Brownfields Metamorphosis—From
Abandoned Properties to Cultural
Celebrations
CULTURALREUSES
o
ne of the objectives of the Brownfields Pilot Pro-
gram is to enable a community to "take back the land" and
make it not only useful and productive, but something to call
their own—a space or structure that is unique to their com-
munity. Though economic revitalization is the cornerstone of
the Brownfields Program, more and more communities are
looking to redevelop brownfields properties to represent and
preserve their history and culture. Several brownfields com-
munities are in the process of constructing new buildings or
renovating old buildings as museums and cultural and educa-
tional community centers. Many communities also have ef-
forts underway to restore and preserve historic districts. All
of the Brownfields Pilots participating in culture-oriented re-
development target economically distressed communities
where former industrial sites have been passed over for re-
development because of the stigma of environmental con-
tamination.
In the City of Tacoma, Washington, a 1.6-acre brownfield
site is being transformed into the Museum of Glass. The
museum will spotlight an internationally acclaimed local glass
artist, Dale Chihuly, as well as glass artists from around the
world. In 1996, the City of Tacoma was awarded a $200,000
Brownfields Assessment Pilot grant to help encourage eco-
nomic growth and redevelopment of the downtown area, fo-
cusing its efforts on the western side of the Thea Foss Wa-
terway. This area includes a 1.5-mile inlet of the Commence-
ment Bay that was originally developed as an industrial zone,
housing numerous mill and maritime activities and serving as
a terminal for Northern Pacific Railroad. During the last few
decades, this area lost most of its industry, leaving abandoned
buildings, contaminated properties, and high unemployment.
Almost half of the area residents live below the poverty line.
The Pilot conducted assessments at the site and facilitated
the purchase of the property with a provision that the new
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JUSTTHE FACTS:
• In Tacoma, Washington, Brownfields Pilot
assessments of a 1.6-acre brownfield led to a
$1.3 million dollar cleanup and construction
of a $58 million, privately-funded museum.
• A former brownfield is also home to a new
museum inFayetteville, North Carolina—the
$22.5 million, Airborne and Special Operations
Museum (ASOM).
• In Louisville, Kentucky, a former historic street
rail car complex is being transformed into a
$20 million African-American Heritage center
and museum.
.
Though economic revitalization is the
cornerstone of the Brownfields
Program, more and more
communities are looking to redevelop
brownfields properties to represent
and preserve their history and culture.
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CONTACTS:
EPA's Office of Outreach and Special
Projects Staff
(202) 260-4039
Visit the EPA Brownfields web site at:
http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/
owners conduct cleanup using city funds. In 1996, the City of Tacoma
completed the $1.3 million cleanup. Ground was broken in September
2000, and the museum is planning a July 2002 opening. The $58 million
museum is being constructed with all private funding. In addition, the
City of Tacoma is providing $8 million for construction of a parking
garage, a rooftop public plaza, and esplanade. The city, state, and
Federal Highway Administration will provide $4.8 million for a pedes-
trian walkway—the planned "Chihuly Bridge of Glass"—to link the
area to downtown Tacoma. The walkway will complement the Mu-
seum of Glass with large exhibits and displays of unique glass artwork
donated by Dale Chihuly and the Glass Museum, valued at nearly $10
million. The Museum of Glass will be the cornerstone for future water-
way projects in downtown Tacoma.
A new museum recently opened in the City of Fayetteville, North Carolina—the
$22.5 million Airborne and Special Operations Museum (ASOM). Part of the U.S. Army
Museum system, the new 59,000-square-foot museum is located on a 6.6-acre former brownfield
that has been home to gas stations, car lots, and a building used by a local publishing company.
The site's downtown location had been in decline since the 1970s, when businesses, manufac-
turers, and other facilities closed or relocated to outlying areas. This migration created several
brownfields and led to Cumberland County's federal designation as an Urban Distressed Com-
munity. The Fayetteville Brownfields Pilot coordinated the assessment and cleanup activities at
the ASOM site. Environmental site assessments revealed
contamination from asbestos and petroleum, and the
city and the museum shared the cost of cleanup,
which included removal of underground storage
tanks. Funding for the museum came from a
variety of sources, including federal, state,
and county grants, private donations, and
contributions from military associations.
