In January, neighborhood frustration over junked cars and other eyesores prompted the Minneapolis City Council to declare Joe Baker's auto repair business a "municipal problem."

Since Whistleblower first reported on this unusual situation in January, pressure from the city and Hennepin County succeeded in prodding Baker to remove more than 20 tons of rubbish from the property on Como Avenue SE. But the former Joe Baker Auto Service -- owned by the state since May 2008 because Baker failed to pay his taxes -- has become a different kind of municipal problem.

Hennepin County paid $13,950 to a consultant to investigate whether there was a dangerous toxic mess left over from the property's 70 years as a service station and vehicle-repair lot. The study found some contamination underneath the site, but no health hazards. The consultant recommended no more studies. . .