United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, D.C. 20460
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5101)
EPA 500-F-99-007
March 1999
www.epa.gov/brownfields/
PA Brownfields Assessment
Demonstration Pilot
Fort Valley, GA
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 200 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
EPA has selected the City of Fort Valley for a
Brownfields Pilot. Fort Valley (population 8,198) is
a small rural community located in the southwest
portion of Peach County, Georgia. The local economy
has been based historically on agricultural production
as well as a few industries such as the Blue Bird
Corporation, the largest school bus producer in the
world. However, the city's economy has become
more diversified, moving away from agricultural
production. The betterjob opportunities and services
associated with the growth of larger neighboring
cities (Macon and Warner Robins) has caused Fort
Valley's downtown business district to lose its local
business base as well as its workforce. The city has
lost 62.5 percent of its locally owned businesses
since 1990. Further, the community has been severely
impacted by environmental issues, including the
presence of two federal Superfund sites and the
presence of contamination in the groundwater. The
stigma of environmental contamination at and beyond
the Superfund sites has limited redevelopment efforts
at the city's vacant properties.
The Fort Valley Redevelopment Zone, which the
Pilot is targeting, is primarily a low- to middle-
income, African-American community that has been
challenged for decades by deteriorating economic
conditions and environmental concerns. The minority
population for the city is 59.2 percent. In October
PILOT SNAPSHOT
Date of Announcement:
March 1999
Amount: $200,000
Profile: The Pilot targets the
economically depressed
downtown business district.
Fort Valley, Georgia
Contacts:
Office of the Mayor
(912)825-8567
Regional Brownfields Team
U.S. EPA-Region 4
(404) 562-8661
Visit the EPA Region 4 Brownfields web site at:
http://www.epa.gov/region4/wastepgs/brownfpgs/bf.htm
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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1998, Peach County had an unemployment rate that
was more than double the state rate. Forty-nine
percent of county residents did not complete high
school. Twenty-five percent of the population is on
public assistance.
OBJECTIVES
Fort Valley's objective is to develop a comprehensive
program to inventory, assess, clean up, and reuse
brownfields sites as part of the city's overall plan to
revitalize its economy and mitigate the community's
concerns over potential environmental contamination.
The Pilot plans extensive community outreach efforts
to collect the input and concerns of local stakeholders
and to reach consensus on redevelopment plans.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND ACTIVITIES
Activities planned as part of this Pilot include:
• Establishing the Fort Valley Brownfields
Redevelopment & Revitalization Initiative Advisory
Group, comprising local stakeholders, to assess
community needs and form a development plan;
• Identifying, establishing an inventory, and ranking
brownfields sites to be targeted for redevelopment,
and entering this information in a geographic
information system (GIS) database;
• Selecting sites and performing Phase I and Phase II
environmental assessments on targeted properties;
• Conducting a community discussion session and at
least three workshops aimed at bringing together
community groups and business leaders to assess
community needs, including environmental justice
concerns, and addressing targeted brownfields
properties; and
• Preparing and implementing community outreach
materials and a brownfields resource guide.
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 Fort Valley, Georgia
March 1999 EPA 500-F-99-007
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