United States
Environmental
Protection Agency
Washington, D.C. 20460
Solid Waste
and Emergency
Response(5101)
EPA500-F-99-145
June 1999
www.epa.gov/brownfields/
SEPA
Brownf ields Assessment
Demonstration Pilot
Virginia, MN
Outreach and Special Projects Staff (5101)
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 brownfieldstofacilitatecleanupofbrownfieldssites and preparetrainees for future employmentintheenvironmental
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
EPAhas selected the City of Virginiafor aBrownfields
Pilot. The city is located on the east side of the
Mesabi Iron Range in northeastern Minnesota, a
region that has produced a majority of the country's
iron ore and taconite. However, from 1980-1990 the
industry experienced a downturn, resulting in a 62
percent decline in mining employment that caused
declines in the city's population and other businesses.
Since the economic downturn, the city' s unemployment
and poverty rates, 15.2 and 10.7 percent respectively,
have been among the highest in the state.
Although Virginia (population 9,410) has attempted to
diversify its economy and attract new businesses, the
city has been at a disadvantage due to the lack of
available land for both commercial sites and housing.
Most of the available properties suitable for
development are former industrial sites and mining
buffer areas, which may be contaminated from use as
dump sites while the properties sat idle.
In an effort to initiate brownfields cleanup and
redevelopment, the city established a Brownfields
Task Force in 1998 to identify brownfields sites. The
PILOTSNAPSHOT
Virginia, Minnesota
Contacts:
City of Virginia
City Hall
(218)741-2388
Date of Announcement:
June 1999
Amount: $200,000
Profile: The Pilot targets
three brownfields in the City
of Virginia to be redeveloped
for commercial and
residential use.
Regional Brownfields Team
U.S. EPA - Region 5
(312)353-3161
Visit the EPA Region 5 Brownfields web site at:
http://www.epa.gov/R5Brownfields/
For further information, including specific Pilot contacts,
additional Pilot information, brownfields news and events, and
publications and links, visit the EPA Brownfields web site at:
http://www.epa.gov/brownfields/
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Pilot will target three publicly owned sites within the
Enterprise Mine Area Redevelopment proj ect, located
in buffer zones between the city's residential
neighborhoods and two idle mines and their dumps.
OBJECTIVES
The Pilot's objective is to facilitate revitalization in
Virginia by conducting environmental assessments
on three brownfields that can be cleaned up and
redeveloped as business and low- to moderate-income
residential sites. The Pilot will also complete a
cleanup feasibility study and cleanup action plan for
the sites, and prepare plans for residential
redevelopment and additional infrastructure. The
Pilot will implement its objectives in conjunction with
the city's comprehensive plan that focuses on
economic development by increasing the amount of
land available for development, improving the
aesthetics of the city entrances, and addressing other
environmental issues such as wetlands protection,
storm water management and radon prevention.
ACCOMPLISHMENTS ANDACTIVITIES
Activities planned as part of this Pilot include:
• Conducting Phase I and Phase II environmental
assessments on three sites within the target area;
• Creating a step-by-step minelands cleanup and
redevelopment guide for use by other cities facing
the same redevelopment issues;
• Developing cleanup feasibility studies and cleanup
action plans for the target sites; and
• Sponsoring community forums to encourage public
participation in the assessment, cleanup and
redevelopment plans.
The cooperative agreement for this Pilot has not yet been negotiated;
therefore, activities described in this fact sheet are subject to change.
Brownfields Assessment Demonstration Pilot Virginia, Minnesota
June 1999 EPA500-F-99-145
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