&EPA
United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, D.C. 20460
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5101)
EPA500-F-98-135
May 1998
Assessment
Demonstration Pilot
Chelsea, 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. Since 1995, EPA has funded more than 150 Brownfields Assessment
Demonstration 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
EPAhas selected the City of ChelseaforaBrownfields
Pilot. Chelsea is a waterfront suburb of Boston.
Approximately one-third of the city's 2.2 square
miles is commercial or industrial land that once
housed heavy industries or currently serves as
industrial storage. Many of these sites in the city are
vacantorunderusedpropertiespreventing safe public
access to the city's waterfront and border the city's
residential neighborhoods. Nearly one-quarter of the
city's 28,710 residents live below the poverty line,
per capita and household incomes are two-thirds of
the state average, and unemployment is 2% higher
than the state average. In addition, almost half of the
city's residents are minorities.
The Pilot will focus on the 43-acre Everett Avenue
Urban Renewal District. The district comprises the
highest concentration of contiguous, underused land
in the city and is located near the regional highway
system, downtown Boston, Logan Airport, and other
recently redeveloped land. The area is characterized
by unknown contamination and a fear of liability,
which has hindered cleanup and redevelopment.
PILOT SNAPSHOT
Chelsea, Massachusetts
Date of Announcement:
May 1998
Amount: $200,000
Profile: The Pilot targets
two demonstration sites
within the Everett Avenue
Urban Renewal District.
The District is comprised
of 43 acres of
underdeveloped industrial
and commercial land.
Contacts:
Department of Planning
and Development
City of Chelsea
(617)889-8233
Regional Brownfields Team
U.S. EPA-Region 1
(617)573-9681
Visit the EPA Region 1 Brownfields web site at:
http://www.epa.gov/region01/remed/brnfld/
For further information, including specific Pilot contacts,
additional Pilot information, brownfields news and events, and
publications and links, visit the EPA Brownfields web site at:
http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/
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OBJECTIVES
The city's objective is to unlock the economic
potential of the Everett Avenue Urban Renewal
District's brownfields by conducting environmental
assessments, and educating and involving local
residents. The Pilot will assess and plan for the
cleanup of an 8-acre portion of the 43-acre targeted
area that the city will acquire through negotiation or
eminent domain in early 1998. The Pilot also will
conduct initial site investigations in the publicly-
owned areas of the remaining 35 acres of the district,
to gather information to support efforts to persuade
private property owners that cleanup and
redevelopment is a viable option.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND ACTIVITIES
Activities planned as part of this Pilot include:
• Reviewing the results of a previously conducted
preliminary investigation of the Everett Avenue
Urban Renewal District, in order to guide Pilot
sampling activities;
• Conducting detailed sampling in the eight-acre
portion of the target area to characterize the extent
and degree of contamination and the risks to human
health and the environment;
• Preparing cleanup plans for the eight-acre parcel to
facilitate redevelopment;
• Conducting limited sampling of publicly-owned
land in the remaining 3 5-acre target area; and
• Performing community outreach, including
supporting public meetings, and communicating
the results of environmental testing in the district.
The cooperative agreement for this Pilot has not yet been
negotiated; therefore, activities described in this fact sheet
are subject to change.
Brownfields Assessment Demonstration Pilot Chelsea, Massachusetts
May 1998 EPA 500-F-98-135
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