&EPA SITEF EPA 560-F-10-223 July 2010 Babylon, New York Assessment Grant In a Small, Long Island Town, Three Contiguous Parcels are Prepared for Redevelopment ADDRESS: 8 Andrews Avenue, 5 & 7 North 15th Street, Wyandanch, NY I 1798 PROPERTY SIZE: 0.68 Acres FORMER USE: Parking, storage, manufacturing, community center CURRENT USE: Cleaned, vacant land, ready for redevelopment into the Martin Luther King Jr., Community Health Center EPA GRANT RECIPIENT: The Town of Babylon received a $200,000 Brownfields Petroleum Assessment grant in 2003. PROJECT PARTNERS: State of New York For additional data and geographic information for this and other Brownfields Grants, please visit EPA's Cleanups in My Community: http://iaspub.epa.gov/Cleanups/ PROJECT BACKGROUND: The Town of Babylon (population 200,000) is located approximately 30 miles east of New York City in the southwestern portion of Suffolk County on Long Island. Within the town is the hamlet of Wyandanch (population 10,000), a 4.4-square mile area that is one of the most economically depressed communities in the state and the poorest community in Suffolk County. The town used an EPA Brownfields Petroleum Assessment grant awarded in 2003 to inventory and prioritize area brownfields. As a result, three underutilized and/or idle properties—including a former parking area, a former manufacturing facility, and the site of a dormant community center—were consolidated into a larger property labeled "Site F" and incorporated into the Wyandanch Revitalization Plan. The goal of this plan was to reuse these and other area brownfields, boost the local economy, and improve the quality of life for local residents. KEY ACCOMPLISHMENTS: • Consolidated three underused/vacant properties and incorporated them into the area's revitalization plan. • Completed Phase I and II environmental site assessments that defined areas of contamination and allowed demolition and cleanup to proceed. • Performed demolition and removal of a 2,000-square-foot, two-story structure. • Prepared the consolidated site for redevelopment as a community health center. OUTCOME: Demolition in progress on Site F In addition to funding a local brownfields site inventory, the 2003 EPA Brownfields grant enabled Phase I and II environmental site assessments on the three contiguous properties making up Site F. Additional funding from the State of New York (in the form of a RESTORE NY Communities grant) allowed for demolition and cleanup of an existing structure. The properties have been identified as the future home for the relocation of the Martin Luther King Jr., Community Health Center. In operation since 1968, this facility provides much-needed health care to the community, offering services such as immunizations, social work, diagnostic care, family practice, prenatal, and pediatrics. The reuse of these former brownfields is seen as a critical component to the area's overall revitalization. FOR MORE INFORMATION: Visit the EPA Brownfields Web site at http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/ or call EPA Region 2 at (212) 637-5000 ------- |