase Two of the project to goodwoodwater@gmail.com.
Phase Two Tree Removal
The Township recent sent letters to residences who had one or more trees removed as part of Phase 2 in order to initiate tree restoration. The Township will work with any eligible residences who respond and develop a plan for restoration.
Whole Home Water Filtration System Removal
Residences that had a whole home water filtration system installed due to PFAS contamination have the opportunity to keep the filtration system and take on full responsibility for system maintenance and disposal. Since there is generally a high cost to remove and dispose of the filtration systems, we are requiring all residences who want to keep their whole home filtration system to sign a filter agreement, transferring the title of the filtration system to the homeowner. There will not be an additional cost to the resident from the Township to keep the whole home filtration system. If this is something you are interested in, please email goodwoodwater@gmail.com for a copy of the form and further information.
Groundwater Restrictions
At the beginning of the Goodwood/Berger PFAS investigation, there was discussion that the township may adopt a Groundwater Use Ordinance, like the one adopted in Plainfield Township. Cascade Township does not currently intend to pass any type of Groundwater Use Ordinance because, unlike Plainfield, Cascade was able to secure enough grant funding from the state and federal government to cover the project without requiring the same magnitude of funding from the party at fault which the township identifies as the Gerald R Ford International Airport. Plainfield Township passed a Groundwater Use Ordinance as part of their agreement with Wolverine World Wide that provided for PFAS cleanup costs.
This means that Cascade Township will not be requiring residents to cap their wells or hook up to city water at this time. If the state were to require this type of ordinance in the future, the situation would become more complicated. Depending on the circumstances, the Township may be able to ask the GR Ford Airport to pay for well capping as part of remediation, but that depends on how many years down the line this legislation would be adopted and what it required.
There is already a portion of Cascade Township's ordinance that addresses required city water connections at residences where it is available:
§ 313-83. Public water connection required. [Amended 12-22-1993 by Ord. No. 18-1993; 6-13-2018 by Ord. No. 5-2018]
C. All existing single-family residential structures and multifamily residential structures, including such structures which are covered by an existing Special Assessment District for public water, shall be required to connect to available public water:
(1) When there is a major repair required of the private well, as determined by the Kent County Health Department.
Failure of a well would constitute a 'major repair', as determined by the health department, and would require connection to 'available public water', as defined earlier in the ordinance.
§ 313-82. Definitions. As used in this Part 6, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated: AVAILABLE PUBLIC WATER — Public water pipes located in a right-of-way, easement, highway, street, or public way which crosses, joins, or abuts upon the property and passing not more than 300 feet at the nearest point from a structure.
This means that if your property is closer than 300 ft from public water utilities, whether they were available prior to this project or were installed as a result of this project, and your well fails, you won't be allowed to drill a new well. In this circumstance you would have to move onto city water and there isn't any guarantee that government funding would be available at that time; this would put the monetary burden of connection to city water on the property.
The Township is not currently planning to impose water testing requirements at residences that do not connect during the project.
Project Contacts
A list of contacts for the project can be found on the left-hand side of the Prein & Newhof project page here: https://www.preinnewhof.com/construction_projects/goodwood-watermain/.
If you don’t see your question/answer above, you can always reach out to the project email address at goodwoodwater@gmail.com.
Previous Updates
Phase Two Update- 10.11.24
View the Phase Two update regarding watermain Ridgemont Ct, Tricklewood Dr, and Woodbrook Dr connecting to watermain in 2024.
Phase Two Update- 9.5.24
View the Phase Two update regarding watermain on Oak Tree Dr and Forest Valley Dr (from Oak Tree Dr to the valve on the east side of Forest Valley Court connecting to watermain in 2024.
Phase Two Update- 7.30.24
View the letter sent to Phase One and Phase Two residents regarding Phase One completion and Phase Two beginning.
Phase One Closeout Letter - 5.21.24
View the letter sent to all Phase One residents explaining that Phase One of the project would be ending and what they would need to do if they still wanted to connect to municipal water as part of the project.
Project Update - 11.28.23
View the complete 11.28.23 project update for historical information on Phase One tree restoration, whole home water filtration system removal, Phase Two tree removal, keeping wells for irrigation and accessing clean water until municipal water connections are complete.
Project Update - 2.08.23
View the 2.08.23 project update for answers to common questions about connecting to the water system as well as information about keeping wells for irrigation and accessing clean water until the connections are made.
