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  Brownfields  2007

  Grant  Fact  Sheet

          Harvard,  NE


EPA Brownfields Program

EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states, commu-
nities, and other stakeholders 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 City of Harvard was selected to receive a
brownfields assessment grant. Located in south-central
Nebraska, Harvard (population 998) is a rural commu-
nity where most of its residents commute to larger
employment centers for work. Between 1980 and
2000, the city experienced a downturn in the local
agricultural economy and a significant decline in
population. The city's per capita income is 67 percent
of the state average, and about 54 percent of house-
holds are classified as low-to-moderate income. The
city is targeting sites in the Harvard Courts Residential
Area and the Harvard Central Business District for
assessment. The Courts, a former Department of
Defense barracks community, has evolved into low-
income housing where more than 50 percent of
residents are Hispanic. The Business District contains
 Assessment Grant
 $140,580 for hazardous substances
 EPA has selected the City of Harvard for a
 brownfields assessment grant. Hazardous sub-
 stances grant funds will be used to develop a
 database and inventory of brownfields sites and
 support bilingual community outreach activities.
 Funds also will be used to conduct seven Phase I
 and up to six Phase II environmental site assess-
 ments in the Harvard Courts Residential Area and
 the Harvard Central Business District.
 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 7 Brownfields Team
 800-223-0425
 http://www.epa.gov/region7/cleanup/brownfields/
 index.htm

 Grant Recipient: City of Harvard, NE
 402-772-7101

 The information presented in this fact sheet comes
 from the grant proposal; EPA cannot attest to the
 accuracy of this information. The cooperative
 agreement for the grant has not yet been negoti-
 ated. Therefore, activities described in this fact
 sheet are subject to change.
about 40 acres of abandoned and underused commer-
cial and industrial properties. The city plans to rede-
velop a portion of the Courts area into a much-needed
recreational facility, and has targeted the Business
District for several new commercial and retail devel-
opment projects.
                                                  Solid Waste and
                                                  Emergency Response
                                                  (5105T)
                         EPA 560-F-07-070
                         May 2007
                         www.epa.gov/brownfields

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