Did you have to get a soil test?  

Our contractors wife Sandy says hello.  

https://www.meetup.com/san-die...

They have the same soil type as my lot (“Alderwood gravelly sandy loam, 3 to 15% slopes).

A developer buys a property for X amount of dollars, and has to put in all the infrastructure to support the project (underground utilities, roads, curb, gutter, sidewalk, drainage, deal with any environmental concerns, soil stabilization issues, earthquake requirements, cost of a neighborhood park, contribute to a nearby traffic signal, etc. and many unforeseen things) ALL of these things add costs to a development.

They take out the old ones (2), remove some soil, and put in new ones.

The environmental cost of inorganic fertilizer is in 1) the mining of the chemicals, 2) inorganic chems can can kill microbial life and damage overall soil health, and 3) runoff from lawns and ag with chemicals affects nearby water quality.I've been an organic gardener for years and don't use any chemical pesticides on anything.

Is your lender offering a moratorium on your loan for victims of hurricane Sandy??

Decades ago it was a radium factory and the EPA removed about 100,000 tons of soil which was radioactive.

HOW TO KEEP THE CATS OUT OF THE FLOWER BED:   If you have cats in the neighborhood who have discovered your planting beds as a good place for their deposits, lay down chicken wire mesh on top of the soil and cover it lightly with mulch.