United States
                       Environmental
                       Protection Agency
                       Washington, D.C. 20460
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5101)
EPA 500-F-97-022
May 1997

                       National   Brownfields
                       Assessment  Pilot
                                                                Lowell, MA
  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. Between 1995 and 1996, EPA funded 76 National and Regional Brownfields
Assessment Pilots, at up to $200,000 each, to support creative two-year explorations and demonstrations of brownfields
solutions. EPAis funding morethan 27 Pilots in 1997. 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.
PILOT BACKGROUND

EPA selected the City of Lowell for a Brownfields
Pilot. There is very little undeveloped land remaining
in Lowell, making redevelopment of  abandoned
industrial sites necessary to  stimulate economic
revitalization in the community. Lowell is ethnically
diverse, with a 23 percent minority population, and
economically depressed, with a declining population,
18 percent poverty rate, and an unemployment rate
that has increased 5 0 percent over the last eight years.
Lowell has  been designated a Federal  Enterprise
Community.  Many of the brownfields are located
near low-income residential neighborhoods.
Attracting businesses to reuse these sites is needed to
reduce the residential tax burden and create j obs. The
City has had  some  success  in  redeveloping
brownfields, but suspected contamination at many
sites has made it difficult to attract developers.

OBJECTIVES

Through this brownfields effort, Lowell plans to
organize a long-term program to identify and develop
brownfields, educate the  community about
brownfields, and develop and document strategies
for encouraging corporate investment in brownfields
projects overtime. Lowell intends to focus efforts on
overcoming  key obstacles  to brownfields
 PILOT SNAPSHOT
Lowell, Massachusetts
  Date of Award:
  September 1996

  Amount: $200,000

  Site Profile: The Pilot
  targets an industrial area
  near the Merrimack River.
  Previous uses include an
  ash dump, gasoline
  station, vehicle mainte-
  nance facility, and textile
  mills. Some of the
  targeted area is associ-
  ated with a new stadium
  and arena complex.
Contacts:

Carolyn Britt
City of Lowell Division of
Planning and
Development
(508) 970-4276
  Lynne Jennings
  U.S. EPA-Region 1
  (617)573-9634
  jennings.lynne@
  epamail.epa.gov
       Visit the EPA Brownfields Website at:
       http://www.epa.gov/brownfields

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redevelopment already identified  by the  City  in
previous brownfield projects and documenting the
effective strategies  that could be used by other
communities.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND ACTIVITIES

The Pilot has:

• Completed the Phase II site assessments for the two
 properties associated with the new Lowell Stadium
 and Tsongas Arena.

The Pilot is:

• Prioritizing remaining brownfields sites in the City,
 in order to choose 3 to 4 additional sites for in-depth
 assessment. The City will solicit community impact
 into prioritization of the sites.

• Conducting Phase I site assessments on approxi-
 mately 10 high priority sites;

• Conducting Phase II  site  assessments on
 approximately 4 additional high priority sites; and

• Implementing a new, comprehensive brownfield
 education program in the impacted communities.

LEVERAGING OTHER ACTIVITIES

Experience with the Lowell Pilot has been a catalyst
for related activities including the following.

• Construction of two new facilities, the Lowell
 Stadium and Tsongas Arena, is currently underway.

• The  City plans to develop a Funding  Strategy
 Assistance Document to aid other communities by
 describing innovative funding strategies that have
 been used by the City.
 National Brownfields Assessment Pilot                                             Lowell, Massachusetts
 May 1997                                                                     EPA 500-F-97-022

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