Brownfields Area-Wide Plannini i Pilot Project Fact Sheet EPA Brownfields Program EPA's Brownfields Program empowers states, communi- ties, and other stakeholders to work together to prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustainably reuse brown- fields. A brownfield 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. In 2002, the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act was passed to help states and communities around the country clean up and revitalize brownfields sites. Un- der this law, EPA provides financial assistance to eligible applicants to assess and clean up brownfield sites. Brownfields Area-Wide Planning Pilot Program EPA is piloting an area-wide planning approach to com- munity brownfield challenges, which recognizes that revitalization of the area surrounding the brownfield site(s) is just as critical to the successful reuse of the property as assessment, cleanup, and redevelopment of an individual site. The pilot program will help further community-based partnership efforts within underserved or economically disadvantaged neighborhoods by confronting local envi- ronmental and public health challenges related to brown- fields, while creating a planning framework to advance economic development and job creation. Pilot Project Description EPA has selected the City and County of Denver as a Brownfields Area-Wide Planning Pilot Program recipient. Denver is targeting the South Platte River Brownfields Area, a quarter-mile buffer along the 10.9-mile river that encompasses approximately 2,040 acres. Within the project area, there are 33 brownfields, coal-fired power plants, and railway corridors. It is home to 88,512 residents. The river bisects the city and flows through 14 neighborhoods. Nearly all of these neighborhoods are more disadvantaged than the city as a whole, and have a higher concentration of minority residents. Denver and the Greenway Foundation Denver, CO Pilot Program Description EPA is awarding approximately $4 million in total across 23 recipients. Recipients will each receive up to approximately $175,000 in EPA cooperative agree- ment and/or direct technical assistance. Assistance will help recipients initiate development of an area- wide plan and identify next steps and resources needed to implement the plan. Contacts For additional information, brownfields news and events, and publications and links, visit the EPA Brownfields Web site (http://www.epa.gov/brownfields). EPA's Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization (202) 566-0633 Assistance Recipient: City and County of Denver, CO (720) 865-5438 The information presented in this fact sheet comes from the project proposal; EPA cannot attest to the ac- curacy of this information. The cooperative agreement and/or direct technical assistance have not yet been negotiated. Activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change. have partnered since the 1970s to clean up industrial sites along the South Platte River, and since 2008, in planning efforts to turn the area into a greenway and waterfront through a River Vision Implementation Plan. The area-wide planning process will identify and prioritize brownfield cleanup projects, assess appropriate land uses for properties, and work with property owners to gather environmen- tal information. Development of the South Platte River Brownfields Area Plan is expected to contain a systematic framework for the assessment, cleanup, and redevelopment of brownfield sites. Solid Waste and Emergency Response (5105T) EPA560-F-10-003E October 2010 www.epa.gov/brownfields ------- |