Restaurant building environmental due diligence: what to check
The restaurant is rarely the problem. The gas station that stood on the corner before it often is.
Why restaurant buildings and pad sites carry this risk
Corner pad sites are prime for both restaurants and fuel. Many fast food buildings stand on lots where a station had tanks pulled in the 1980s and 1990s.
Grease traps are the main operating concern, and they are usually a maintenance issue, not contamination.
What usually turns up
Former gas station on the pad
Often seriousLook for old pump islands in historical aerials and closed tank cases at the address.
Neighboring fuel stations
Worth checkingCorner sites often face one or more stations across the intersection.
Grease traps
Usually minorA maintenance item that rarely becomes an environmental finding, but worth asking about.
What the pre-screen checks for a restaurant building
- Historical aerials and old maps for a prior station or repair shop.
- Tank and leak records for the address and the intersection.
- Cleanup sites within a quarter mile.
- Flood zone for the building and lot.
Pre-screen a property before you spend on a Phase I
A desk review of one address: past uses from historical photos and maps, federal and state environmental records, and flood risk, ready usually within the hour. $100 for one report, or $100/month for 3.
Questions to ask the seller
- What was on this lot before the restaurant?
- Do you have any closure letters for removed tanks?
- When was the grease trap last serviced?
- Any prior Phase I from the original ground lease or loan?
When to order a full Phase I
Order a full Phase I if the pre-screen shows a station or repair shop in the lot's past. A clean history on a newer pad is a good sign.