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                           O
  Brownfields  2005

  Grant  Fact Sheet

Michigan Department of

  Environmental Quality,

      Grand Rapids, 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 Michigan Department of Environmental Quality
 was selected to receive a brownfields cleanup grant.
 The target site is in the City of Grand Rapids, which
 has a population of 197,846. Between 2000 and 2003,
 the city lost 7,055 jobs, causing unemployment in the
 area to increase to 9.4 percent, higher than the county,
 state, and national averages. Almost 33 percent of its
 residents are minorities, and the family poverty rate is
 almost 12 percent. The community also suffers from a
 multitude of contaminated sites, including two
 Superfund sites and numerous leaking underground
 storage tanks. The two-acre target site is adjacent to
  Cleanup Grant
  $200,000 for hazardous substances
  EPA has selected the Michigan Department of
  Environmental Quality for a brownfields cleanup
  grant. Grant funds will be used to clean up the
  Hoff Industries site at 719 Prospect Avenue in
  Grand Rapids, a former industrial metal plating
  and finishing facility. Funds also will be used for
  demolition of hazardous structures, and for soil
  and groundwater testing.
  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: Michigan Department of
  Environmental Quality
  517-373-4805

  The cooperative agreement for this grant has not
  yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described
  in this fact sheet are subject to change.
houses on two sides and within a mile of 12 schools.
Potential contaminants at the site include heavy metals,
degreasers, solvents, and volatile organic compounds.
Illegal dumping also has occurred at the site. The
cleanup and redevelopment of the target site will
provide jobs for the community, increase the tax base
for the city, and increase property values for neighbor-
ing residents.
                                                Solid Waste and
                                                Emergency Response
                                                (5105T)
                       EPA 560-F-05-098
                       May 2005
                       www.epa.gov/brownfields

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