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
ERA has selected the City of Ogdensburg as a Brownfields
Area-Wide Planning Pilot Program recipient. The city (popula-
tion 12,364) is targeting a corridor of approximately 330 acres
along the waterfront of the St. Lawrence and Oswegatchie
Rivers, which corresponds to its Brownfields Opportunity
Area. Ogdensburg was once a hub of industrial and commercial
activities, but today has areas with high unemployment rates
and is classified by the state as a fiscally distressed city. The
majority of the city's brownfields and vacant lands lie on its
waterfront in the target area, which has more than 15 identified
brownfields and many others suspected of being contami-
Ogdensburg, NY
EPA is awarding approximately
$4 million in total across 23
recipients. Recipients will each
receive up to approximately $175,000 in EPA
cooperative agreement and/or direct technical assis-
tance. Assistance will help recipients initiate devel-
opment 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.aov/brownfieldsy
EPA's Office of Brownfields and Land Revitalization
(202) 566-0633
Assistance Recipient: City of Ogdensburg, NY
(315)393-7150
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.
nated. Poverty rates in neighborhoods of the target area are
as high as 19 percent. In 2009, the city facilitated community
visioning and a community planning and economic develop-
ment summit. The area-wide planning process will build upon
that effort and lead to a Brownfield Action Plan, including a
detailed inventory of brownfields, site conditions and reuse
opportunities, and analysis of existing infrastructure. Develop-
ment of the plan is expected to facilitate community involve-
ment in brownfield cleanup and redevelopment and connect
brownfields reuse to new jobs and recreational resources.
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
(5105T)
EPA560-F-10-003N
October 2010
www.epa.gov/brownfields
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