United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, D.C. 20460
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5101)
EPA 500-F-98-253
November 1998
www.epa.gov/brownfields/
&EPA
Brownfields Showcase
Community
Baltimore, MD
Outreach and Special Projects Staff (5101)
Quick Reference Fact Sheet
Brownfields are abandoned, idled or underused industrial and commercial properties where expansion or redevelopment is
complicated by real or perceived contamination. In May 1997, Vice President Gore announced a Brownfields National Partnership
to bring together the resources of more than 15 federal agencies to address local cleanup and reuse issues in a more
coordinated manner. This multi-agency partnership has pledged support to 16 "Brownfields Showcase Communities"models
demonstrating the benefits of collaborative activity on brownfields. The designated Brownfields Showcase Communities are
distributed across the country and vary by size, resources, and community type. A wide range of support will be leveraged,
depending on the particular needs of each Showcase Community.
BACKGROUND
The Brownfields National Partnership has selected the City
of Baltimore as a Brownfields Showcase Community. The
city has identified 1,000 acres of vacant and underutilized
former industrial sites located throughout Baltimore as
potential brownfields. More than 400 of these acres reside
in the city's federal Empowerment Zone (EZ).
Baltimore's Brownfields Initiative targets properties in the
Fairfield and Canton areas, as well as sites in East Baltimore
and the southeast and southwest sections of the city, for
cleanupand redevelopment. Fairfield and Canton fell within
the federal EZ. Residents in these low-income,minority
communities have been affected by disinvestment and the
loss ofjob opportunities,
population decline, a
rise in violentcrime and
high school dropout
rates, and harmful
environmental
conditions which affect
public health.
of its Brownfields Initiative. Community outreach is also a
key element of the initiative.
CURRENT ACTIVITIES AND ACHIEVEMENTS
Since the inception ofBaltimore's Brownfields Initiative, more
than 30 sites have been assessed. Four sites are currently
participating in Maryland's voluntary cleanup program (VCP),
and one site has received its liability assurance letter. High-
lights ofBaltimore's brownfields redevelopment program
include:
Developing a comprehensive geographic information
system (GIS) inventory of more than 300 vacant and
underutilizedcommercial andindustrial sites;
Community Profile
Baltimore, Maryland
Baltimore has
attempted to tackle
these issues by
engaging stakeholders and developing cooperative
partnerships with federal, state, and local agencies as part
Since the Baltimore Brownfields
Initiative began, more than 30 sites
have been assessed through
federal, state, local, and private
partnerships. These partners have
committed significant resources to
brownfields redevelopment,
including an $11.5 million private
investment to convert a brownfield
into an industrial center.
Establishing the $3 million
Empower Baltimore
Brownfields Loan and Grant
Programfortherevitalization
of brownfields in the city's
EZ;
Cleaning up and
redeveloping the 3 3-acre
former ASARCO site in
Canton, which has attracted
$11.5 million in private
investment, andhas resulted inthe creation of ISOnewfull-
time permanentjobs. The site is now an industrial center;
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Working with Baltimore County on regional interests in
brownfieldsredevelopmentandcommunityrevitalization.
Baltimore has formed partnerships with federal, state and
local entities to comprehensively address brownfields issues.
Partnerships include:
U.S. EPA, which awarded Baltimore a Brownfields
Assessment Demonstration Pilot and a Brownfields
Cleanup Revolving Loan Fund Pilot;
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
(HUD), which designatedafederalEmpowermentZone
inBaltimore;
State agencies, including the Maryland Department of
the Environment (MDE) and Maryland Department of
Business and Economic Development (DEED);
Local entities, including the Baltimore Development
Corporation, theDepartmentofPublicWorks,1heHeal1h
Department,1heDepartmentofHousingandCommunity
Development, andlheEmpowerBaltimore Management
Corporation. The Department of Planning oversees
Baltimore' s Brownfields Initiative; and
Community groups such as the Southeast Community
Organization, the Baltimore Urban League, and Jubilee
Baltimore, as well as academic institutions such as
Morgan State University.
SHOWCASE COMMUNITY OBJECTIVES AND
PLANNED ACTIVITIES
Baltimore plans to use the Showcase Communities project
to further accesstechnical and financial resources that would
help bring many of its ongoing brownfields redevelopment
projects to completion. The city's short-term goals are to:
increase employment opportunities in locations accessible
to lower-income populations; cleanup long-standing potential
threats to public health and the environment; protect the
environment, especially the Chesapeake Bay watershed;
better accommodate employment-generating growth in
already developed areas, thereby taking advantage of
previously built infrastructure; develop more efficient land
use patterns, thus promoting non-"sprawl" development
patterns; and increase revenue for the city by rebuilding its
tax base.
Baltimore is committed to demonstrating that through inter-
governmental and inter-agency cooperation,
community-driven brownfields cleanup and redevelopment,
leading to neighborhood and urban revitalization, is possible.
Contacts
Department of Planning
City of Baltimore
(410)396-8356
Regional Brownfields Team
U.S. EPA-Region 3
(215)814-3129
For more information on the Brownfields Showcase Communities,
visit the EPA Brownfields web site at:
http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/showcase.htm
Brownfields Showcase Community
November 1998
Baltimore, Maryland
EPA 500-F-98-253
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