United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, D.C. 20460
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5101)
EPA500-F-97-164
October 1997
&EFR
Regional Brownfields
Assessment Pilot
Phoenix, AZ
Outreach and Special Projects Staff (5101)
Quick Reference Fact Sheet
EPA's Brownfields Economic Redevelopment Initiative is designed to empower States, communities, and other
stakeholders in economic redevelopment to work together in a timely manner to prevent, assess, safely clean up, and
sustainably reuse brownfields. A brownfield is a site, or portion thereof, that has actual or perceived contamination and
an active potential for redevelopment or reuse. Since 1995, EPA has funded more than 120 National and Regional
Brownfields Assessment Pilots, at up to $200,000 each, to support creative two-year explorations and demonstrations
of brownfields solutions. The Pilots are intended to provide EPA, States, Tribes, municipalities, and communities with
useful information and strategies as they continue to seek new methods to promote a unified approach to site assessment,
environmental cleanup, and redevelopment.
BACKGROUND
EPA Region 9 has selected the City of Phoenix for a
Regional Brownfields Pilot. The City's 1990
population was 983,403, twenty-eight percent of
whom are minority. Although brownfields
revitalization is a relatively recent issue for the City,
it has already made progress. For example, the City
recently completed renovation of a homeless persons
shelter at a former State Superfund site. The City is
also in partnership with Federal, State, and local
agencies as well as community organizations and
local businesses to begin urban renewal efforts
related to brownfields revitalization. For instance,
the City is involved in a cooperative effort with the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to determine the
feasibility of habitat restoration along part of the Salt
River. Most of the original habitat along the river has
been lost because of Federal water control and flood
control projects, sand and gravel mining, and urban
development. This project has already begun to
identify candidate sites for environmental restoration
and redevelopment activities.
The City has selected its Federally-designated Enter-
prise Community to be the focus of the Pilot. The Salt
River (Rio Salado) channel bisects the targeted area.
The Rio Salado community is approximately 13
square miles, encompassing several neighborhoods
PILOT SNAPSHOT
Date of Award:
September 1997
Amount: $100,000
Site Profile: The Pilot
targets the 13-square mile
Rio Salado community
that the Salt River bisects,
and other smaller
designated redevelopment
areas in central Phoenix.
Phoenix, Arizona
Contacts:
Donn Stoltzfus
City of Phoenix
Office of Environmental
Programs
(602) 256-5669
dstoltzf@ci.phoenix.az.us
Wallace Woo
U.S. EPA -Region 9
(415)744-1207
woo.wallace®
epamail.epa.gov
Visrt the EPA Brownfields Website at:
http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/
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that the City has targeted for revitalization, including
Rio Vista and South Phoenix Village. A mixture of
deteriorating homes, small industrial properties, aban-
doned structures, and large expanses of vacant land
characterizes the Rio Salado area. This area has a
population of almost 30,000, most of whom (88%)
are Hispanic or African American. Nearly half the
households exist at or below the Federal poverty
level; the unemployment rate is greater than 15 per-
cent. In addition to the Enterprise Community, the
Pilot project will consider projects in several City-
designated redevelopment areas.
OBJECTIVES
The Pilot plans to establish a program to assist private
property owners and developers in overcoming
brownfields obstacles. The City will seek to integrate
the brownfields program with other ongoing social
and economic assistance programs in the project
areas. One objective of the Pilot is to encourage
owners and developers to request City assistance for
their brownfields sites, and to select several high-
priority sites that are good candidates for environ-
mental restoration and redevelopment activities. The
initial community involvement process will educate
community and neighborhood groups about the
brownfields program, and will collect input from
those groups about potential brownfields sites, revi-
talization opportunities, and community issues and
concerns.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND ACTIVITIES
The Pilot will:
• Provide a single City contact to assist brownfields
projects through City permitting processes and be
an internal advocate for brownfields opportunities;
• Coordinate and streamline City development re-
views and economic development efforts for quali-
fying brownfields sites;
• Incorporate brownfields information into City
planning and economic development databases;
• Develop informational resources to assist
brownfields program customers;
• Complete community involvement activities in
targeted areas to solicit community concerns about
brownfields and to identify preferred end uses for
those properties;
• Initiate discussions and cooperation among
stakeholders such as realtors, developers, lenders,
regulatory agencies, utility companies, and
community groups to promote solutions to
brownfields problems; and
• Identify and promote at least one high-profile Pilot
site to highlight the existence and effectiveness of
the "Phoenix Land Recycling Program."
Regional Brownfields Assessment Pilot
October 1997
Phoenix, Arizona
EPA 500-F-97-164
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