Project Timeline - 10.12.22
Due to circumstances outside of the Township’s control, the construction contractor for the Cascade PFAS Remediation Water Extension Project has indicated that construction on this project will now commence in spring of 2023. The Township is working with the City of Grand Rapids, project contractors, and project engineers to ensure this delay does not effect the agreed upon completion date of the project and that clean water is brought to the neighborhood as soon as possible. We will provide another update with more information as soon as one is available.
Project Timeline - 10.05.22
Water main connections are set to begin on 10.10.22. Check out our most updated project timeline for more information.
Visit the P&N Construction Update Page
In addition to this project page maintained by Cascade Township, Prein & Newhof is also maintaining a project page which will be updated regularly regarding weekly work schedules once the project begins.
September 7 & October 12, 2022 - Residential Connection FAQ Map outlining project phases
August 2, 2022 - Project update
June 10, 2022 - Update of the project schedule
May 31, 2022 - Update to the project plan
June 19, 2020 - EGLE update regarding residential well sampling
February 19, 2020 - Update #4 - Cascade Township Residential Drinking Water Well Sampling
November 15, 2019 - Update #3 - Cascade Township Residential Drinking Water Well Sampling
August 5, 2019 - Update # 2 - Cascade Township Residential Drinking Water Well Sampling
May 16, 2019 - Update #1 - Cascade Township Residential Drinking Water Well Sampling​
March 12, 2019 - The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality conducted an evaluation of residential drinking wells for PFAS compounds in approximately 50 homes along the Trout Creek area east of the 36th Street exits off I-96 and west of Tricklewood Drive. Residents previously sampled as part of the efforts by Gerald R. Ford International Airport or Lacks Industries were not resampled. Residents who provided independent PFAS results below 5 ppt were not contacted.
Register for future updates from MDEQ on the “Cascade Township Residential Wells Sampling and PFAS Analysis” listserv.
Full news release
September 26, 2018 - Airport Residential Well Testing Results Statement
June 29, 2018 - Kent County Health Department news release advising against the ingestion of foam on the Thornapple River. Sample set results can be viewed here.
June 15, 2018 - State of Michigan PFAS Health Advisory Level & Cleanup Criteria Report from GR Ford Airport's multi-step evaluation process to assess the protential presence of PFAS on airport property.
May 31, 2018 - Airport testing process details as they near the conclusion of the sample collection phase
April 19, 2018 - The Township learned of potential PFAS contamination caused by a fire-retardant material, known as the AFFF, at the airport, Cascade Charter Township hired Fleis & VandenBrink to test the two wells that serve Cascade Township Park, located at 3810 Thornapple River Dr. SE. Test results determined no amount of PFAS was detected in the wells that serve the park. See the summary of the report and the full report.
March 30, 2018 - Previous Township Manager Ben Swayze spoke with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality and learned:
- March 29 - The DEQ did not have confirmation of PFAS contamination in or around the Gerald R. Ford International Airport.
- The DEQ formally asked the airport to conduct an investigation into the chemicals used in firefighting foam. This process included soil sampling and aquifer profiling in order to map out the potential for contamination.
- The DEQ was the first contact for residents and could be reached at the Environmental Assistance Center at 800.662.9278. The DEQ did not advised residents to drink bottled water or to have their wells tested at that time.
- Residents interested in the state’s response to PFAS in Northern Kent County can find more information here.
In partnership with the City of Grand Rapids, the Township applied for and was awarded a $5 million grant to begin the extension of municipal water service to the Trout Creek area, where drinking wells have been contaminated with PFAS. In addition, the state of Michigan has provided $1.65 million for the project. This funding ensures phase 1 of the project can begin in 2022. The Township and other project partners are pursuing funding for phase 2 of the project, which is expected to be completed in 2023.
If you are interested in receiving email updates regarding the PFAS Remediation Water Extension Project, click here to subscribe to the PFAS e-news list.
Useful Links
/pdf-icon.aspx)
PFAS Grant Application
PFAS Project Map
Safe Water for Cascade - PFAS Community Forum Presentation
PFAS Meeting - Letter to Residents
Watermain Plans
Community Meeting - Prepared Slides
Gerald R. Ford International Airport Contact Info
February 3, 2022 Citizens Meeting Video Recording
PFAS Citizens Committee Agendas/Packets - This committee meets the first Thursday of every other month at 4:00 p.m. at the Cascade Township Office (5920 Tahoe Dr. SE).
State of Michigan PFAS Action Response Team - Cascade Township
State of Michigan PFAS Action Response Team - Gerald R. Ford International Airport