SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO : Soil-Test Funds OKd for Ranch Property

The City Council allocated $14,000 this week for soil testing and chemical analysis of the city’s Swanner Ranch property.

The testing is considered a normal procedure for any land that is in escrow, but there is evidence that there were leaky gas tanks near the two farmhouses on the property, said Councilman Kenneth E. Friess. The city purchased the 42-acre ranch last fall for $6.95 million, but escrow has not yet closed.

“Under state law, the seller must show that the property is clean,” Friess said. “The testing is typically paid for by the seller. We are just advancing the money.”

Friess said the city had no estimate of how much the testing would cost, but the council had decided to allocate an amount not to exceed $14,000. If soil contamination is found, the seller would have to pay to have it cleaned up, he said.

Friess said there was no real concern among council members that any soil contamination would destroy the deal with the Swanner family.

The city purchased the land with money from San Juan Capistrano’s $21-million open space bond sale approved by city voters as Measure D in April, 1990. By approving the measure, the voters agreed to tax themselves to purchase land in the city to be preserved as open space.