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                          Brownfields
                          Supplemental Assistance
                          Escambia  County,  FL
BACKGROUND

EPA awarded Escambia County supplemental assistance
for its Brownfields Assessment Demonstration Pilot.
Located in the far western corner of Florida's panhandle,
Escambia County has a geographical area of 661 square
miles. Palafox Corridor, the  gateway to the  City of
Pensacola (population  4,400), is the  targeted Pilot
community. The areais characterized by old houses, solid
waste transfer stations, and unused railroad spurs.  The
city' s economy, whichis dependant onbusiness generated
from military installations, has suffered economically from
industrial and military reshuffling. Twenty-seven per cent
of the city's residents have annual incomes of less than
$10,000. The combination of low-income employment,
lay-offs in older industries, and contamination at former
industrial sites has set the stage for much needed economic,
environmental, and social redevelopment in Pensacola.

The Palafox Corridor Brownfield Redevelopment Area
encompasses approximately 427 properties and includes
228 vacant acres. The boundaries of the Corridor were
expanded in 2001 to include the sites of the former Town
and County shopping mall and the former Builder's Square
building supply company. The county's long-term goal is
to redevelop the Palafox Corridor into a commercial, light
industrial, or eco-commercial center.

OBJECTIVES AND PLANNED ACTIVITIES

The Pilot will use the supplemental assistance to continue
to address environmental issues by conducting additional
assessments in the brownfield area and encouraging
reinvestment and redevelopment. The original EPA Pilot
completed assessments at five sites in the target area. The
county will use the supplemental funds to conduct Phase
I and Phase II site assessments  on the Town and County
shopping mall and the Builder's  Square building. A seven-
acre, former auto junkyard also  is targeted for assessment
and redevelopment as a transit facility. Another major goal
   PILOT SNAPSHOT
    Escambia County, Florida
Date of Announcement:
May 2002

Amount: $150,000

Profile: The Pilot will target
three additional sites within the
Palafox Corridor Brownfield
Redevelopment Area, which
has suffered economicallyfrom
industrialandmilitary reshuffling.
   Contacts:

   Escambia County
   Neighborhood and
   Environmental Services
   Department
   (850)595-3496
Regional Brownfields Team
U.S. EPA Region 4
(404)562-8661
        Visit the E PA Region 4 Brownfields web site at:
       http://www.epa.gov/region4/waste/bf/index.htm

      Forfurtherinformation,includingspecific Pilot contacts,
    additional Pilot information, brownfields news and events, and
    publications and links, visit the EPA Brownfields web site at:
             www.epa.gov/brownfields

of the supplemental project  will be to encourage
redevelopment and reinvestment by increasing awareness
of the program in Escambia County.

Activities planned as part of this Pilot include:

• Identifying and prioritizing additional sites for assessment;

• Developing site-specific quality assurance plans;

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• Conducting Phase  I  and Phase II environmental
  assessments on three sites;

• Increasing awareness  of the county's brownfields
  program through outreach and community involvement
  activities; and

• Evaluating site cleanup and reuse options and exploring
  models for redevelopment.

ThecooperativeagreementforthisPilothasnotyetbeennegotiated;therefore,
activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change.
                                                              Solid Waste            EPA 500-F-02-089
                                                              and Emergency        May 2002
                                                              Response (5105)       www.epa.gov/brownfields/

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