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statement at our public hearing last week about the health risks of exposure to TCE-contaminated water, even if the water is not used for drinking. Since the city is now aware of TCE contamination in the Twin Lakes area, we have a moral (and perhaps legal) obligation to take appropriate action to protect the public health and the environment. The city should not move forward with the proposed project before a full site characterization and evaluation of these risks is completed. The extent of soil contamination and the costs of cleaning up pollution in the Twin Lakes are still unknown. A significant portion of the site (the property not owned by the developers) has still not even been tested. The city should not agree to pay for any environmental clean-up costs unless the extent of pollution is estimated with as much certainty as possible- that means insisting on actual testing, not relying on estimations based on pollution on other sites. It would be extremely risky and irresponsible for the city to effectively sign a "blank check" for environmental clean-up costs that could end up much higher than anyone currently expects. Once environmental clean-up starts, the city will be required to finish the job before any redevelopment can actually occur. If the costs of clean-up are much higher than expected, or additional environmental problems are discovered that make construction impossible, the city (and taxpayers) will be in a very difficult situation, with no sources of additional tax revenue available. The city will have to face the choice of paying for the clean-up, or letting the land remain undeveloped or partially developed. There will be great pressure on the city to bear the costs in order to make the land productive. The city should not agree in principle to pay for environmental clean- up costs that should be paid by the responsible parties. No effort has been made by either the developers of the city to identify and locate responsible parties who could pay for the clean-up costs. Although some grants are available to help pay for costs of environmental testing and clean up, we can't count on getting them. The current public funding proposal assumes that the city will receive $3 million in grants from other sources. This is an optimistic assumption, without any support or guarantee. The current proposal also lists "city" environmental grants as a possible source of public funding. But the city of Roseville does not give environmental clean-up grants - this is just another way of saying that the developers expect the city to give them the money for the pollution clean-up costs.