Soaring view of $10M cleanup at destroyed 12-acre Finley warehouse. It’s not over yet

Demolition crews have nearly erased the charred wreckage left by a fire that smoldered for two months, destroying the Lineage cold storage warehouse in Finley this spring.

Four months later, excavators continue to tear out the concrete foundation of the half million-square-foot vegetable warehouse. The cost of the cleanup was valued at $10 million.

Pre-fire, the building was assessed at about $24 million for property tax purposes.

Most of the estimated 90,000 tons of debris, including the ghostly remains of metal framing, at 224905 E. Bowles Road, has been removed.

Lineage, the global logistics company that owns the warehouse near Kennewick, confirmed to the Tri-City Herald last week that cleanup work should be finished by mid-October.

Benton County building permits show Lineage hired Signal USA LLC to clean up the site.

Lineage has not publicly shared what, if any, plan it has to redevelop the property.

It operates several cold storage facilities in Richland, Pasco and elsewhere in the Mid-Columbia, catering to french fry and food processors.

“At this time, demolition and cleanup efforts are our primary focus, and our team onsite has implemented a variety of dust control strategies, including applying water to areas where work is being done,” the company said in a statement released by its public relations firm.

Waste concrete is not being crushed on the property, it added.

The Lineage fire began April 21 and destroyed a building that once covered 12 acres. It stored ready-to-ship produce, including potatoes, corn, carrots and peas.

The fire continued to burn for weeks after Benton Fire District 1 crews had trouble reaching the center of the building. The blaze has been regarded as one of the largest structure fires in Northwest history.

Area residents have reported health issues stemming from the ongoing exposure to smoke. Neighbors who live within a mile of the property may be be eligible for reimbursement for expenses for having to move to a hotel room, through a Department of Commerce Emergency response grant.

The deadline to complete the survey has been extended to Sept. 6. Surveys were mailed in red, white and blue envelopes in early August. They can be completed in English or Spanish.

Go to the “Lineage Fire Response” section of bfhd.wa.gov for survey and other post-fire details.