Testing of the ground underneath a south Evanston park where a landfill once stood revealed methane levels were minimal and harmless, Evanston fire department Chief Greg Klaiber said in a presentation to City Council on Tuesday night.

After testing of the area around James Park revealed high concentrations of methane gas, the city hired a firm to conduct tests in March 2014 at sites 50 feet below the surface at indoor and outdoor locations around the parks, including Dawes Elementary School, 440 Dodge Ave., the Levy Senior Center, 300 Dodge Ave., and some businesses on Howard Street. Klaiber told council the testing found methane levels to be minimal.

“What we have found were zero or negligible levels of methane gas inside the facilities, as well as outside,” he said. “We’re nowhere near (explosive levels). I believe there’s no imminent threat to public safety in or around James Park and the facilities.”

The city began monitoring the park and its surrounding neighborhood after testing of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago site at 3500 Howard St. in Skokie showed the presence of methane gas.

“When I found out that there was high levels of methane gas below the surface in this area, my number one concern, of course, is public safety,” Klaiber told the council. “Methane gas is a compressed gas. It is an asphyxiant, it’s colorless and odorless. So problems can occur in a confined space.”

He also updated the council on Evanston’s Lovelace Park, where testing showed similar low levels to James Park of methane gas.

“Dependent upon what we find and the source of the methane at James Park, will kind of determine what action we’re going to take moving forward at Lovelace Park,” he said.

Klaiber said he met on Monday with users of James Park, including sports teams, to deliver the same report on methane levels.

The city will continue to ensure that the community is well informed on the matter, city manager Wally Bobkiewicz said. However, Ald. Ann Rainey (8th), whose ward contains James Park, voiced her displeasure with the public outreach thus far and said she wasn’t aware of a meeting on the issue that Bobkiewicz said was scheduled for Thursday.

Bobkiewicz also updated council on a meeting with members of Community Animal Rescue Effort to talk about the funds they raised when operating out of the Evanston Animal Shelter. Although the meeting with CARE didn’t result in a definite answer on what to do with the money, Bobkiewicz said he was hopeful the dialogue would continue in the future.

“I really bring no firm decisions or firm commitments from CARE,” he said. “However, I think the atmosphere of the meeting indicated that there was some willingness on their part to have additional discussions.”

CARE’s relationship with Evanston ended following a vote by aldermen at an April 8 council meeting.

(City Council votes to cut ties with CARE)

The decision followed a series of negotiations between CARE and the city, in which aldermen put forward revised policies that CARE would have to follow in order to stay in Evanston. When those failed, City Council ordered the organization to stop its work at the shelter and vacate the premises by early May.

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