The museum houses displays of the his-
tory, technology, weaponry, and equipment
of the U.S. airborne and special operations
from the first Parachute Test Platoon of the
1940s to modern-day units. The museum is
currently attracting 20,000 visitors each month,
and that number is expected to increase as the state
expands its promotional campaign, including featuring
the museum on the cover of the 2001 state map. The ASOM is
playing a significant part in the economic revitalization of downtown Fayetteville. The Pilot
reports that not far from the museum site, a new, $30 million performing arts center will anchor
redevelopment of the Manufactured Gas Plant site, a 40-acre brownfield that will also be reused
for an amphitheater and greenspace development. Cleanup at this site is scheduled to begin in
the spring of 2002. The performing arts center is being realized through a partnership between
the city and Fayetteville State University, a historically black institution. This project, along with
continued ^
Brownfields Success Story
Cultural Reuses
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response (5105)
EPA-500-F-02-034
April 2002
www.epa.gov/brownfields/
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the ASOM, represents the city's commitment to cultural development, the environment, and improving the
overall quality of life of the citizens of Fayetteville.
There are a number of other cities that have culturally themed redevelopment plans underway. In the City
of Louisville, Kentucky, the Brownfields Assessment Pilot completed site assessment work to facilitate
redevelopment of a former historic street rail car complex, commonly referred to as the "Trolley Barn," into
a $20 million Kentucky Center for African-American Heritage and mu-
seum. This redevelopment project, which is set to be completed
mid-2003, will focus on the historical and cultural contributions of
African-Americans to the entire region and celebrate African-
American art.
Bethlehem Steel's former plant in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania,
will soon be home to the National Museum of Industrial His-
tory, the first museum in the Smithsonian Institution's Affilia-
tion Program. Nearly 100 of the Smithsonian's industrial arti-
facts from the mid-nineteenth century have been loaned to the
museum. They will be displayed at a Preview Center (opening in
spring 2002) until the museum is completed in 2004 or 2005. The
Bethlehem site is a unique twist on the brownfields redevelopment project in that the plant
was able to prevent the site from actually becoming a brownfield by abiding by guidelines set by the federal
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) during the plant's operation.
In Prichard, Alabama, a nineteenth century railroad maintenance building that sits on a brownfield site will
soon be home to the Casey Jones Museum and Park. John Luther "Casey" Jones worked the M&O line
between Mobile, Alabama, and Jackson, Tennessee. The historical preservation museum will present the
story of the legendary folk hero and will feature artifacts representing the history of the railroad.
Several other cities with different types of Brownfields Pilots are redeveloping brownfields into cultural,
educational, and community centers. In Las Vegas, Nevada, a former National Guard Armory site, which
was the first brownfield cleaned up under EPA's Brownfields Revolving Loan Fund, will soon be home to
the East Las Vegas Cultural Center. The Center will be built in a Spanish architecture style and will contain
a senior center as well as a small business incubator. As part of a Targeted Brownfields Assessment in
Honolulu, Hawaii, a waterfront brownfield is home to the Hawaii Children's Discovery Center. The Center,
with three floors of hands-on exhibits, was the first redevelopment project to be completed on the site, and
there are plans for an aquarium and a youth theater as well as a school, housing, and parks. The City of
Santa Fe, New Mexico, is redeveloping a former 50-acre rail yard into a cultural center, recreational park
and plaza, and industrial park. In Worcester, Massachusetts, the Central Massachusetts Economic Devel-
opment Authority (CMEDA) is transforming part of an abandoned mill property into a visitors' center and
museum with a history of the Industrial Revolution theme to celebrate the city's 200-year industrial and
manufacturing history.
All types of EPA's Brownfields Pilots in cities across the country are helping to restore brownfields and the
neighborhoods that surround them into viable communities. These culturally themed brownfields redevel-
opment projects not only promise economic benefits, they also bolster community pride as they celebrate
the unique cultures and histories of their communities.
Brownfields Success Story Solid Waste EPA-500-F-02-034
Cultural Reuses and Emergency April 2002
Response (5105) www.epa.gov/brownfields/
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