United States Environmental Protection Agency Washington, D.C. 20460 Solid Waste and Emergency Response (5101) EPA 500-F-00-027 April 2000 www.epa.gov/brownfields/ v>EPA Brownfields Supplemental Assistance Las Vegas, NV Outreach and Special Projects Staff (5105) Quick Reference Fact Sheet EPA's Brownfields Economic Redevelopment Initiative is designed to empower states, communities, and other stakeholders in economic redevelopment to work together in a timely manner to prevent, assess, safely clean up, and sustainably reuse brownfields. A brownfield is a site, or portion thereof, that has actual or perceived contamination and an active potential for redevelopment or reuse. EPA is funding: assessment demonstration pilot programs (each funded up to $200,000 over two years), to assess brownfields sites and to test cleanup and redevelopment models; job training pilot programs (each funded up to $200,000 over two years), to provide training for residents of communities affected by brownfields to facilitate cleanup of brownfields sites and prepare trainees for future employment in the environmental field; and, cleanup revolving loan fund programs (each funded up to $500,000 over five years) to capitalize loan funds to make loans for the environmental cleanup of brownfields. These pilot programs are intended to provide EPA, states, tribes, municipalities, and communities with useful information and strategies as they continue to seek new methods to promote a unified approach to site assessment, environmental cleanup, and redevelopment. BACKGROUND EPA awarded the City of Las Vegas supplemental assistance for its Brownfields Assessment Pilot and additional funding for assessments at brownfields properties to be used for greenspace purposes. The city has targeted four areas in downtown Las Vegas containing a large number of blighted sites. These areas contain the earliest land uses in the city limits and represent a cross section of residential, commercial, entertainment, manufacturing, hotel, and specialty uses. When larger properties became available for development in profitable gaming ventures along the "Strip," the downtown area became less attractive to developers. Many of the properties used to service the downtown area, such as warehouses, distributors, and equipmentyards, eventually fell into disrepair and were abandoned for larger sites south of the city limits. The brownfields study area is home to most of the city's disadvantagedcitizens. Las Vegas (population 29,911) is 56 percent minority, and more than 30 percent of its population lives below the poverty level. The Pilot area sits almost entirely within the City Redevelopment Area; approximately 70 percent of the study area is within a federal Enterprise PILOT SNAPSHOT Las Vegas, Nevada Date of Announcement: March 2000 Amount: $100,000 Greenspace: $50,000 Profile: The Pilot will continue activitiesintheoriginal Assessment Pilottargetarea, including outreach and planning for greenspace purposes. Contacts: RedevelopmentAgency Las Vegas, Nevada (702)229-6100 Regional Brownfields Team U.S. EPA - Region 9 (415)744-2237 Visit the EPA Region 9 Brownfields web site at: http://www.epa.gov/region09/waste/brown/ Forfurther information, including specific Pilotcontacts, additional Pilot information, brownfields news and events, and publications and links, visit the EPA Brownfields web site at: http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/ ------- Community. Many of the most desirable parcels have been acquired, leaving environmentally impaired, underdeveloped parcels in a blighted condition. OBJECTIVES AND PLANNED ACTIVITIES Las Vegas plans to continue activities begun under the original Assessment Pilot as the targeted area continues to experience a slower rate of development compared to the rest of the city. The Pilot will continue outreach to stakeholders, including community groups, and will work with stakeholders to facilitate cleanup and redevelopment. The Pilot will use the greenspace funding to address the lack of open space and greenspace in the targeted areas. Potential projects include creating a three- acre park and sports fields under an elevated section of State Highway 95, an area that is fully encompassed in the Southern Nevada Enterprise Community, and establishing other parks inbrownfields communities. To accomplish these objectives, the Pilot plans to: • Conduct environmental assessments at sites with potential greenspace reuses; • Prepare assessment reports and redevelopment plans; and • Conduct outreach to communities and other stakeholders. The cooperative agreement for this Pilot has not yet been negotiated; therefore, activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change. Brownfields Supplemental Assistance Las Vegas, Nevada April 2000 EPA 500-F-00-027 ------- |