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Brownfields  2005

 Grant  Fact  Sheet

      Ingham County

          Brownfield

     Redevelopment

        Authority, Ml

EPA Brownfields Program
EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states, commu-
nities, and other stakeholders in economic development
to work together to prevent, assess, safely clean up,
and sustainably reuse brownfields. Abrownfield site is
real property, the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse
of which may be complicated by the presence or
potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant,
or contaminant. On January 11, 2002, President George
W. Bush signed into law the Small Business Liability
Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act. Under the
Brownfields Law, EPA provides financial assistance to
eligible applicants through four competitive grant
programs: assessment grants, revolving loan fund
grants, cleanup grants, and job training grants. Addi-
tionally, funding support is provided to state and tribal
response programs through a separate mechanism.
Community Description
The Ingham County Brownfield Redevelopment
Authority (ICBRA) was selected to receive a
brownfields assessment grant. Ingham County (popula-
tion 279,320) has a history of successful economic
development in its urban and rural communities, largely
based on automobile and other manufacturing indus-
tries in mid-Michigan. The erosion of these industries
has left the county with abandoned and blighted
properties that have deterred private investment. The
Michigan Department of Environmental Quality lists 67
                                 Assessment Grant
                                 $200,000 for petroleum
                                 EPA has selected the Ingham County Brownfield
                                 Redevelopment Authority for a brownfields
                                 assessment grant. Petroleum funds will be used to
                                 develop a community-wide brownfields inventory,
                                 support public outreach activities, complete ten
                                 Phase I and II environmental site assessments,
                                 and develop remediation plans for up to two sites.
                                 The focus will be on abandoned properties in
                                 downtown and central business districts of the
                                 county.
                                 Contacts
                                 For further information, including specific grant
                                 contacts, additional grant information, brownfields
                                 news and events, and publications and links, visit
                                 the EPA Brownfields web site at: www.epa.gov/
                                 brownfields.
                                 EPA Region 5 Brownfields Team
                                 312-886-7576
                                 http://www.epa.gov/R5Brownfields/
                                 Grant Recipient: Ingham County Brownfield
                                 Redevelopment Authority, MI
                                 517-676-7285
                                 The cooperative agreement for this grant has not
                                 yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described
                                 in this fact sheet are subject to change.
                              known sites in the county impacted by hazardous
                              materials and leaking underground storage tanks.
                              There also are several suspected sites not included on
                              the list. The county's poverty rate is approximately 15
                              percent. The social, economic, and health problems
                              associated with disinvestment trends are especially
                              severe for the residents of the low-income housing
                              adjacent to industrial operations in the targeted commu-
                              nities. The ICBRA includes all of the cities, villages,
                              and townships (total population 113,667) in the county,
                              except Lansing and East Lansing. By assessing the
                              brownfields properties, the ICBRA expects to lower
                                                Solid Waste and
                                                Emergency Response
                                                (5105T)
                                                      EPA560-F-05-186
                                                      May 2005
                                                      www.epa.gov/brownfields

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the risk profile of the impacted properties and induce
developers to put some of these sites back on the tax
rolls. This will improve the fiscal strength of the
municipalities and reduce demand for greenfield
redevelopment.

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