CORNING, N.Y. (WENY) -- The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation has plans to investigate soil contamination at two parks in the city of Corning. City manager Mark Ryckman talks about the projects and futures of McKinney and Williams Street parks.

Ryckman says McKinney Park and Williams Street Park have been on the city and state's radar for years now.

After initial investigations revealed toxic metals and other harmful materials found in the soil, it was determined that the DEC needed to take action to remediate contamination and help the city start anew.

A long history of manufacturing is present in the city of Corning. Especially from the glassmaking industry. Enough physical evidence the DEC has gathered from years past shows harmful and toxic materials in the soil.

The DEC's cleanup and redevelopment efforts of contaminated city properties are funded through the State Superfund Program and will be conducted by DEC's contractor, Parsons Engineering of New York.

"We've known about this for the last couple of years and this summer they're going to be doing some more testing to come up with a soil remediation plan and then next summer in 2026, they will remediate the contamination in the parks," said Ryckman.

According to the DEC, past investigations have determined that metals like arsenic, cadmium, lead, other semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs), and ash, brick, and glass (ABG) wastes were found in both parks.

This makes the two parks Class Two sites, meaning there is a threat to public health and the environment. Therefore, action needs to be taken.

However, Corning's city manager, Mark Ryckman, clarified that the parks are safe enough to remain open until further testing begins.

"We've been in contact with DEC and the Department of Health for several years on various sites in the city and their advice is that there's no imminent danger to the public," said Ryckman. "But you should take normal precautions, just like you would in your garden or something [like] that, after you're outdoors, you should wash your hands before you know eating a sandwich or eating a meal no different than any other precaution that you would take."

Ryckman adds that the work the DEC is set to do this summer will ultimately help make Corning safer and allow local officials to make much-needed improvements to local parks in the years to come.

"Remediation of the soils will be 2026 and then [in] 2027 we'll do like new playgrounds and benches and pavilions and those things," said Ryckman. "So the council did make a $50,000 allocation so that the planning department can get a consultant on board to begin that planning work. And so we will be reaching out to the neighborhood in the next couple of months to take community input about what they would like the future of those parks to look like."

McKinney and William Street parks join a long list of Corning properties that are being tested or have already been remediated by the DEC. For example, the Houghton Plot.

Ryckman says the city will reach out to residents who live near the park later this year to conduct walk-throughs of the parks with the planning director and consultants. In doing so, they will be able to determine how the parks will look in a few years based on resident's input.

WENY News spoke with representatives from NYSDEC and received the following statement:

"The New York State Departments of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and Health (DOH) are overseeing the comprehensive investigation and implementation of cleanup actions in Corning associated with the past disposal of waste materials containing Ash, Brick, and/or Glass from historic glassmaking. DEC will continue to oversee the cleanup of properties impacted by this waste and ensure all work is fully protective of public health and the environment."

A fact sheet from the NYSDEC for the Pre-Design Investigation into William Street Park is linked here. As well as a fact sheet for McKinney Park linked here.

More information and background on cleanup efforts in the Corning area can be found here.

Additional site-specific documents provided by the DEC show available information on the DECinfo Locator. Those links are as follows: https://extapps.dec.ny.gov/data/DecDocs/851055/ and https://extapps.dec.ny.gov/data/DecDocs/851056/