Skateland owner Joe Franco is in a battle to save the Whittier, CA landmark -- if he can come up with $2.1 million to buy the property.

But Franco is facing deep-pockets competition from a group of companies that also is hoping to buy the land, and then demolish the 51-year-old roller rink in order to avoid having to pay $1 million to eliminate air pollution flowing into the rink from a toxic-waste site next door.

The group of companies has been held responsible by federal environmental protection officials for cleaning up the old Omega Chemical Co. site adjacent to Skateland, and for mitigating the toxic fumes coming from the site and polluting the air inside the rink.